“My passion is to help people enjoy better health through
safe, effective and non-invasive therapies…”
Egbert Gaye
As Covid-19 tightens its grip on Canada and the rest of the world, so too is the sense of dread and panic that is slowly creeping across borders and proliferating a mental health crisis of equal proportions.
In a recent statement, the WHO points to an impending global mental health crisis, as governments around the world cut back on funding for the disease as they struggle against the virus at the same time that an increasing number of people are buckling under fear, worry, and stress.
It’s a phenomenon that is becoming all too familiar to Wanjira Njenga, whose courses on yoga and meditation as well as various forms of massage therapies are geared towards keeping clients poised and centered.
She says much of the responsibility of maintaining good health and emotional wellbeing during these uncertain times remain in our hands.
“Self-care is the new health-care,” says Njenga whose extensive training in fields of meditation, yoga therapy, movement, and fitness started in her native Kenya and continued in her life journeys around the world, in countries such as France, India, and Canada. “The more we take care of ourselves, both mentally and physically, the better prepared we will be to deal with the uncertainties of the pandemic.”
And she offers a few basic coping mechanisms, which she says we can use as corner-stones in our path to attaining optimal health and mental stability during these times and throughout our lifetime.
High on her list is, exercise because she says, a physically fit body is one of the best ways to deal with any of life’s eventualities.
“So it’s important that we exercise regularly in order to maintain body strength.”
She accepts that it’s not always easy for everyone to adopt an exercise regime but says it’s important that they remain mindful of its benefits
“It doesn’t necessarily mean that we have exercise for hours every day, instead we can break it up into segments and find ways to make it part of our daily activities. There are ways that exercise can be an enjoyable experience.”
Njenga, who offers workshops in meditation, mindful eating, restorative yoga, and natural body care adds that finding “down-time” for ourselves is just as vital as is exercise.
“We owe to ourselves to try to connect to the self at a deeper level. And that’s what yoga and meditation allow us to do.”
The west island based teacher says although many might not feel as if they’re ready for structured classes, there’re many other options online that she encourages people to explore.
The benefits of yoga and meditation are lasting and useful to everyone regardless of age or gender.
What’s important she says is for us to build a community of friends or relatives with whom we can work towards our fitness goal.
“It’s a lot easier to build discipline when you’re accountable to someone or a group.”
Njenga was introduced to yoga and meditation in Kenya by an 80-something-year-old woman from India, the mother of a colleague, and a doctor at the hospital where she worked.
She says it was truly a life-changing experience that she continued to explore after moving to France to study and then here in Montreal.
Such was her commitment, that in the early 1990s she was prepared to walk away from a comfortable job as a translator to seek formal training in massage therapy as well as yoga and meditation.
Her extensive training took her to Madurai, India, living among and learning from some of the world’s most accomplished Gurus and emerging as a Sivananda yoga teacher.
Njenga, who speaks five languages and an insatiable appetite for reading starting working in the field in 1997. She is also an accredited aroma-therapist and fitness trainer
Today, with decades of non-stop learning and accumulated experiences along the way, she focuses her training to assist women, especially those in the age group of 45 and over.
They are the ones she says who are more prone to be let down by the medical system.
“For too long I’ve been told by women who say to that when they go to their doctors with various forms of discomfort, they all hear the same opening phrase: “well at your age…” even I have been hearing it. My question to them is: “at my age…. What?”
Convinced that women of all ages have the capacity to “reclaim their best physical, mental, and emotional selves and enjoy good, functional health for life.”
Njenga dedicates a significant chunk of her practice to “keep women 45 years and over strong, fit and injury-free as they journey through all stages of their lives.” This, she says is easily facilitated by her training in movement/yoga with along her 3rd Age and peri –post-menopause health specialization.
Besides, she talks about being an “anatomy buff” a passion that underlines her certification as a reflexologist, reiki practitioner, and massage therapist, with accreditation and membership in the various governing bodies.
“My passion is to help people enjoy better health through safe, effective and non-invasive therapies.”
Overall Njenga says she is guided by her strong belief in our restorative powers.
“I am a firm believer in the body’s capacity to heal itself through the application of natural therapies and remedies.”
She says her hope is that we will all walk away from the Covid-19 experience having learned how to reboot our lives…
“After this, we can’t go back to our old selves.”
Wanjira Njenga usually works out of Studio Wanjira in Kirkland. These days she offers yoga, meditation, fitness, pelvic floor health, and women’s health classes online.
She also offers daily yoga & movement ideas, tips, and educational content on her Instagram and Facebook feeds.
Phone: 514-758-7888 Email: shakti@wanjira.com
Website: www.wanjira.com
