Leanne Coombes - 10/3/2019 

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The Happyness Centre is just that...a happy place. It’s a place where you can find support for both physical and mental health.

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I first learned of it in early April of 2018 after only running in RUNClub for a few weeks. During this 3rd week with RUNClub I wanted to quit; I felt so physically unhealthy and mentally overwhelmed. I was complaining about excruciating shin pain and this person named Mahdu Sai started to run beside me. We talked A LOT about how mental health impacts our physical health. Afterwards he invited me to come to the Happyness Centre for yoga the next evening. He says, “Yoga is the best thing for running.” Where is this place? I never heard of it? Naturally curious, I attended a session even though I had a fear of yoga. To my surprise I wasn’t leaving in an ambulance, literally this had happened! I was so surprised that the yoga could simultaneously give me energy and relaxation. I was excited with the almost immediate impact on my mental health. A few sessions into yoga I learned about the meditation sessions that follow. Why not I asked myself....because this was yoga for the mind. Through running, yoga and meditation I was learning to trust my mind and have faith in my body. Fear is strong but if I was going to get healthier I had to be stronger and face all of it. One of my favourite quotes I reflect on when I’m faced with fear is by Henry Ford, “Whether you think you CAN or you think you CAN’T, you’re RIGHT.”

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After 17 months I have transformed my life from living in pain and loneliness to completing my first 1/2 Marathon in August 2019. The Happyness Centre is the safest place to get healthy.

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