Warrior Pose: How Yoga (Literally) Saved My Life Paperback – May 7, 2013

It may strike one as hokey that this book has one author, but two names on the byline. But, it’s apropos of an autobiography describing the fundamental transformation of a man.Part I is the story of Brad Willis, a journalist on the rise. Willis goes from stumbling into a reporter job at one of the smallest markets in the country to being the Asia bureau foreign correspondent for NBC (National Broadcasting Corporation, one of the largest American television networks.) There’s no mention of yoga in this part of the book. It’s the story of a driven journalist covering major world events. Willis made a name for himself reporting from Soviet occupied Afghanistan in the 80’s. He tells harrowing tales of covering the drug war in Latin America, the Desert Storm Gulf War, and human trafficking in Thailand. He was also one of the few American journalists to visit North Korea. There was nowhere he wouldn’t go for the story, and he took serious risks along the way. His highly driven nature is the one point of consistency throughout the book. Willis is not a man to do anything half-assed, be it following a story or pursuing the yogic path.Then Willis’s world was torn asunder by health problems, and this is the subject of the second part of the autobiography. First, a fall caused a hairline fracture in one his vertebrae that became crippling when Willis refused to take time off from work or to do anything for it. He couldn’t be diverted from his on-the-go foreign correspondent’s pace. Considering the dangerous places Willis traveled, it’s ironic that he initially broke his back on vacation at a Caribbean resort while closing a window during a storm. When the deterioration of his vertebrae made work untenable, he underwent a surgery that failed and left him “permanently disabled.”Then Willis was diagnosed with a cancer in his throat that spread from his tonsils into lymph nodes. On top of the ailments themselves, Willis’s health rapidly declined because he became dependent on painkillers and other prescribed medications, and—against advisement—he began to drink alcohol in conjunction with these meds. Not only did he become hooked on the medications and alcohol, he became dependent on a back brace, a cane, and a lethargic lifestyle that kept the body from healing itself. Yoga is only briefly mentioned in passing in this part of the autobiography.The third part is about Willis’s transformation into the yogi Bhava Ram, and his successful battle against cancer. After an intervention that resulted in drug rehab, he was referred to a pain center at Scripps that employed alternative therapies. (As an aside, the book is in part an indictment of a healthcare system in which this Pain Center both helped many people and was completely unsustainable because insurance companies could reject claims on the basis of the treatments being unconventional—but because it was staffed by medical professionals it was too expensive for most people to afford without insurance. Willis points out that there was never a rejection of any claim for any of the expensive medications or surgery that failed to helped him, but the Pain Center that put him on the road to good health went under due to failure to pay.) The Pain Center was the key to his turn around. After progressing with physical therapy, biofeedback, and—most uninsurable of all—Jin Shin Jyutsu, Willis is introduced to Yoga.The final part charts Willis’s pursuit of yoga both through a series of teachers as well as any books that he can get his hands on. He voraciously reads up on the subject, and begins a sadhana (personal practice) that is marked by all the drive he had earlier given to his journalism career. The practice starts out rough. His muscles have atrophied, his spine curved, and he gained a tremendous amount of weight on a steak, potato, and beer diet mixed with a sedentary lifestyle. However, over the period of a couple years, well beyond when he had been told he would be dead, he transforms his body and his mind through an intense daily practice and an adjustment of his world view.I’d recommend this book for anyone. It will definitely be of interest to yoga practitioners—though don’t be surprised that yoga doesn’t come into play until the final quarter of the book. It could also benefit individuals with serious health problems as a way to reconsider how they approach health and treatment. Willis points out that falling into the role of victim was one of the main killers. He inherited a bad situation through an accidental fall and a case of cancer that he believed was attributable to his experience in Iraq (i.e. related to depleted uranium shells.) However, it was only when he stopped gorging on food, alcohol, and self-pity that he made a turnaround.Even if I wasn’t interested in yoga and alternative approaches to healing, I would’ve found this to be an intensely engaging read. Willis’s journalism career gave him a unique insight into some of the major world events of the 1980s and 90’s. Willis builds lines of tension and sustains them. One wonders what will happen to his marriage to a woman who married one man (a confident and successful foreign correspondent in Hong Kong) and found herself in a marriage with another—first a lethargic addict and then a man who sunk himself hook-line-and-sinker into to the yogic lifestyle. One wonders whether his cancer remission will hold. One wonders whether he can keep clear of the pain meds and stick to the life of a yogi. I haven’t read a book that caught me this much by surprise in some time. I hadn’t heard of this book before I bought it, and didn’t have particularly high expectations, but I quickly became hooked.

This is a very well written and edited book so it's a pleasure to read. More to the point, Mr. Willis put his heart into it. It's a very sincere and personal story.What it is NOT: it's not a guide to learning Yoga nor is it a specific guide to how Yoga will cure your ills. If that's your goal, find other sources. But even in that case, I'd still recommend you read this story.What it IS: Mr. Willis' autobiography.It begins with his career as a television reporter - from its start in northern California to its end in NBC's Hong Kong bureau. His account of this period includes a lot of references to recent history that are interesting in their own right. He includes mention of a back injury during a vacation in the Caribbean that eventually led to most of his illness and to his substance abuse. This section is roughly the first half of the book.I noted that the doctor who examined his back injury when it happened recommended surgery but, due to the press of his career, Mr. Willis put off treatment until it became unavoidable. In other words, he continued traveling the globe with a hairline fracture in a lower vertebra until the vertebra itself broke.That beginning is followed by his description of losing his job with NBC by virtue of being totally disabled by that back injury.The loss of his career and his chronic back pain led to his growing drug and alcohol abuse. Then he developed cancer in his throat. The combination of these left him pretty much housebound and, ultimately, suicidal. His young son became his strongest reason for surviving. This part is roughly the next quarter of the book.Following an "intervention" by family members, he entered a detox/rehab program near his home in San Diego. While he was in this program, where he went through a cold turkey withdrawal from pain killers and alcohol, his sustaining thought was to be a father his son can be proud of. During this period, he was searching for a technique to deal with his questions of self-worth and self-identity. When he got an chance to learn Yoga, he quickly became a dedicated student both because it offered him pain management techniques and because it offered him the chance to re-construct his identity - with an emphasis on spirituality that he hadn't had earlier.His experiences in rehab and his ever-deepening study of and commitment to Yoga as a way of life comprise the final quarter of the story.I found his story very engaging. I can believe that his study of Yoga was very effective in managing his chronic back pain and improving his overall health. Part of that was the dietary changes he made; he went from being a "meatatarian" to vegan in the two years starting with his rehab.What I find a little harder to believe is that Yoga was effective in preventing a recurrence of his late-stage cancer. I won't say that it didn't happen and Mr. Willis certainly believes it did. I'll only say that part of the story seems less likely to me.Despite that cavil, though, I'd recommend this book. I'll be sure that my wife (a victim of both colon and breast cancer) reads it.

There is a great message within this book which is divided into three sections, each building on the previous, as Brads story unfolds. But I feel there is a forth story, one that is unwritten, yet hidden in plain view: it is one of a driven selfishness which pervades the whole book.The power of yoga is clearly demonstrated and without doubt inspirational. A clear message of the rehabilitating strength of yoga is portrayed and how yoga can be transformative in your darkest moments expressed with the incisive sharpness expected from a journalist.The sadness lies in my feeling that Brad drove himself to his own despair and destructive behaviours. And while this same drive helped him though his torment and learning of Yoga, the finale still appears insular and selfish. Brad clearly has a lot of love but it does appear to be given on his own terms. I trust that readers do not see this as a reflection on yoga but on the fragility of us humans.

I cannot put this book down. I ordered it for my Kindle and may well order the hard copy to lend to friends and go back through different parts whenever I want to. The beginning with the adventures of a person working hard to 'be the best' at his dream job was so exciting and well written. I was there with him! Then the second part, where the writer goes through such human emotions of physical pain,'why me', anger and disappointment...I was right there feeling his pain and wondering if I would have the strength to carry on. . the last part of the story with the incredible ascent into Yoga and all the spiritual aspects connected to it made me order a ton of books to learn for myself. This is a human interest story, a history lesson, a biography of a man's journey from earth to hell and eventually to highs and healing one can only dream of. Such strength of character, such sheer determination, such a message of hope for all of us...if Brad Willis can do all of this...surely, we can overcome our struggles in life. This book is not finished and it is one I do not want to stop reading so I would recommend it to anyone over the age of 12 - may they start early and learn their lessons young. Thank you so much Brad Willis and all the best of luck in your future.

This was a impulse purchase and outside the my literary comfort zone, yet I found it difficult to put down. I have only recently taken to practicing yoga from an exercise perspective, yet this has left me wanting much, much more. So much of the author's recovery rang true for me, having previously used hypnosis to overcome that internal destructive voice - but I recognise that as a useful intervention, rather than a solution.Left wanting more and a list of some of the texts that helped in his enlightenment, as so many yoga "bibles!" focus purely on the asanas.

I have not been able to put this book down. I recently discovered Yoga myself, and I am on my own journey. However there was so much in this book and Bhava Rams story that resonated with me. Brad Willis' transformation through Yoga is thoroughly inspirational. I really liked the way that he fully includes you in his journey and didn't hold anything back. I liked the way the book is written in three parts, as this I felt was important to give the overall story context and helps the reader engage with Brad Willis' journey. I would urge anyone with even a mild interest in Yoga to pick up this book. Even for people who know nothing about Yoga this is a truly inspiring story and worth reading. I believe there is a strong message in this book for everyone to find and discover for themselves. Please don't listen to the reviewer who didn't like the way the book was written. I found that its tone and context were spot on. It was written in an engaging way and I really did feel that it was wrtitten from the heart as if Bhava Ram/ Brad Willis had been in the room with me and we were talking over a nice cup of green tea.Bhava Ram: Thank you so much for sharing your story with the world and enabling us the opportunity to learn from your journey. Namaste!

I cannot express the level of gratitude to the author of this book. The story of your life has truly touched me to the very core. I felt like I was living your magnificent story all the way through. This book is not just about yoga, or Bhava's life before it - it's about all of us and the choices that we make. Brava encourages us to make a choice of love and see this world and our lives as a precious and beautiful experience. Thank you Bhava, thank you.