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A mother has credited yoga with saving her life after her loss of balance led doctors to discover a huge brain tumor.
Canadian Daphnee Paquin-Katma became increasingly concerned when she couldn't stand on one leg in class - something she had done with ease for years.
The 38-year-old noticed that her balance gradually deteriorated over the course of a year, to the point where she felt off balance just walking. Her hearing also deteriorated.
The yoga teacher, who lives in Poole in Dorset,Finally went to a doctor and was finally diagnosed with a 1.5 inch (3.8 cm) acoustic neuroma.
The benign tumor grows on the vestibulocochlear nerve in the brain, which helps control hearing and balance. If left untreated, it can be fatal.
Ms Paquin-Katma said: "If I hadn't practiced yoga, I wouldn't have noticed anything was wrong."
Acoustic neuromas most commonly occur between the ages of 40 and 60, but can affect people of any age.
Paquin-Katma had been doing yoga for six years when she was diagnosed with the 1.5-inch tumor
She said it was a "huge shock" to find the tumor and she wouldn't have realized anything was wrong if it hadn't been for yoga
Around one in 100,000 Brits and Americans are diagnosed with acoustic neuroma each year. The disease is usually benign and curable.
If the tumor grows large enough, it can put pressure on the brain, causing loss of balance as well as headaches and vision problems.
In extreme cases, dangerous fluid buildup in the brain or life-threatening compression of the cerebellum and brainstem can occur.
Ms. Paquin-Katma, originally from Montreal, Canada, had to undergo a 12-hour operation to remove the tumor.
She was completely deaf and had to support herself with her hands when walking
She decided to return to yoga but said she "really struggled because I had lost so much of my ability."
She trained to be a yoga teacher because she was so grateful that it had saved her life
She has a three-year-old son and runs her own yoga classes in Poole, Dorset
Now fully recovered and with a three-year-old son, she has trained as a yoga teacher and runs her own classes in Poole.
She said: "I did a lot of yoga before my diagnosis and noticed my balance was declining. I couldn't balance on one leg, which made me question my health."
Otherwise, she was generally doing well and it was only her balance that led her to speak to her doctor when he discovered she had a huge tumor.
“It was such a huge shock,” she said. “After my surgery I lost my hearing completely and I walked with my hands in a T shape to help me because my balance was so bad.”
She decided to return to yoga but said she "really struggled because I had lost so much of my ability."
However, she stuck with it and has since improved her balance and said she feels much stronger than before.
Yoga offers a variety of health benefits, with studies showing it improves flexibility, reduces stress and depression, and reduces inflammation.