When Jill Kaminska was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2011, she wasn’t really frightened because she knew it was caught early and she had a great team of doctors to care for her, plus, a particularly sensitive new friend – a canine named JoJo.
After her doctor quickly scheduled a biopsy, once they were certain it was breast cancer, a lumpectomy was scheduled, and the surgeon also removed lymph nodes in her left arm. She then undertook radiation treatments at KU Cancer Center.
“I did not feel I had this big fight with cancer,” Kaminska said. “I had steps to take to get rid of the cancer in my left breast. I did feel stressed because I was working full-time and it was hard for me to give myself a break.”
A few years after the Parkville resident completed treatment, she decided she would give yoga therapy a try at Om Prana Yoga in Parkville, where she met the official greeter, JoJo.
She was a little surprised to find out that JoJo was a yoga therapy dog.
“I am a huge animal lover and right away fell for all four paws,” Kaminska said. “She greeted me and made herself comfortable and therefore, helped me to relax. I believe you cannot heal physically or emotionally if you cannot find some way to deeply relax.”
In 2019, her doctor found lesions on her spine, liver and kidneys and there was concern that the cancer had returned, but the yoga classes helped her feel calmer, stronger, and more positive.
“Yoga truly is my life saver,” Kaminska said. Lesions don’t look good or sound good, especially if you’ve had breast cancer. I did have a liver biopsy and apparently, I just make lesions (no cancer). So, going to yoga class makes me forget about any stress and absolutely makes me feel much, much stronger and positive!”
When JoJo senses someone in the class who may be under stress and needs a shoulder to lean on, he heads directly to those yoga students to offer a helping paw.
“I think JoJo knew I had been through something,” Kaminska said. My surgeries after cancer were not easy and I had an emergency room surgery from a hemorrhage. I think she sensed my body trauma and probably emotional exhaustion.”
Wendy Landry, certified yoga therapist and owner of Om Prana Yoga, adopted JoJo from Friends of Parkville Animal Shelter and she knew the moment she met JoJo that she would work alongside her at the yoga studio.
Kaminska said JoJo showed her how much she cared by staying right beside her in yoga class.
“Her energy is very calming,” Kaminska said. “Wendy would place me in a restorative pose and JoJo would walk over and stay with me. JoJo shares herself during class. I think she will visit your mat if she thinks you need a little love and healing energy.”
Landry said JoJo has a natural Zen calmness about her and Landry sensed that from the moment she met JoJo. “I describe her to people who come in and shop in my store and want to pet her as an extreme introvert,” Landry said. “She doesn’t run up to people or jump on them. She doesn’t bark, unless you are driving a UPS or Fed Ex truck. JoJo sits and observes and reads the room. She picks who she will come cuddle up to in a yoga therapy session and always seems to know exactly who needs that extra love. JoJo is a big dog filled with compassion and care.”
When Landry works with someone in a yoga therapy session, she is not necessarily teaching a yoga pose. She assesses the needs of the client and develops a plan to help them through health challenges, such as cancer or chronic pain. She may work on teaching techniques to breathe better or lifestyle shifts to change postures at work that are causing pain in the body.
“It is completely tailored to the individual’s needs,” Landry said. “A dog in a yoga class wouldn’t make sense nor would there be a need for one. However, in a yoga therapy session, people come in with anxiety, depression and chronic pain. In Jill’s case, she was undergoing tests to rule out cancer and was anxious with what her future held. In these situations, JoJo fits into a yoga therapy session nicely. She holds space for the client to relax while we work together on techniques to relieve stress in the body and mind. For Jill, JoJo was the needed presence for her to be able to let go, relax and calm down in our yoga therapy sessions.”
Kaminska believes the combination of a loving therapy dog, plus the relaxing benefits of yoga has provided the perfect way to deal with illness and anxiety.
“It was, and is, the perfect way to deal with just about anything,” Kaminska said. “JoJo is a loving soul. It really makes you feel good when a large, black dog quietly lies by your side.”
Kaminska is still cancer free and has mammograms and sees her oncologist every year. Her advice for those beginning cancer treatment is to really try and take care of themselves during treatment.
“You cannot heal if you try to continue everything you did before being diagnosed, make yourself a priority,” Kaminska said. “I did not do this in the beginning.”
JoJo plans to continue her dedication to her human’s yoga studio and yoga students, old and new, who, along with everyone else who comes into JoJo’s life can easily answer the question, “Who’s a good dog?