Polished images, impossible postures, perfect bodies: the image of Western yoga often seems superficial and far removed from its Buddhist origins. For Molly Galipeau, new yoga teacher in Mont-Tremblant, it’s quite the opposite. The philosophy of yoga has taught her to detach from the physical appearance to connect better with the invisible riches. Her journey has not always been easy, but today she appreciates all the challenges she has overcome, thanks to yoga.

Diagnosis and the pandemic

In 2019, Molly was diagnosed with a severe form of alopecia. The auto-immune disease, which is behind the baldness of some men, caused her suddenly to lose all her hair. For the young woman, age 18 at the time, it was hard to accept her new appearance; she cared a lot about how others saw her. Her parents provided financial help to get a good quality wig, but she soon found it uncomfortable.

“I recognize today that it was a good tool for transition. I wore a wig for a few months, but I felt like I was hiding my identity. And it took a lot of management,” Molly says.

Then in March 2020, everything changed. Confined in her parents’ home, Molly did not go out in public and did not wear her wig. To keep her mind busy, she started to follow an online yoga course. She enjoyed this lovely time of the day when she no longer thought of her problems.

“I realized that I was carrying a lot of frustration. I was frustrated towards my body, and angry that it was not able to fight this auto-immune disease,” she explains.

One yoga session at a time, Molly underwent a kind of reconciliation with her body. She became aware of new postures that she could achieve, and learned to respect herself when a posture was not within her reach. The messages of non-violence started to integrate within her.

Letting go and control

Losing control of her physical appearance had incited Molly to recover her mastery, but it’s the “letting go” which, on the contrary, helped her. The overused expression made sense to her when she truly accepted that she could not change her condition, and that she had to extract the best from the situation.

“I understood that everything happens for a reason and that we have more inner strength than we think. My selfesteem has always been my issue, but I’m working on it. I learned to take care of myself, to love myself and to find myself beautiful,” she confides.

Authenticity and connection

Equipped with her new understanding, Molly feels more confident than ever. She wants others to experience yoga, which is such a beneficial practice, and more particularly, love of self. This why she took teacher training in 2022 from an online yoga school. Her local mentor, Mélisande Turpin, helped her a great deal in her personal and professional journey. Now Molly teaches yoga in Mont-Tremblant… a dozen courses a week. She also has a blog where she shares – with authenticity – what’s going on in her life.

“I was really shy before, but it’s changing. The more I open myself up, the more it creates connections. The field of well-being often creates the image that everything is going well, but we all go through difficult times and it’s important to talk about it,” Molly Galipeau concludes, confident and radiant.

To learn more about Molly’s journey: yogi-molly.blog

More from this author by clicking on her photo below.