Podmasana: Global Spirituality & Timeless Wisdom Podcast ℠

·E7

Why Not Me? A Carpenter's Journey from Yoga Student to Cancer Warrior ft. Joe McClernon | Podmasana | Ep. 7

February 4
57 mins

Episode Description

Joe McClernon walked into Yoga Patch at 49 seeking stretching tips for his osteoarthritis. He found The Heart of Yoga by TKV Desikachar and realized: "This is exactly what I had needed for a long time. Perhaps all my life." In 2013, he created Slow Flow with Joe for students who felt intimidated by yoga. Then June 2019: stage four prostate cancer. Gleason 10. Doctors gave him 1.5-5 years. His first thought: suicide. His wife saved his life. Six years later, Joe teaches yoga, volunteers at the cancer center, and embodies choosing life and love daily.

Topics: Stage four cancer survival, prostate cancer, Gleason score 10, cancer and yoga, why not me, choosing life, Slow Flow with Joe, TKV Desikachar, The Heart of Yoga, yoga for osteoarthritis, trauma-informed teaching, hands-off teaching, classical music in yoga, eight limbs of yoga, yoga sutras, chemotherapy with positivity, Hawaiian shirts, cancer center volunteer, hope and healing, living with terminal illness, quality of life, positive attitude, fitness and cancer survival, cancer support, patient advocacy, why me vs why not me, facing mortality, grace under pressure, carpentry to yoga, social services background, assisted suicide decision

About Podmasana: More than a podcast, Podmasana is a global journey through the landscape of human spirituality. We weave together transformative personal stories with scholarly depth, exploring how ancient practices illuminate life’s challenges—from grief and illness to aging and adversity. Through carefully curated conversations and compelling narratives, we bridge timeless wisdom with contemporary understanding, offering listeners authentic pathways to consciousness, healing, and the universal threads that bind human experience across cultures and generations.

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Current Release Schedule:

  • New episodes every other Wednesday and Podmasana Preview episodes the following Wednesday

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Chapters

  • (00:00:00) - This Cancer Survivor Learned Yoga Through Slow Flow
  • (00:06:04) - Joe Became a Carpenter at 49
  • (00:12:02) - "The Heart of Yoga"
  • (00:15:59) - An older teacher's quest for teaching certification
  • (00:20:56) - The slow-flow yoga
  • (00:22:33) - Classical Music in Yoga Classes
  • (00:28:19) - My Wife Saved My Life
  • (00:32:18) - Hope for prostate cancer patients
  • (00:36:33) - How Yoga Prepared Me for the Fight
  • (00:37:33) - Joe's positive attitude during cancer treatment
  • (00:44:02) - Volunteering at the Kansas University Cancer Center
  • (00:50:34) - How to Choose Life with Cancer
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