My 'Meditations from the Mat'

ChiropracticWomen's HealthWellness
Written By Dr. Madolyn Linka

Written by Dr. Madolyn Linka | October 12, 2020

Meditations from the Mat by Rolf Gates & Katrina Kenison is a staple on my bedside table. This square four hundred and twenty three page soft cover book sits in it’s space underneath my lamp reminding me of the daily reflections on the path of yoga. I’ve owned this book since 2016. For four years it’s sat close to where I lay my head at night and allowed me to flip through it and land on a page that I need to read on the day I turn to it. The book is written as a response to the desire to dive deeper into your yoga practice. After attending classes, getting a taste of the physical benefits of the practice, there is a sense of further interest or exploration into the spiritual aspects that the practice can offer us in our daily lives. These small essays from Day 1 to 365 are a type of journey to the heart, which helps us gain more perspective from our daily struggles, challenges thereby reconfiguring them into quotes, sentences or phrases of philosophy we can use while on our mats and in our lives.

Today I turned to Day 137 - “Hell is the place where nothing connects.” T. S. Elliot. Is the quote that opens today’s essay, starting to bring into context that our yoga practice gives us a daily experience into the power of connection. More than ever, living through a pandemic can teach us that safety is found in separation and disconnection. Such as “if we believe that what happens in one part of the world doesn’t affect the rest of the world, then we can convince ourselves that we are safe.” We might relate to this feeling all too well... that disconnection through isolation can lead to a false sense of security, but as the world changes around us, we slowly know it will trickle down and affect our daily lives and routines. “Deep within ourselves, we know the truth. We know we are all connected, that we are part of something larger than ourselves.” Oftentimes this disconnection from the world comes through in the tension in our bodies, the achiness in the shoulders, the strain in the low back, the tightness in the abdomen. And yet when we step onto our mat, when we step into the physical practice of yoga, we are able to begin the unravelling process of not having a changed body all of a sudden, but “the experience of their bodies has changed.” This thereby helps us overcome the sense of disconnection that is patterned into us, it helps us find this inner intelligence, an emotional intelligence that the body & mind are able to find and experience the power of connection.

Meditations from the Mat. Gates, Rolf; Kenison, Katrina. 2002

Dr. Madolyn Linka

Doctor of Chiropractic

Acupuncture Provider

Yoga Instructor

Dr. Madolyn Linka

Dr. Madolyn Linka D.C., B.A. (KIN), Acupuncture Provider, Yoga Instructor

From a young age, Dr. Madolyn Linka has put health at the forefront of much of what she done. The outcome of not staying physically and mentally active was that she wouldn’t be able to do the things she loved and made her happiest. This mantra has helped shape Dr. Linka into the doctor and teacher she is today, so she can continue to help others on their health and healing journey.

With a bachelor of arts degree in Kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario, a doctorate of Chiropractic from the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College in Toronto and a dedicated yoga practice and teaching background, Dr. Linka has a deep and thorough understanding of the human body and its potential to excel and exceed physical, mental and emotional barriers. Dr. Linka believes in the innate ability for the body to survive and thrive and when we keep our bodies strong and resilient we can take on any challenge life has in store.

Moving through a well-versed patient-led history, Dr. Linka will help hone in on your chief health complaint. A physical examination is always preformed which will clarify what structures, joints, nerves and tissues are affected, helping to form a diagnosis and furthermore to find a solution helping you optimize your healing potential through an individualized treatment journey.


Dr. Linka is a diversified doctor of chiropractic, specializing in an adjustment style called Thompson Technique systems, which implements a drop table approach which helps the body calibrate the input stimulus more successfully into the central nervous system. Dr. Linka also utilizes extremity-adjusting, kinesiotaping for pregnancy and injury, custom orthotics, as well as contemporary acupuncture in her practice as a chiropractor.

When you don’t see Dr. Linka at Holistic, she is often guiding yogis at Modo Yoga Saskatoon, walking along the riverbed trails with her partner, traveling to new and foreign places, taking a pilates class at The Movement YXE, or serving the Rosewood community at Circle Chiropractic Lakewood.

https://www.drmadolynlinka.com
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