"I Was Called a 'Walking Medical Encyclopedia.' Here's How SBM Changed Everything."

 Mika Kubokawa | SBM Instructor | LILY & GOLD LONDON

April is here, and London is finally feeling like spring. The weather has been beautiful lately — and it feels like the perfect time for a fresh start. 

My name is Mika Kubokawa, and I am the founder of this community.

I moved to London from Japan in May 2010. Today, I'd like to share something a little personal with you.

BEFORE | My Body Was Falling Apart

People used to say I was a "walking medical encyclopedia" — that's how many things were wrong with me.

It started young. At the age of 14, I was diagnosed with lumbar spondylolysis and couldn't move properly. My cervical spine was completely straight — no natural curve at all. From my teenage years onwards, I was constantly battling my own body.

As the years passed, more symptoms piled on. Chronic tension in my neck and shoulders that never fully released. Fatigue that no amount of rest could fix. A persistent heaviness in my lower back that made even simple movements feel like effort. My posture deteriorated. My energy drained away.

Deep down, I knew something was fundamentally wrong. But gradually, the pain became my "normal." I stopped expecting to feel better.

I tried everything. Massage. Stretching. Exercise. Each gave me temporary relief — an hour, maybe a day. But the tension always came back. The heaviness always returned.

No one ever explained why. They could ease the symptoms. But no one could change the cause.

THE TURNING POINT | Discovering SBM

Then I discovered SBM — Self Body Make — a Japanese spinal self-care method developed in Tokyo by Master Yuriko-sensei.

I remember my first session clearly.

For the first time, someone explained what was actually happening inside my body. How the loss of my spine's natural S-curve was creating a cascade of tension, compression, and imbalance throughout my entire system. How years of poor postural habits were slowly compressing my discs, exhausting my muscles, and wearing down my nervous system.

And then — for the first time — I was shown how to change it myself.

Not with an injection. Not with manipulation. Not by lying passively while someone worked on me.

With movement. My own movement. Precise, gentle, intentional.

AFTER | What Changed

The changes didn't happen overnight. But they happened.

Within weeks, the morning heaviness began to lift. The tension in my neck started to ease — not just during a session, but throughout my daily life. My posture began to shift. Without trying, I was standing taller.

Within months, the chronic fatigue I had accepted as simply "how I am" began to disappear. My energy returned. My body felt lighter. More balanced. More like my own.

And then something unexpected happened.

For the first time in my life, I felt it —

"I can change my own body."

What I Want You to Know

I spent decades — from the age of 14 — fighting my own body. And then SBM changed everything.

If you are living with back pain, a herniated disc, sciatica, or chronic tension, I want to offer you the words I wish someone had said to me years ago:

Your body is not broken. It is simply out of alignment. And alignment can be restored.

Not by someone else. By you.

That is the heart of SBM. And it is the most important thing I have ever learned.

If you'd like to find out whether SBM could help you, I offer a free 30-minute consultation.

👉 Join our community: Herniated Disc Natural Relief | SBM Spinal Self-Care Community

📍 LILY & GOLD LONDON | North London & Online via Zoom

SBM is a self-care exercise programme and is not a substitute for medical advice. Always consult your healthcare provider. Individual results may vary.

#SBM #SpinalSelfCare #HerniatedDisc #BackPain #Sciatica  #SelfCare #LilyAndGoldLondon