Oct 12, 2010: Feel the Qi
This is just a brief note on my introduction to using Qigong to work with the healing energy in my body.
Qi or Chi, pronounced (chee) is energy. Qigong is working with energy.
For the past month I have been practicing Spring Forest Qigong on a daily basis. I first heard about Master Chunyi Lin's Qigong about 8 years ago, maybe longer, and was intrigued but not ready to pursue it at that time. It's been said that when the student is ready the teacher will appear. The teacher can be in the form of an actual person, a book, a recording, a video, even in the form of just a passing comment or thought. I guess I wasn't ready until recently.
I have been practicing the moving exercises 2 to 3 times a day for anywhere from 5 minutes to 45 minutes or longer depending on my schedule. I also do a sitting meditation called small universe (sometimes lying down) at least once a day -- even if its for only 5 minutes but usually for about 20 minutes at a time.
I picked up the level 1 DVD, book and small universe meditation CD on Thursday, September 2, 2010 and started practicing that evening after watching the DVD and reading the book/manual.
The next day, Friday, I went to the golf driving range to hit a bucket of balls and work on my swing with 3 of my clubs. After I returned home I noticed my upper back/lower neck on the left side was hurting and based on past experience I knew I needed to see my chiropractor as soon as I could for an adjustment. However, his office was closed that afternoon and Monday was a holiday so the earliest I could get in would be the following Tuesday, 4 days away. Based on the pain I was feeling and how my body responded in the past (I have been seeing a chiropractor for the past 20+ years) I knew it would only get worse until I could get it adjusted.
I had already started with the Qigong exercises so I decided to give it a shot since I couldn't get the help I needed for several days anyway. Level 1 of the Spring Forest Qigong practice is for working on the energy of my own body with a very brief description of using the energy to heal. Since I was just starting out I was working on learning the movements, the breathing and focusing the mind as I learned the active exercises and began to move the energy in my body. I tried the healing part a little but decided since I was so new to this I would just focus on learning the Level 1 exercises in hopes that would help.
I had stepped on a hornets nest a week earlier and had to miss my golf outing that Sunday (see my notes from September 1, 2010) and I didn't want to miss another week of golf with a bad back. I woke up Saturday morning with a little stiffness and some pain but once I got up and was moving around the pain mostly went away. I could still tell there was some subluxation there and that I would still need to see the chiropractor but I continued to practice my newly learned Qigong exercises and mediation. By that night I knew I was going to be able to play golf the next day because the back/neck area was actually improving, something that it almost never did in the past without some work being done on it; specifically getting an adjustment.
Sunday morning came and I felt good enough to go golfing, which I did with no discomfort at all. That was pretty amazing. I still thought I would have to see the chiropractor on Tuesday but also continued to do my Qigong. Since Monday was Labor Day, I spent quite a bit of extra time doing my Qigong and meditation exercises -- continuing to learn the movements (both by watching the DVD and practicing on my own). By this time I was getting pretty good at performing the simple movements and practicing the breathing and mental focus. I was also working on learning and adding the last two movements to my routine over the past 2 days so Monday I added the final one and just continued my practice.
Tuesday morning I even got up early and practiced my Qigong before I went to work. My back and neck by this time were about 90% better than they had been on Friday. When I turned my neck to the left I could still feel some slight pain but I didn't even consider going to the chiropractor. I felt good enough to continue with what I was doing and knew that my next regularly scheduled appointment was the following Monday anyway so I felt pretty confident I would be fine until then.
When I finally did get in to see my Chiropractor the following Monday I was pain free and he commented on well my back was. Interesting!
I had first learned to meditate in 1968 when I was introduced to Transcendental Meditation or TM by Mr. Witherspoon while attending the University of Minnesota so I am familiar with the power of our minds and what we can do regarding healing ourselves. But this was a new experience for me and encouraged by what I was feeling I continued with my Qigong exercises.
It's now been over a month of daily practice. Some days I would spend up to a few hours and other days only about 20 minutes or so. But I do know the importance of regular practice to form a new habit (recent research indicates it can take up to 66 days on average in some cases) so I continued with the process knowing that eventually it would become internalized and I would just do the Qigong at certain times throughout the day, every day. So I guess this is just a process report and a recommendation to you, if you are interested to check it out.
You can find out more at their website: www.springforestqigong.com.
Today is a beautiful day. I wonder how much better I can be feeling as I continue to practice my Qigong on a daily basis as I allow it to become a regular practice in my life?
Reflections
Stillness and action are relative, not absolute, principles. It is important to find a balance of yin and yang, not just in qigong, but in everyday life. In movement, seek stillness and rest. In rest, be mindful and attentive. ~Ken Cohen
The perfect man has no self;
the spiritual man has no achievement;
the sage has no name. ~Chauang Tzu
