SELF-HEALING
A few months ago, I was asked by a team in California to create instructional videos for a new app in development. The app is designed to support self-healing by guiding users to harness the power of their mind/body. At this time, it is focused only on IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), a problem affecting one in six people in the U.S. I’m excited to contribute some exercises from Qigong, since so many of them enhance healthy digestion and lower stress levels, both important factors in the relief of IBS.
The study below, out of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, is a small but powerful one. It demonstrates that mindfulness practices were 3X more effective than traditional support groups for relieving IBS symptoms. I like where one of the co-authors says, “The technique takes discipline to learn, but becomes second nature after a while". Sound familiar? That’s why Qigong is such great preventive medicine: the simple yet powerful mind/body habits we cultivate---learning to slow down, breathe, let go of stress, and free up energy to circulate— with regular practice become second nature, blessing us with a continual supply of healthy qi. See you in class!