Hysterectomy Blog: Day 25 Finding Buoyant Balance

March 1, 2019I took a class recently in #medical #qigong from Sheila Pride and I have been trying to bring it into my daily routine of #stretching and #mindfulness.Qigong is considered to be one of the four main branches of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), along with acupuncture, herbal medicine, and massage. The name derives from the Mandarin words #qi, meaning #energyor life force, and #gong, meaning work or #skill. It is a mind-body practice as well as an energetic form of movement done to enhance the flow of qi in the body.

Bill Douglas, founder of the International Health Education World T’ai Chi and Qigong Day, recommends qigong as a highly effective stress management tool. Along with decreasing daily stress, he contends that qigong may boost #immune system function, improve #balance, tone the #cardiovascular system, lower blood pressure and modulate disorders of #mood.Medical qigong concentrates particularly on improving qi to strengthen the body’s #organs, #tissues and #systems (respiratory and immune, for example) for the purpose of achieving optimal health and lessening the effects of aging.This review in The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine looks at the Multifaceted Health Benefits of Medical Qigonghttps://www.liebertpub.com/d…/abs/10.1089/107555304322849084Each day brings a little more mobility and a little less pain and as qigong is an extremely gentle practice it is a valuable tool in my #hysterectomyrecovery. It does not even necessarily require the individual to stand, as many movements can be done while sitting. Consequently, it can often be used for even the most delicate conditions with minimal, if any, side effects.