recent review:

I just wanted  to say thank you for all the time you must spend organising our Wednesday healing sessions, I do appreciate the work that you do and all the knowledge that you are passing on to us. I was very aware of the energy within me today which felt separate from my physical body. I felt a sense of it inside me but flowing. S 

Self healing is about empowering yourself to work with your body to bring it back to its optimium state of working healthily.  At every moment of the day our body is working towards this and it is in our hands if we aide, impede or simply ignore this process . Throughout our lives we will be given health challenges, some more challenging than others causing us to feel helpless and at a loss what to do. Joining the class makes you more proactive in your healing, it is about learning to work with you body as it is and discovering what you can you to maximise its well being. It is experiential first you experience the benefits by trying out the practises offered then you know. Every person has differemt needs and concerns, we each have our own particular journey to make and this is catered for within the class settings. 

A class session is flexible enough to meet the individual needs of the group using:

Breath awarenesss, cleansing the whole energyfield of the body using the breath.

Connecting to the universal energy. 
In a chair - joint rotations and stretches, which encourage the energies to flow. 
In a chair - qi gong (Shibashi) exercises, using the energies proactively. 
In a chair or on the floor - gentle yoga stretches within your comfortable capacity. 
Lastly a deep ancient relaxation called Sarvayatra, that works on healing all the energy 
            fields of the body - physical, mental and emotional. 

WHY SELF HEAL?

Self healing is actively doing something about maintaining a healthy mind, body and spirit. Empowering yourself to work towards a healthy equilibrium. I encourage each person to find their own individual path towards regaining a healthy body. It is a personal journey where you set your own pace. 

Your body naturally strives towards optimizing its health and it is our personal responsibility to help that process. We struggle at the best of times to remain healthy and its a lottery if we avoid illness or not. For those who become chronically ill it can be a depressing time when the body suffers.  Often compounded by a cocktail of drugs which aim to eliminate the symptoms but just produce endless side effects. 

The first step is to move outside being a victim of circumstance.  You have an illness but you are not just that illness.  You are so much more, you are a spiritual being as well, which enables you to step outside your physical body and be the observer of it. This naturally happens during meditative awareness. 

First things first we start with the physical body and gentle stretching and simple postures of yoga.  This encourages the  muscles and tendons to become more elastic. The joints ease out and become more flexible as synovial fluid flows into them. 

Yoga is taken at a slow pace with relaxation after each posture.  During relaxation the increased blood flow cleanses the parts worked on.  Particular organs can be worked with, like squeezing the abdomen with the knees, helps with constipation. Yoga focuses on the spine, as a healthy spine equates to a healthy body.  Working with the spine, skeleton and muscles builds stamina in the body whilst encouraging suppleness and flexibility.  There is a tension in the posture as well as a relaxation which builds strength in the body. 

Focus is always kept inward and observing what is happening in the body.  This helps to slow the mind down and avoid mind chatter. Listening to what is happening in the body, as you relax into a pose  allows a softening to happen which eases tension. It is important to allow the body to relax and enjoy yoga, so that you will want to practice it daily and reap its benefits. With relaxation the heart beat and blood pressure slows as tension is released. The metabolic rate decreases. In a relaxed state minerals and nutrients are better absorbed. Food is more easily digested. 

Using the technique of abdominal breathing aides the above process.  Breath control is used to bring the body and mind into balance.  The breathing can be used more proactively as the life force is carried on the breath.  Stiffness, pain, tiredness with the focus of the mind on the breath can start to lessen these. 

Breath is connected with the postures to maximize their effect. Bearing in mind the life force is carried on the breath it can be used to re-energise the body on the in breath and detoxifying/purifying on the out breath.  Specific energy enhancement exercises can be worked with. 

The above prepares you for a meditative state, as it brings the body to a quieter more restful state for sitting in meditation.  This simply can be sitting and focusing on the breath, which helps to eliminate mind chatter.  The life force energies naturally flow more proactively during this state, aiding healing at a deeper level where tension is released. What is taught in the class I encourage to be practiced on a daily basis, which allows the benefits to be soon reaped. 

Qi Gong Shibashi

Qi gong is designed to improve health and wellbeing by increasing the subtle energy (chi/qi) in the body. Its gentle rocking and stretching movements massage the internal organs, improve circulation and digestion. The chest exercises and controlled breathing are good for lung conditions and asthma. It activates and improves mental capacity by learning and remembering a new skill. Helps co-ordinate movement, mind and breath to create a calm, tension free body. It increases agility, flexibility, balance; strenghtening joints and muscles. It is relaxing and enjoyable to do. Shibashi is easy to learn and can be done from a chair.  

 

My focus is on qigong as it has a meditative quality to it and works specifically with the energy systems of the body.  I have attended classes and workshops over the years and also spent four years learning the Tai Chi short form, which I found difficult to learn. When I heard of Shibashi as a simpler and easy form to learn and remember,  I went on a teachers training course

 

Yoga means unity and wholeness, looking at your whole being (mind/body/spirit) not just the ailing part, acknowledging the healthy parts you have and dealing with the health problem that faces you. Working within your personal limitiations and working to your comfortable capacity, never forcing, as each one of us has our own unique body. Those that attend the class have their speical needs addressed.

I work with the universal energy (life force). In the Indian system it is called prana and in the Chinese Chi or qi. I use both systems - yoga for the Indian and qi gong for the Chinese. It is the same energy but with different names. Both have been studied for thousands of years and bear witness to their success in maintaining harmony and balance in the body. My work is experiential, you experience it for yourself - the life force is very much available to one's perception and its benefits will soon be discovered.