Stress is a word that’s so bandied about the place. It’s such a common word because it’s such a common problem. Watch this short video to learn some shocking statistics from a study on stress and how to relieve stress with Qigong.
Something I came across when I was looking into stress was a very interesting study by the British Acupuncture Council. This study was carried out in 2015. They interviewed five thousand people and found that:
• half admitted that they had stress and that they resorted to junk food and alcohol in order to make themselves feel better
• a third admitted to comfort eating
• a quarter of them admitted to drinking alcohol
• one in five said that they had put on weight as a result of stress
• 70% said that they were aware that prolonged stress affected their lives. Half of these said that they just put up with it and two-thirds of stated that stress was an unavoidable part of their life
So stress is obviously a real problem. The problem with living in our modern society is that people find that they get very stressed. They then resort to unhealthy actions (drinking or eating unhealthily) in order to deal with that stress, or to avoid it. Consequently, we can become very unhealthy as a result.
A much better way to deal with stress would be to do something more preventive. I teach you how to relieve stress with Qigong methods to “head it off at the pass”. These simple methods can be easily integrated on a daily basis into your life. Qigong helps to reduce stress levels, relaxing both the physical body, the mind and the emotions.
If you’d like to learn more about how to relieve stress with Qigong and how to approach it in a much healthier way (other than eating junk food or drinking alcohol and putting on weight) then please head over to the Space to Relax homepage where you can download a free meditation and also a free three-part Qigong video course. These methods are very straightforward to follow and they take around five minutes to practice. I deliberately made them very easy to integrate into your day because often when we’re stressed it is because we’re really busy and feeling overwhelmed. I don’t want to give you more things to do!
If you’ve got any ideas or anything that you do to relieve your stress then please share them by leaving a comment below this video or leave a comment in the Space To Relax Free Group which you can join on Facebook. I’d love to hear what you all do to relieve stress because when we share with each other than we all learn something.
Do you know what relaxation really is? I’m going to turn your idea of relaxation on its head and explain to you exactly what it is in Qigong terms. You will find out how you can use Qigong relaxation techniques to very quickly and easily improve your ability to relax. This means that instead of feeling stressed and overwhelmed, you feel calm, focused and in control.
My name is Janice Tucker and I’m a Traditional Chinese Medicine practitioner and practitioner of Medical Qigong. I’ve observed in face to face clinics and in Qigong workshops that most people don’t have a clear idea of relaxation.
Many people think relaxation is sitting down watching TV, having a lie down, going to the gym to work out or doing some form of vigorous exercise. However, from a Qigong perspective, when we think of relaxation we are thinking of anything that allows the smooth flow of Qi (energy) around your body.
Therefore, sitting down and watching TV is not relaxation. This is something people often do when they are exhausted at the end of the day. The visual stimulation from TV and other screen activities is not relaxing. It does not promote the smooth flow of Qi. Being in the gym or exercising vigorously is not relaxing either as it often puts pressure on the body. It is obviously beneficial for us all to exercise but bear in mind that vigorous exercise is not true relaxation.
In Qigong we know that the state of our Qi determines the state of our whole being (physical, mental, spiritual and emotional). The ability of our Qi to flow smoothly around our bodies and exist in abundance has a massive impact on our health.
When our Qi comes under pressure it is affected in one of two ways:
1. The Qi becomes obstructed or blocked;
2. The Qi becomes deficient or exhausted.
When this happens various health problems can then develop such as aches and pains in the body, an inability to sleep peacefully, mental exhaustion, physical exhaustion, anxiety and overwhelm.
So we now get the idea that it’s very important to not put our Qi under too much pressure. We need to stay as relaxed as possible for the majority of the time. This is not always an easy thing to do in our modern day, sometimes chaotic, time-pressured lives, but that is the aim!
When we practice Qigong relaxation techniques like breathing and meditation or physical Qigong exercises we enter a state of relaxation. Our conscious mind lets go of thoughts and events from the day. Our muscles begin to relax. The channels of Qi flow around our bodies begin to open up so that the Qi flows more smoothly. The knots start to loosen.
The practice of Qigong relaxation techniques also increases our awareness of where we’re at health-wise. The smooth flow of Qi enhances our ability to heal ourselves. It also increases our energy, leads to peaceful sleep and promotes harmonious balance in our bodies (physically, mentally, spiritually and emotionally).
If you want to learn some Qigong relaxation techniques which will significantly help you to reduce stress and improve your health then go to the Space To Relax homepage. Scroll to the bottom of the page to download a free Qigong audio meditation called “Calm Your Busy Mind in 8 Minutes“. This will quickly and easily improve your ability to relax and calm your mind.
Also at the top of the homepage there is a free Qigong video series that you can download. This shows you three effective Qigong exercises which will significantly help you with relaxation. Each one is less than 5 minutes so they are very convenient and easy to practice.
If you are on YouTube please click the red button below the video to subscribe to my channel. If not then click here to subscribe and receive my weekly videos by e-mail. Also hit the “like” button if you learned more about relaxation from this article.
Now it’s your turn! Leave a comment below and let me know what you are currently doing to relax. Do you think what you are doing is truly a relaxing technique and promoting the free flow of Qi? If not, what will you do differently in the future? 🙂
In this blog I’m going to explain how, in Qigong, you can use your breath and your mind together to inhale really good stuff and exhale really bad stuff that we don’t need in our bodies or in our minds. The essence of Qigong is to use your breath and your mind together. You can therefore “get rid of the negative” with Qigong breathing exercises.
My name is Janice Tucker. I’m a Chinese Medicine and Medical Qigong practitioner. I’m also the founder of the online programme, Space To Relax, where you can learn Qigong lessons in order to better manage your health.
Think about this quote from Thich Nhat Hanh, the famous Vietnamese Buddhist monk:
Breathing in, I calm my body and mind Breathing out, I smile Dwelling in the present moment The only moment.
What this means, from a Qigong perspective, is that, as you breathe in be calm and clear. As you breathe out, relax and smile. The only thing you are doing during this breathing is concentrating on your breath and observing where you are in the present moment. This is something that no many of us do on a regular basis.
Another, more humorous, quote to consider is:
Breathe in the good shit Breathe out the bullshit!
This is not quite such a serene way of thinking about things as the first quote but it certainly gets to the point.
To summarise, when you are breathing in, think of breathing in good, clean, fresh energising air (Qi). As you breathe out, think of getting rid of anything you don’t want. This could be an ache, pain or other physical feeling. It could also be something more emotional or mental in origin, for example, anger, frustration, sadness, grief, fear, anxiety.
You can use your breathing to help dispel anything negative from your body or mind. Very importantly, visualise the negative thing actually leaving your body, leaving your nostrils as you breathe out. You can imagine the negative thing floating away from you and up into the sky so that it moves well away from you.
Simple Qigong breathing exercises like this can make a massive difference to your day to day life. All you have to do is stop for less than a minute, practice these exercises and be mindful of your breath. Breathe in the good stuff and breathing out the bad stuff while staying in the present moment. During the course of the day this can make very fine, positive adjustments to how you feel as your day goes by.
If you would like to learn more Qigong breathing exercises and meditation techniques then head over to the Space To Relax homepage. There you can download a free Qigong meditation which will calm your mind in 8 minutes. You can also sign up for a free 3-part Qigong video series where you will learn more about the Qigong breathing exercises and a couple of other great methods to help get rid the negative stuff from your mind and body.
For more videos like this you can subscribe to my YouTube channel here (and please also give this video a “like”).
I’d love to hear from you so why not head over to Facebook and join my Space To Relax Free Group. Leave a comment there to let me know how you got on and tell me what you do to get rid of negative feelings in your mind or body during the course of the day.
Hi, I’m posting this video on March 17th, and March 17th in Ireland is St. Patrick’s Day. Everybody is off today and many people will drink to excess. Today I’m going to talk to you about excess and how to combat that with a Qigong Exercise from the series called the Ba Duan Jin.
My name is Janice Tucker and I’m a practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Medical Qigong and I’m also the founder of the Space To Relax online programme of video lessons where you can learn lots of Qigong to help to supercharge your health and fulfil your health potential.
What exactly do I mean when I talk about excess?
Excess in Chinese Medicine and Qigong is anything which is too much for that particular individual. This is a very important concept to understand because excess can be too much for one person and just fine for somebody else. Excess is only excessive for that particular person.
In the video you will see a short clip of a Qigong exercise which can help you to cope with an excess with respect to alcohol in case anybody is out there and intending to push things to excess on this day, St. Patrick’s Day. You will be able to practice this exercise (maybe tomorrow!) as it’s a great exercise to help deal with hangover!
Ba Duan Jin Video
This is one exercise from an 8 part series of Qigong exercises called the Ba Duan Jin or 8 Pieces of Brocade. It’s a very famous series of Qigong exercises and this particular one helps the Liver system which as we all know can suffer from excessive alcohol consumption!
This movement is called “Open Eyes Wide With Clenched Fists”. The position for this Qigong exercise is a horse stance. Step out into a horse stance that is comfortable for you, as wide or as narrow as you want. Check that the knees are not dropping inwards and are pushed out over the toes. Tuck the pelvis in under your body to make the lower back flat. Both hands rest on the hips, with loose fists and the palms facing upwards. The chest is pulled back slightly and you are nice and tall, with length in the back of the neck.
Women begin with the right hand and men with the left hand. Move the first hand out in front of you with a gentle punching action and as you extend it, at the end, twist the arm so the back of the hand ends up facing uppermost. Bring the fist back, turning the palm upwards as you draw it back in. Repeat with the other arm, extending the arm outwards and looking at the fist. Pull the arm back, twisting it back into the starting position on the hip.
The movement for this punching action actually comes from your hips. You need to twist in the whole body as you make the punching action, looking at the fist. The movement of the hip then draws the punch back. The hip turns and pushes the arm out. Look the fist. The hip then turns, drawing the arm back in towards the body.
Breathing
Breathe in before you begin. Breathe out as you punch. Breathe in as you draw the arm back to the hip.
If you’d like to learn more about the Ba Duan Jin exercises then they are available in my Space To Relax Programme. You can have a look at more about this on my website www.spacetorelax.com.
If you enjoyed this Qigong exercise then don’t forget, if you are watching this on YouTube, to subscribe to my channel where I’ll be posting many more helpful tips on a regular basis. Just click the red “Subscribe” button below my video to sign up and also give this video a “Like”.
I’d like to introduce you to a simple Qigong Abdominal Breathing exercise for beginners. It’s very helpful for giving you a bit more energy, calming your mind, relaxing your body, improving your sleep and improving your overall general wellbeing.
When you were born you breathed into your belly. As you breathed in, your belly would expand and then shrink as you breathed out. If you watch a baby or one of your pets at home when they are asleep you will see that as they breathe in the belly expands and as they breathe out the belly shrinks. The breath is very relaxed.
As we become older, usually by the age of about 7 or 8, our breathing becomes much more shallow – chest orientated rather than belly orientated, probably due to day to day stresses and strains, rushing around, even for children!
Qigong Abdominal Breathing is the perfect Qigong exercise for beginners because it is really only teaching you what you already know – you already did this as a baby!
Breathe in and out through the nose. As you breathe in expand the belly. If you place your hands flat on your lower abdomen, as you breathe in then you should feel your hands being pushed outwards as the belly expands. In order to make that happen you need to be relaxed in the abdominal area. The best way to feel this is actually if you are lying down. It is much easier from this position. You can place your hand on the lower abdomen, or something heavier like a book on this area. You will then see your hand or the book rise up as you inhale and sink down as you exhale.
This is a wonderful exercise to get things started if you are interested in learning Qigong. If you love Qigong Abdominal Breathing and want to take things further then please head over to my website homepage which is www.spacetorelax.com. On that page you will see there are a couple of Qigong freebies that you can download. If you have any comments then please leave them below the video. I’d love to hear how you got on with the Qigong Abdominal Breathing exercise.
