Newsletter #149 - January 2014

• From me to you, Paul Lam
• Sharing Tai Chi with Four Generations, Allison Davidson
• My New Knees; From Pain to Possibilities, Sandi Wicher
• Equine Tai Chi, Richard Link
• It’s All in the Family, Margaret Miller
• Humor, Laughter and Radiant Health, Bob Mc Brien
  

 
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#Hello everyone

I am looking forward to my Sydney One Week Workshop which starts on 6th January.  It is always great to catch up with all my old friends, and make some new ones to add to my tai chi family.  Last month we began a series on families who do tai chi together, and we continue with the theme this month.  Next month we will be looking at couples who teach together, and we will have one very special story of a couple who met through tai chi.  If tai chi has a significant place in your family dynamics I would love to hear from you.

Please note the three workshops in San Diego and Colorado in March 2014 are less than three months away.  This will be the  first time I have conducted workshops in USA at that time of the year. As I am presenting at the American Society on Ageing conference 11-15 of March, it is a great opportunity to do the workshops. Hope to see you there.

March 22-23 Depth of Tai Chi for Arthritis Workshop
Carlsbad, CA, USA

Palmer Le, CO, United States

Mar 29-30. Tai Chi for Energy Instructor Training
Palmer Lake, CO, United States

Sandi Wicher is a Master Trainer from Walla Walla who underwent bilateral knee replacement surgery in 2012.  Sandi spent some of her recovery time writing a journal about her progress from diagnosis to recovery.  This was serialised in the Health and Fitness section of her local newspaper, the Union Bulletin.  Sandi heard from many people who found her down to earth approach to major surgery inspirational.  The Union Bulletin has kindly agreed to let us reprint Sandi’s columns, so you can follow her story each month.  

Finally what does horse riding and tai chi have in common?  Quite a lot when Senior Trainer Richard Link works with a special program to introduce children to the joys of both horse riding and tai chi!

• Allison Davidson tells us about a very special tai chi lesson

• Part One of Sandi Wicher’s “Knee Journal”
• Parting the Horse’s Mane?  Richard Link works on a very special program
• Margaret Miller makes tai chi a family affair
• Dr Bob McBrien dispenses his regular dose of humour
  

Apr 05-06, Tai Chi for Energy Instructor Training
Chelsea, VIC, Australia

May 10-11 Exploring the Depth of Tai Chi for Arthritis
Singapore

#Sharing Tai Chi with Four Generations
Allison Davidson, Instructor, Murfreesboro, Tennessee

Many will tell you that a teacher, especially one of exercise, is not readily accepted by their own family.  After 16 years in the field, I can surely attest to that.   I was amazed, therefore, when after 9 years of my inviting her and being ignored, my grandmother decided to try one of my TCA series.  Her decision ultimately created a rare opportunity for me as a grandchild, child and parent.

Child-care and transportation issues lead to not only my grandmother, but my mother and my 10-year old daughter and 7-year old son also taking the series.  During the first few classes I had a mixture of pride and anxiety.  I was overjoyed that we were doing tai chi together; that I could finally share this with them, but I also had a strong desire for them to “get” it and find a love for tai chi as I have and therefore “get” me.
 
Eventually I set my personal anxieties aside and enjoyed what I had: the opportunity to share my passion and knowledge with my loved ones and to be able to show my elders a part of who I had become and my children a part of who I am.  I can’t think of a time when I enjoyed teaching and practicing tai chi so much.

It was an amazing once in a lifetime experience.   I will always cherish the memory of sharing tai chi with my family and having four generations practicing tai chi together.

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#My New Knees; From Pain to Possibilities (Part One)
Sandi Wicher, Master Trainer, Walla Walla, Washington

As a baby boomer, I have lived with a mindset of bigger, faster, stronger.  Aerobics and exercise nonstop, seven days a week.  I’d always felt better and healthier when I kept moving and kept exercising.

As I aged, my thoughts changed as my knees started giving me trouble.  Pain when walking, then swelling. Discomfort when cycling, then swelling. Discomfort when riding my horses, then swelling.

It started to seem like anything I would do there would be discomfort, then swelling. I began to wear knee braces to teach my tai chi classes. I spent more time sitting with ice on them and my legs up because of the swelling.

Life without being able to enjoy doing the everyday things I enjoyed doing, I decided to practice what I teach and see a physician.

The first physician confirmed what I had thought: I needed a knee replacement. As recommended whenever it appears major surgery is needed, I sought a second opinion. This time, though, I asked the second doctor to check my left knee also as it actually had begun to hurt more when my right knee was first diagnosed. It was confirmed I needed both knees replaced.

I asked if both knees could be done at the same time, not wanting to interrupt my active life twice for long recovery periods. After I spent a long time with the doctor, asking questions, getting information on knee replacements, seeing knee replacement models, letting the doctor see what type of person I was and getting to know and trust him, he said I was a good candidate for both at once, called bilateral knee replacement.

The surgery was done in early October 2012. The day after, a physical therapist came to my room and said it was time to get up and try to walk. He went through his instructions and safety concerns.
I quickly realized I wished I had strengthened my abdominal muscles more before surgery. Without the use of my legs, it was a challenge moving in and out of bed using my arms and stomach muscles. By the third day, though, I was walking down the hall with the use of a walker and ready to go home.

Waiting at home were three machines that would become a part of my life for the next three weeks. One was to move my legs up and down (three to four hours on the left leg, then on the right leg, at least twice a day). Two other machines, one for each leg, supplied cold to my knees to help keep the swelling down, and a third provided a pulsing compression to my feet to keep the circulation moving.

A nurse came once a week to answer questions, check on my pain medications and check my vitals. The physical therapist came twice a week to introduce me to required exercises and instructions on completing them several times a day. (Of course this is while I have machines for ice and movement attached. How many hours are there in a day?)  The exercises the therapist instructed me to do were hard and they hurt, but I was determined. I also added seated tai chi to my required exercises. By the second week, the therapist was amazed with my progress and attributed it to my dedication to doing the exercises.  In reality, the hardest thing to do was get out of bed, get up off the toilet and sleep. I am a stomach sleeper so sleeping on my back was extremely difficult. The third week I developed a calf muscle cramp that hurt more when walking then my knees did.

I am so thankful for a couple of things. I had prepared myself and conditioned my body before surgery, which was a big help getting started in recovery.  And I’m thankful for my husband Gordon, who was my nurse, cook, gofer, house cleaner, my crutch and my strength when I questioned my decision to do both knees at the same time. He was at my side when I needed help, to change my machines, disconnect or move them and to get anything I needed or wanted.

My private health insurance also deserves thanks. It was good to learn it would pay for the physical therapy machines at home for three weeks and the home visits from the physical therapist and nurse. I would also be covered for extended outpatient therapy during recovery.  Usually I don’t even have enough medical expenses in a year to meet my $5,000 deductible, so I was glad to be covered when needed. Insurance is an expense I realize is important, but I wonder every time I write a check if it is worth all the money I put out. A definite yes!

I was also grateful for my pain meds. I do not take any medicines and do not like to take anything besides vitamins. But drugs to keep my bowels moving were a must because of the pain meds I was taking. I also had medication to help me sleep. The pain medication helped me get through all the exercises and allowed my stitches to heal with a tolerable level of pain.  My mind told me I could get off the pain meds quicker than one should, but my body told me to wait till I was healed and ready.

Next month: Outpatient physical therapy — pain and persistence on the road back to normal use.

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#Equine Tai Chi Program
Richard Link, Senior Trainer, Cordova, Tennessee

Shelby Farms Park is the largest urban park in North America and is nestled in the geographic center of Memphis, Tennessee. The Park’s mission is to provide the community with opportunities for holistic development and activities that engage the entire family.

Each summer, the Park hosts a unique summer camp program for children ages 6-13 years old with a focus on outdoor exploration and health and wellness. In summer of 2013, Shelby Farms Park launched a new Equestrian Camp for urban children of Memphis to not only learn to ride a horse but become responsible equestrians. Through partnership with Richard Link, a tai chi instructor in the Memphis area, a program was developed utilizing the fundamentals of tai chi to introduce horseback riding to children. By utilizing tai chi, both the horse and child benefit.

For the child, this meant being able to feel what the horse is giving. For the horse, it meant less frequent, but more precise direction from a quiet, still rider.  The program found that using tai chi as a rudimentary step of learning to horseback ride, the children learned to find confidence in themselves and their ability to bond with their horse.  “The success of the children learning to ride was directly influenced by beginning each day with tai chi. It was a perfect relationship,” says Natalie Wilson, Manager of Events and Programs for Shelby Farms Park Conservancy. 

For more information, please contact Natalie Wilson, nwilson@shelbyfarmspark.org or Richard Link, link1945@aol.com

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#It’s All in the Family
Margaret Miller, Instructor, Alpharetta, Georgia

The topic of family and tai chi is familiar to us all.  After all, when we became instructors and/or participants we became members of a very large and growing “world family” of practitioners!  Our immediate families often join us in our tai chi journeys, as well.  When Dr Lam asked me to contribute some words on the subject for the newsletter, I happily agreed to share my family story.

Our son was the first in the family to discover tai chi about 14 years ago, way ahead of the curve in the United States! Bryan was in middle school and, always one to be inquisitive and do research, he began to practice forms before school started each day.  I was intrigued and began down the path, myself.  When Dr Lam’s first “Tai Chi for Arthritis” single DVD was produced, I ordered it and became captivated with the Sun style forms and the potential health benefits.  Little did I know that I would become such an enthusiastic advocate for tai chi and its role in health promotion!

The greater impact of Tai Chi for Arthritis classes became apparent to me during my service as a board member with the Arthritis Foundation.  I knew that TCA classes would improve people's lives, so I decided to offer them as part of my newly launched wellness company.  The classes have been well received and I am always thrilled to learn of the positive impact tai chi has had on the health of participants.
  
My supportive husband, son, and daughter have all participated in my classes.   On a recent visit to Vermont, I was delighted to introduce my mother and sister to tai chi, as well.  This October, our daughter, Melissa, and I enjoyed attending Dr Lam’s TCA depth workshop together.  When family involvement grows, the larger tai chi family grows! 

As a healthcare professional, I am a passionate scholar of health and wellness research.  Melissa was diagnosed at age 2 with juvenile idiopathic arthritis, so I naturally have a laser focus on treatment modalities that promote and support immune system health.  I believe Melissa has benefited from a variety of complementary health-promoting interventions, including tai chi.  She assists with the administrative aspects of my classes and loves to attend because of the general atmosphere of “calm happiness.”

My greatest joy in practicing tai chi is the opportunity to share it with others.  Like so many of you, I feel honored to have the opportunity to introduce an art to others that has such potential for health promotion.  Whether we practice with our immediate families, with our class families, or simply within our greater world family, there is a special bond that is formed. 

Wishing you and your family good health and a happy New Year.

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#Humor, Laughter and Radiant Health
Dr Bob McBrien, Master Trainer, Salisbury, MD, USA

Watching one of the Dalai Lama's inspirational talks on You Tube permits viewers to witness a truly joyful person. When he laughs the viewer laughs too.  Reading the Dalai Lama's "My Spiritual Journey," I enjoyed his description of being a "professional laugher." He explains the Tibetans are cheerful people and that he grew up in a cheerful family. He guides to have a holistic perspective and to seek the positive side of life events.  Wisdom we can be guided by.

This month's bits of humor are taken from one of my favorite sources,  school children's responses to exam questions.

• The Magna Carta provided that no man shall be hanged twice for the same offense.
• William Tell shot an arrow through an apple while standing on his son's head.
• Miguel Cervantes wrote "Donkey Hote."
• Milton wrote, "Paradise Lost." Then his wife died and he wrote, "Paradise Regained."
• Sir Walter Raleigh invented cigarettes and started smoking.
• Nero was cruel and would torture his subjects by playing the fiddle to them.
• Joan of Arc was burnt to the steak and was cannonized by Bernard Shaw.
• Christopher Columbus was a great navigator who discovered America while cursing about the Atlantic