How are you feeling bodywise? I ask this question at the end of every qigong session with my massage students. Last night's response included:

" I feel wonderful! I am feeling all this energy like a liquid that flows when we do these qigong exercises. I keep practicing with the qi ball at work. People want to know what I am doing and I explain to them, I am working with the energy." Angel Ortiz, purchasing agent for Lazy Acres

"I feel this peace and energy inside. I am running this energy now during my day, like when I play soccer. I feel peaceful and energized at the same time. It's a weird combination, but it feels good!" Hector Vejar, Optician

"I feel some kind of magnetic energy when we do the qigong exercises outside. Its like two magnets coming together." Laura Flores, housecleaner

Angel, Hector and Laura have been practicing qigong and related forms of bodywork for a couple months now. Their experience of qi has now become a live, palpable, fluid reality.

Qigong is an ancient science of personal energy management. Qigong stems from China where Ancient Qi masters studied the health and well being of the body through deep contemplation and came to simple yet profound understandings. They developed a science of health based on qi flow. Here in the west, our science has delineated many forms of flow in the body essential to health and well being, such as the flow of blood, lymph, brain chemicals, nerve transmission and the movement of ions. The qi masters illuminated that this movement of qi can be cultivated through gentle movements, massage, deep breathing, and deep relaxation. These practices referred to as qigong give rise to a state of inner harmony. Through daily practice this inner harmony, gives rise to qi movement which gives rise to health and longevity. Qigong can be practiced both as a preventative measure and as a form of internal medicine. When practiced to address specific medical conditions it is referred to as Medical qigong.

Medical Qigong has been very successful over several millennium in addressing physical disease states, various pathologies and mental/ emotional imbalances. Medical qigong has found its way to the west through various teachers. One such way-shower, Roger Janhke, founder of the International Institute of Tai Chi lives here in Goleta and was one of my earliest teachers and influences in the development of the Santa Barbara Body Therapy Institute's vocational massage curriculum. Over the last twenty two years the Institute has been offering a westernized form of medical qigong training blending gentle movement, bodywork, deep breathing and deep relaxation in the context of our 200 hour, 550hour and 1000hour programs. More recently we have implemented a traditional Medical Qigong Practitioner Program under the tutelage of past graduate, Mathew Jones, Qigong Master and Master Herbalist .

The benefits of practicing Qigong are rich and varied. Students who have practiced Qigong during the course of studying massage have reported remarkable medical shifts such as Samantha Sowers check-in from two days ago: " I feel alive and my body feels amazing! When I came into the program I was diagnosed with anemia. When I woke up I felt groggy and drained no matter how much I slept. I was feeling cold all the time and certain food would make me sick. Since practicing the exercises, receiving and giving massage all the symptoms have gone away. I feel great-even on days when I have emotional issues, I still feel great! I just had my blood work done and its normal. My doctor wants to know what I'm eating differently. " Samantha has been a student for only three weeks, participating in class roughly 3-7 times a week. The beauty of her healing is that it was facilitated by her own efforts and those of students practicing fundamental skills.

To learn more about Medical Qigong or experience it directly. We invite you to join us for a free intro this morning at nine am, tuesday evening at 6pm or our visceral lymphatic drainage clinic (a branch of medical qigong) this evening at 6 or 7:30pm. 

Inner Harmony and qi be with you,  

Katie Mickey,

SBBTI Director