The
Voice of TCAA
A
Newsletter from the Tai Chi for Arthritis Association
For more info about the program, an application form
December 2004 - Issue 6 - click on the title to view the article
CONTENTS
- Editors Letter
- President's Message by Pam Kircher, M.D.
- The Sierras and Adrian by Cynthia Fels
- Hard Reflections by Paul Biggs
- The National Psoriasis Foundation Conference by Troyce Thome
- TCAA Membership: A Good Deal
- How to Get Insurance
- Upcoming Workshops
back to a complete list of newsletter
We wish you all a Happy Holiday season! In true demonstration of Tai Chi principles, the seasons change and the winds shift. Light and dark, warmth and cold play their dance, ever-changing as the months flow by. As you reflect on your own tai chi experiences, jot them down and send me an article plawson6@hotmail.com We want this newsletter to reflect many various viewpoints. There is an old fable about the blind men trying to describe the elephant. Since each man only touched one part, each one has a totally different opinion. The elephant was soft and leathery (the skin), or hard and smooth (the tusk), or hairy (the tail tip). It is only by sharing our knowledge that our own tai chi can really grow.
I'm thrilled to be continuing Nancy Keiffer's fine work establishing this newsletter. This is a quarterly newsletter, and I apologize that we're a little late getting it out to you. My community was ground zero for two hurricanes, and because of power outages and the clean-up campaign I am a bit behind on all my work. Thank you for your understanding. Please do keep in touch! Help shape the direction that The Voice of TCAA takes in the future. Exciting things are starting to develop in my own region of the country regarding the possibility of grant support for TCA classes. Perhaps in your area the same thing is happening. Please make sure that your contact information is kept current on the instructor listing at www.taichiproductions.com. We are now collecting data for the state of Florida in order to have a state-wide referral list , and would like to hear from you if you are now, or would like to, hold TCA classes in Florida. One of the benefits of membership in TCAA is the support network we offer each other. Other benefits include access to group insurance and discounts on products and workshops. So keep it current, and keep in touch!
Happy Holidays!
Patricia Lawson, Editor
back to the top
PRESIDENT'S
MESSAGE
By Pam Kircher, M.D.
As the days grow shorter and we feel the changes of winter, the natural tendency is to move inward and ask ourselves deeper questions than we might not have contemplated in the summer rush of activity and adventure. While there are many jokes made about New Year's resolutions, they are popular because our biological rhythms invite us to be more contemplative at this time of year. My column in this fall/winter issue is about taking quiet time to check in with ourselves and ask ourselves if our tai chi practice mirrors what we say about our values. Do we put tai chi as a priority in our lives or do we let other things interfere with our daily practice?
If you haven't been practicing on a regular basis, the new year is a great time to sit back and remember how you feel when you are engaging in the regular practice of tai chi. Remember how wonderful it feels to have your joints move with fluidity, free of pain. Remember how your balance improved when you started tai chi. Remember how the peaceful mind of tai chi transfers to other areas of your life as well. Remember how it feels to flow with the movement and how the rest of your life seems to flow when you are immersed in tai chi.
Remembering all of the reasons that you practice tai chi and how it enhances your life, consider now how you would like to modify your practice pattern. Would you like to begin each morning with some warm-ups followed by the tai chi form itself? Would you like to focus more on the principles of tai chi? How can you deepen your practice? Would you like to study some of the articles on Dr. Lam's website? Would you like to take a workshop or two in another form of Tai Chi for Health? Would you like to sign up for the week-long workshop in June where you can simply be immersed in tai chi all day long? If you sign up now, you will have the whole winter and spring to look forward to your tai chi immersion.
Would you like to invite family members to join you? If you are an instructor, would you like to add another class or two-or increase the size of your current class(es)? Would you like to encourage your friends and community to begin tai chi by giving talks locally about the benefits of tai chi? If you are in the health profession or in sports physiology, would you like to offer a Tai Chi for Arthritis talk at the state or national level for one of the organizations that you belong to?
Having chosen the particular aspects of your tai chi practice that you would like to focus on, it is now time to develop an action plan. Don't tackle everything at once, but choose one or two changes in your practice that you would like to focus on first. Then do it for the next month. Studies have shown that if we do something for a month, it becomes a habit and is much easier to continue. Set a start date (today, perhaps?) and start the modification that you chose. Simply do it every day for a month to ingrain the habit. It is often helpful to keep track of your activities in a journal. If you choose to do that, be sure and write down how you feel on the days that you focus on tai chi. If you don't meet your goals for a day, be kind to yourself. Determine what kept you from meeting your goals, forgive yourself, and begin again with your plan for better health the next day.
Just writing this article has encouraged me to set my own goals in this winter season. I would love to hear from you what goals you have set and how you met with success (or what barriers you faced in meeting your goals.) Also, please let me know if there are particular articles that you would like to see in the Voice of TCAA. You may contact me at pk@pamkircher.com.
Meanwhile, I wish you a Happy Holiday season and a New Year that brings you health and contentment!
Pam
back to the top
THE
SIERRAS AND ADRIAN
By
Cynthia Fels, Certified TCA and TCD Instructor
I have been teaching Tai Chi for Arthritis for over a year and ½ now, and always have many testimonials from my students of the benefits that they are receiving from their daily practice. Some of these have included: improved back pain, improved balance when playing tennis, improved balance overall, taking less pain medication, less pain, less stiffness, and improved feeling of daily wellness. However, in my last class, I had one student whose story has been my absolute favorite thus far. I shall call her Adrian. Adrian was one of my younger students, in her late 30's, and she was suddenly diagnosed with sever rheumatoid arthritis and as a result was bedridden. She chose Tai Chi for Arthritis to help herself better manage the pain and hoped to reduce her dependence on medicine. She came to class very tentatively, but immediately fell in love with TCA and practiced religiously every day. By the end of class she said to me, "Maybe I'm crazy but I couldn't get out of bed about 5 weeks ago, and now I am going to go on an 8 day Backpack trip in the Sierra's. I am on some medicine now, but I know it is my Tai Chi that makes me feel so good. I do my Tai Chi every single day and will do it on my trip as well. Sorry but I have to tell you that I will have to miss my last class to go."
As an instructor, it felt so good to hear her tell me that, and we had to have a big, long hug. Indeed she had improved so much that she was missing the last class to go hiking and before that she had trouble even getting out of bed! I couldn't have been much prouder. Later when she returned from her trip she reported back to me that she did just fine and had no problems during her 8 days of hiking. She also stated that her absolute favorite part of the trip was when she got up each morning to do her Tai Chi on top of the mountains and watch the sun come up!!! TCA can make a big difference in your students' lives. I am glad that Adrian was one such student, and that I had been lucky enough to have been gifted with her in one of my classes.
back to the top
HARD
REFLECTIONS
By Paul J. Danelutti
Having studied the hard outward physical arts of Japanese Karate since 1952, I find it impossible to continue the harsh physical demands these styles require you to constantly put out. Retired now, and having the normal growing pains of being over 55, I sought a slower, more mentally demanding martial art. I was looking for training by professionally trained instructors who could certify me as I progresses through the art. Yes, certification is necessary in today's world. Everyone wants to see paper before they believe your word. Surfing the net for the perfect martial art to train in, I stumbled onto Dr. Paul Lam's website, taichiproductions.com. The rest is written on the winds. I have now been certified at both workshops for Tai Chi for Back Pain and Tai Chi for Arthritis. The certificate itself is just a piece of paper. The training required to earn it is what makes it so valuable. The master trainers in Dr. Lam's programs are a gem glowing in the darkness of today's world.
I suggest you check out Dr. Lam's website, as it is constantly updated. Try one of his tapes. You may gain a broader insight into his desire to bring quality training to us, the retirees of the world!
back to the top
THE NATIONAL PSORIASIS FOUNDATION CONFERENCE
The National Psoriasis
Foundation Conference this year was held in San Diego, California in the
beautiful historical US Grant Hotel. Presenters and participants came
from across the nation to attend the yearly conference which focuses on
new medical 
breakthroughs
in the field of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis as well as providing
resources for those who have Psoriasis.
I was invited to the President's Circle Dinner which is primarily limited to Board Members, Donors and Presenters at the Conference. In attending the dinner I was completely impressed with the sincerity of those seeking cures for these debilitating diseases. Much progress has been made in the area of t-cell research for finding appropriate medications to help bring some of the cases of Psoriasis under control. The doctors who presented at the dinner that evening were very hopeful that in the near future with continued research there would be significant progress in finding a cure for most forms of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
The National Psoriasis Foundation is progressive in suggesting alternative complimentary medicine as a way to help calm outbreaks of psoriasis. And so they offered an invitation to me to present a Tai Chi for Arthritis workshop at the conference. I was very grateful to have the opportunity to share this form with nearly a hundred participants at the conference. The Tai Chi for Arthritis form is very easy to follow and immediately everyone in the room felt a greater sense of calm as we went through the warm up exercises, a little qigong and the beginning movements of the form. I could tell just from watching their movements that the participants left the session in a much more calm and relaxed state than when they first entered the room.
There is a known correlation between stress and flare ups of psoriasis. By taking a few minutes a day to practice this simple form of tai chi one can indeed create a state of inner quietude and calm, thus reducing the stress producing enzymes that wreck havoc on our nervous system. The ancient art of tai chi provides a way to strengthen the body, calm the mind, improve balance and create an overall sense of well-being. It is truly an art that anyone can practice at any age. Tai Chi for Arthritis can even be practiced from a chair.
I am grateful for the opportunity to make a presentation at the National Psoriasis Foundation Conference. It is so rewarding to share the health benefits of Tai Chi for Arthritis with an ever increasing population in hopes that by reaching more individuals we will be able to improve the quality of life for those who suffer from Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis. Please look for an upcoming article in the National Psoriasis Foundation Magazine of the Benefits of Tai Chi for Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis.
Troyce Thome
back to the top
TCAA
MEMBERSHIP: A GOOD DEAL
Now you'll get even more for your mere $45 per year membership in TCAA.
Additional benefits now include:
- 10% off all workshops
- 10% off classes that are sponsored by Master Trainers
- Hard copy newsletters twice a year
Other benefits include
discounts on videos and CDs; access to group insurance coverage. Specially
designed for our members, the insurance package is underwritten by the
Fitness and Wellness Insurance Agency. (see below).
.
To join or renew your membership, please contact Caroline Demoise at <taichi@frontier.net>
or Doug Sams at <tcaa.treasurer@earthlink.net>,
or by mail to TCAA, PO Box 21982,Lincoln, NE 68542-1982. And if you've
changed your address since submitting your last membership dues, please
notify Caroline or Doug they can update the records.
back to the top
The insurance package, strictly for TCAA members, is underwritten by the Fitness and Wellness Insurance Agency, who have been in business for 18 years. It's the only agency that specializes in insuring fitness instructors. The rates are stratified by where you teach tai chi, how often you teach, and whether you own or directly rent your space.
Check it out at www.fitnessandwellness.com. For general information, call the Fitness and Wellness Insurance Agency, 800-395-8075, and ask for Eileen Romosod, Ex. 167. If you wish insurance coverage, ask for Rick Felix, Ex. 153. You can also email him at rfelix@fitnessandwellness.com. Remember, you must be a member of TCAA to get this insurance.
back to the top
Want to order a video,
a CD, a T-shirt, or any other of Dr. Paul Lam's products? You can mail
your order to: East Acton Videos, Inc / Tai Chi Productions, PO Box 3102,
Rancho Cordova, CA 95741-3102 or Telephone: 973-838-8889 or Fax: 800-889-2082
An optional phone number is: 973-283-9699, and an optional fax number
is 973-283-9698.
Enquiries: service@taichiproductions.com
back to the top
UPCOMING
WORKSHOPS
Go
to the calendar for more info
Tai Chi for Arthritis,
March 19-20, San Diego, California
Instructor: Troyce Thome
tthomer@cox.net
(949) 842-2992
======================
END OF NEWSLETTER
======================