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Moving Therapy
If your do not move, they throw dirt on you.
One of the ancient qigong texts tells of a group of monks who developed what we would call today diabetes. They were sitting around meditating on healing their malady. The master
told them not to meditate so much and do exercises. [He was talking about the gentle movements of different types of qigong, meditation in movement, not what we would call exercise in the modern world.] He was instructing them to balance stillness and movement.
The monks assured the master that they were advanced in their chi mind
and could solve their problem mentally. They all died of their problem. Movement is an important healing therapy. The modern physical therapist, I imagine, would agree with this ancient master.
If you are living a sedentary life, did you know that your diabetes will be worse? Many doctors are prescribing getting up and moving around for diabetes. Add more movement into your life.
E.G., do not look for the closest place to park to go into the store. Park in the back of the parking lot and add a little walking. Take up a hobby, activity, that has movement in it. It does not have to be radical movement, but movement. What about gardening? Be creative, but move. Remember chess is not a sport. In some cases, that can move diabetes out of your life, or into a practical non issue for you.
In almost all cases of healing it is good therapy to move, at least some. Even if it is hard we need to move to have a speedy and full healing.
I had a preacher tell me about an older man he met who had a lame arm. The man told him about how this happened. When he was a young boy, he fell and broke his arm. It happens sometimes. After the doctor set the arm, it healed.
But his mother was excessively worried that he would break that arm again. So she for months and months bound that arm to him so that he could not move it, and it would be secure from possible re injury. She was well intended, but she was interfering with movement.
His arm was injured and gimpy for the rest of his life. He did not have movement therapy during the time of healing. So the arm healed incorrectly. Movement is important for life.
What is one of the first things that they have you do after major surgery?
They get you up and walking, as soon as possible. Being very hurt, you do not want to because it feels like torture. But movement therapy is good for you.
I once had my lower back lock up. It was awful, some of the worst pain that you can have. When I would try to get up, I would literally scream in pain and become paralyzed in position. Any way I would try to move to lay back down was excruciating. I called the doctor after a week of laying around. He had not even examined me, and he said that I would have to have surgery. I could not take that as my only option.
I finally told myself that I was going to move. I somehow got up without being thrown to the floor. I started moving in agony. The next morning I decided to go to work. It took over 20 minutes just to get my socks on. But through my tears I was determined to move. By my second day at work I was substantially better. I could get around better with a cane. I finally moved myself out of the problem.
What had I done to deal with the lingering problem? I moved. I did movement therapy.
The qigong masters have general rules about treating problems with movement. I am being very simple here. What I am talking about here is their theory of movement. What they call exercise, we might call gentle movements.
You move until it is discomforting. Then you back of 20%. Then next you move until it is discomforting and then you back off 20%, etc. After a few sessions of this you will notice that the place of hurt has moved farther toward the normal range of movement. This is their form of movement therapy.
I had a shoulder injury when I was a child. My shoulder hurt if I moved in a certain way. I had learned through the years how to work around the place of pain, and few, if any know, that I had this chronic limitation. But as far as moving into the full range of normal movement, I was not moving that way, at least that far.
When you are doing a well rounded qigong exercise regime, you will move all parts of your body in the full range of movement. I was instructed to move that direction, and when I felt discomfort, back off. Do not worry the master said; relax.
I noticed that in a very few session I was having a greater range of movement. Now I consider myself to be over that chronic problem. How did that come about? It was movement therapy.
When I had been sick and was laying around in bed, mother used to tell me to get up and start moving around and doing things. I quickly improved after I started moving around. In the hospital after surgery the nurse will get you up for a while even if it is just to the chair to sit up for a while. They are adding movement to your problem. It is good therapy.
Movement all kinds of movement is good therapy. It is too simple to be true, but it is a great healing therapy.
