Taichi self-defense goes far beyond the physical martial arts. Taichi, by strengthening our sense of center, and our sense of connection to the universe around us also offers benefits in defending our emotional and psychological well-being.
It makes sense to keep Taichi in your toolbox for mental health, especially in helping to heal depression. It offers a gentle and calming physical exercise, woven together with abdominal breathing and meditation. Meanwhile, it strengthens our “Chi,” or life energy, for overall healing and balance.
Taichi also offers mental and spiritual exercise that can recalibrate us by bringing us closer to our original selves. How?
- Taichi promotes mindfulness and helps us learn to let go of and deflect what is harmful to us.
- It promotes harmony between the forces both within and outside of ourselves.
- It strengthens our ability to focus our mind on what is positive and helpful.
- Taichi trains us to identify and reduce our attention on what is artificial, untrue, or negative.
Coupled with the common-sense wisdom of Tao, Taichi continues to deliver a path of self-healing, self-repair, and self-discovery. Best of all, it’s natural and can complement other treatments or therapies, and allows the practitioner to set their own pace and their own goals.
UPDATE: Tai Chi exercise improves working memory capacity and emotion regulation ability
Tai Chi exercise may improve individuals’ working memory capacity, and then improve their emotion regulation ability, which has provided insightful information for customized exercise programs for emotion regulation in adolescents. This suggests adolescents who are experiencing volatile moods and poor emotion regulation could improve their emotional health through regular Taichi classes. Read the study here…
ALSO: Tai Chi May be Effective Against Cognitive Decline in Type 2 Diabetes
Researchers from the Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine have found using 24-form simplified tai chi chuan shows increased cognitive function and physical markers in those with T2D and MCI over a traditional fitness walking group over a 36-week time period. Read more about the study…
Most likely, you can easily find a Taichi class near you. If not, or if you prefer to start on your own from home, you can join our online Taichi classes, or learn Taichi through streaming video.
Meanwhile, here is a short piece on Taichi and depression from Taoist and Taichi Master Waysun Liao:
In the video class “The Taichi Answer to Depression,” Master Waysun Liao offers several viewpoints from Taoism, including analogies from the Taichi form Wave Hand Like Cloud, that can give us a whole new outlook on the things that bring us down and prevent us from experiencing and being true to our original selves.
