I love the scene in The Lord of the Rings when Frodo Baggins says, “I wish none of this had happened.” Then Gandalf the grey says to Frodo:

“So do all who live to see such times. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us.”

― J.R.R Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring Humor me for a moment and lets change those words slightly:

“So do all who live to see such [breaths]. But that is not for them to decide. All we have to decide is what to do with the [breath] that is given us.”

The average person will take about 670 million breaths in their life time. So someday, we can safely conclude, the breath that we are given will be gone. What are we doing with each breath that we take? Are we spending our breath speaking unkindly towards others? Or are we using our breath to speak unkindly towards ourselves? What we speak has power as it literally affects the physiology of our body.

I recently read something that really struck a true cord in me from Mary Beth Wilkas Janke PsyD:

“Words reinforce your thinking. Positive thinking is reinforced by positive speech and vice versa. Your words create your destiny.

Today, remove the word “can’t” from your speech. I am confident you can do this.”1

May we use our breath, not only for the healing of our body, but also for the healing of our soul and the souls around us.

Reference:

1. https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/the-protector/202010/the-power-positive-speech

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

I love this quote taken from a stone inscription written around 500 BCE of the Zhou dynasty:

“In transporting the breath, the inhalation must be full. When it is full, it has big capacity. When it has big capacity, it can be extended. When it is extended, it can penetrate downward. When it penetrates downward, it will become calmly settle. When it is calmly settled, it will be strong and firm. When it is strong and firm, it will germinate. When it germinates, it will grow. When it grows, it will retreat upward. When it retreats upward, it will reach the top of the head. The secret power of the Providence moves above. The secret power of the Earth moves below.”

“He who follows this will live. He who acts against this will die.”

Those are some intense and deep words that can have lots of meaning. This text gives us a guide map to proper breathing. With what we have learned previously on these blog posts on breathing, it truly is the breath that gives us life. Whether you believe in God, Buddha, or the Universe as our creator, the breath seems to be a common theme that is lent to us which keeps us alive. Even if you don’t believe in Deity, it’s pretty well known that when you stop breathing you will die. Many people report those who are passing on tend to take one deep breath and exhale it out before they die.

Lets think about this one for a moment. If we stop breathing just partially (by holding our breath or shallow breathing) we may die partially. Or in other words have illness or disease. If we continue on that path of holding onto that partial breath, then it may even lead us to the grave. On the flip side, the more we breathe, and the more effectively we breathe, then the more we can recover, rejuvenate, perform, and heal from our infirmities.

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

Studies show significant improvements in persons with balance issues when doing Tai Chi.1, 2 The mixture of deep breathing with slow balancing movements compounds on each other to work with healing AND physical performance. In this case, balance. The risk of falls decreases by about 45% over short term studies!3

Remember the previous post about how deep breathing influences the brain to increase in density and grow? Any part of the brain that you start to use more on a regular basis will grow new neuronal connections so that that area of the brain will function faster and more efficiently. Like-wise will those areas of our brain (primarily the cerebellum) function more efficiently if you use it more to balance.

Reference:

1. 
   Hain, T. C., Fuller, L., Weil, L., & Kotsias, J. (1999). Effects of T’ai Chi on balance. Archives of otolaryngology–head & neck surgery, 125(11), 1191–1195.
   
2. 
   Zou, L., SasaKi, J. E., Wang, H., Xiao, Z., Fang, Q., & Zhang, M. (2017). A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis Baduanjin Qigong for Health Benefits: Randomized Controlled Trials. Evidence- based complementary and alternative medicine : eCAM, 2017, 4548706.
   
3. 
   Lomas-Vega, R., Obrero-Gaitán, E., Molina-Ortega, F. J., & Del-Pino-Casado, R. (2017). Tai Chi for Risk of Falls. A Meta-analysis. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 65(9), 2037–2043.
   

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

We tend to hold our breath when we’re stressed. Take a moment and think about that for just a minute. In the practice of Qigong it is often taught that where you hold your breath, that’s where you receive imbalances or pain. Think about that for a minute as well☺.

How many people say that their neck gets tight as the day goes on, and they attribute it to stress? You may even be one of those people. Take a look in the mirror and watch yourself breath normally. Do you see your neck muscles tighten or flare up when you inhale? Then, during the day when your stressed, you may notice that while you’re breathing with your shoulders and neck, you find yourself holding your breath in that spot. Same thing goes with holding your breath in the middle of your sternum – you may get chest tightness or have difficulty taking in a deep breath.

Where ever the breath is being held due to stress that is where the imbalance occurs. If we can identify why we are holding our breath, then we can let it go and begin to breath in that area again; and when we do that the imbalanced area can and does often heal.

Take inventory of yourself. Do you hold your breath? Is there something that you’re holding onto mentally, emotionally, spiritually, or even physically? Work to let it go and breathe deep.

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

From all of this information about deep breathing and the benefits that come from it, we can for sure say “Yes” when asked if it helps with chronic pain! A systematic review showed significant improvements towards alleviating symptoms of patients with chronic pain (osteoarthritis, neck pain, fibromyalgia, etc.).1

With the breath influencing stem cells to be released and work to heal our body, along with many other immunological, physiological, psychological, and everything logical – our pain whether acute or chronic will be alleviated!

Seeking to find balance in life is a must have in today’s society. What better way is there to find that balance than from mindful practices such as Yoga, Tai Chi, or Qigong? If it can help in so many areas of life, even all areas of life, and if it is something as simple as spending 5 minutes to breath deeply, wouldn’t it be worth it?

Reference:

1. Jahnke, R., Larkey, L., Rogers, C., Etnier, J., & Lin, F. (2010). A comprehensive review of health benefits of qigong and tai chi. American journal of health promotion : AJHP, 24(6), e1–e25.

Thank you! Till next time.

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

When we become more and more aware of our body and find out the hows and the whys as to its motives and actions, we will find ourselves noticing certain emotions or feelings beginning to surface. What I mean by surfacing is that an emotion or memory might come to the mind; or some people notice an increase in energy/buzzing feeling that literally comes to the surface of the body. Once you notice it, or see it, the negative energy is ready to be released. A great way to release it is to take that deep diaphragmatic breath and let it (the emotion or memory) go.

A great way to make this release the most effective is to incorporate forgiveness with that release. Letting go of emotions that are negative are always good, and inherently we replace that negativity with

something positive; this is because inherently we are good people. Although sometimes our body needs a little bit more help. When we release negativity with forgiveness we are infusing our physical and energy body’s with a large dose of humility.

I know what you may be thinking. “Humility? That’s a sign of weakness.” On the contrary, it is the opposite of weakness. Having the strength to forgive someone for what they did, and then forgive yourself for holding onto it, gives you the ability to be open and teachable. Without being open and teachable, we will always struggle to find out the true cause of our problems.

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

Seasonal allergies is due to inflammation in the nasal mucosa from allergens. Somewhere between 10 to 30% of the worlds population has allergic rhinitis (seasonal allergies). For most people, pollen is the most common allergen that people suffer from.

An article published in 2019 showed that during 8 weeks of Hatha yoga training there were significant beneficial effects in those you have seasonal allergies (aka allergic rhinitis, or hay fever).1 In this study the yoga group had increased peak nasal flow when inhaling, significant decrease in allergic symptoms, and had significantly higher nasal secretion of interleukin (IL)-2 with improved cytokine levels than the control group. Cytokines are little molecules secreted from immune cells to talk to other cells. Interleukin (IL)-2 is a type of cytokine that regulates the function of white blood cells important for immunity.

Applying yoga, or any other deep breathing mindful practice can even help your child or yourself be relieved of some of the symptoms from seasonal allergies. If not, can greatly reduce the severity of it!

Reference:

1. Anna C., Jettanong K., Timothy D. M., Wannaporn T., “Effect of Hatha yoga training on rhinitis symptoms and cytokines in allergic rhinitis patients.” Asian PAC J. Allergy Immunol. Aug. 18, 2019. EPUB 2019 Aug 18. PMID: 31421665

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

Kung Fu is a form of Qigong and helps to focus the breath and chi in martial arts. There are many types of Kung Fu as well. One of the most common ones is Shaolin Kung Fu. Many Shaolin Kung Fu masters infuse their pupils trainings with Qigong as it enhances performance in Kung Fu, and aids in the mindset of performing Kung Fu techniques.

Tai Chi is also a form of Kung Fu, albeit a more gentle and flowing style of it. Today, Tai Chi is practiced mainly in slow exact movements (pretty much just doing Qigong). Very few masters today teach it as a martial art.

If you like idea of Qigong with all of its healing capabilities, and you desire to also build your self confidence with learning a self-defense technique, then Kung Fu, or Tai Chi would be a great companion to you. Some people have asked if Kung Fu is better than Kickboxing in a real fight. The answer to that is that it depends. If there are hand to hand weapons involved (like a sword or quarter staff), then Kung Fu would be better. If it’s just your body alone, then Kickboxing would be a more effective technique. Kickboxing focuses on the “combat” side of fighting, where Kickboxing students doing a lot of sparring and get use to fighting other people. Many Kung Fu students or even practitioners don’t do any sparring which proves to be much less effective in a real fight with someone who knows kickboxing.

Regardless of the martial art, it can greatly bolster your confidence level as well as make you more fit and heal where healing is needed.

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC

…

Not too long ago, I had back pain. I know, it’s ironic with me being a chiropractor. Although, nothing I did would help it to go away; adjustments, nutrition, ice, stretching, even other forms of energy healing. Then, I came across a Qi gong form called Lifting the Sky. Practicing this exercise for only 3-5 minutes 1-2 times per day made my back pain go away in just 3 days! If I keep practicing it my back pain stays away.

When it comes to anything in life, practicing healthy things meant to uplift and strengthen us, gives us power and greater capacities to be successful. Qi gong can be one of those things.

Since my back being healed from doing Qi gong, I have been recommending Qi gong exercises to most all of my patients and have been having great results!

Coming up next, we will be learning more about the different forms of martial arts associated from Qi gong; Kung Fu, Tai Chi,

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…

In Chinese medicine the breath is held in high regard. So much so that they call it the “breath of life.” This wording may be recognized by some from a religious standpoint. As part of the practices of Buddhism, Asian cultures have learned to utilized the breath to increase their health, meditate, practice mindfulness, increase their spirituality, and even receive enlightenment. They even developed martial arts while using the breath!

Qi gong means the utilization and cultivation of our life force energy (Qi, Chi, or Ki). That through the breath, intention and movement we are able to heal, and use our energy for self improvement and self defense. In the Chinese medical theory, when the qi is out of balance, the sicknesses or disease becomes a result. With the things that we have learned so far with the breathing alone, implementing Qi gong practices in our life can greatly influence our wellbeing and way of life.

Till next time. Thank you,

Dr. Josef Patterson DC…