Qigong and Chronic Pain - Part 2

When we are in pain, our instinct is to go straight to the problem and try to fix it. If we stub our toe, we immediately grab our foot and maybe rub it or put ice on it. In Qigong, we sometimes find that the site of the pain is not necessarily the area that needs treating.

A good example of this is lower back issues. While a blockage in the lower back from bad posture or injury may be the issue, the pain may manifest elsewhere. It is quite common for lower back issues to cause stiffness in the shoulders and neck as they compensate for weight that is no longer being carried by the legs. Alternatively, we may find knee pain as a result of the lower back injury forcing the weight in the legs to be carried in the knee joints due to distorted posture.

Because of this, when we practice Qigong for injury, we look at and exercise elements of the body connected with the injured or painful area. Qigong takes a wholistic approach to treating illness and so we practice exercises to stimulate the Qi flow throughout the body. This stimulates the Qi flow, clears the blockages and makes the affected area stronger. The aim should be to leave the body healthier than when we started . With chronic pain, this can take longer as the body may have been injured for some time, but with consistent practice, even injuries and illness we have had for years can be reversed and we can end up feeling better than before.