Hibernating Bear Tai Chi

Moving Gracefully with your Baseline

My ethos is to make traditional Tai Chi, Qigong and meditation available to students of all abilities, for those living with chronic illness, degenerative health or a different health baseline than the norm. Learn dynamic slow movements and relaxation techniques combined with breath work to take a positive step towards your own self care. A bear knows instinctively when to rest and rejuvenate, and when the winter is over he knows when it is time to be active again. It is all about balance, following the natural ebb and flow in life and responding to changes with grace.

As a Tai Chi, Qigong and meditation instructor, I have distilled my studies and practice of the Classical Chinese movement and stillness arts over the last 17 years, to pass on the most effective methods for improving health and wellbeing. I work with students privately online and through group livestream classes to help show an alternative natural route to support chronic health, pain and fatigue. I help show students how to improve their quality of life through low impact exercise and relaxation, with compassion and validation of you as a unique individual. It is possible to cope better and build resilience!

What will you learn?

Physical Health

Relaxation & Wellbeing

Pain & Fatigue Management

  • How to exercise and manage your individual health baseline with grace, not pushing passed your body's tolerance, to avoid extremes
  • How to avoid the boom and bust cycle
  • What you can do to lessen fatigue
  • Exercises when living with chronic fatigue
  • Release chronic physical tension
  • Movement and stillness for chronic pain management
  • Reframing and lessening the pain experience
  • Learn how to progressively to build up to a regular exercise practice
  • The importance of frequency over duration
  • Natural steps to improving your quality of life

N.B. This is not tuition where you will learn a Tai Chi routine or a qigong set. The focus is on Tai Chi movements, drills and exercises for health and wellbeing. Especially correcting and maintaining physical alignment, with deep muscular / soft tissue /joint movements and diaphragmatic breathing.

Our Hibernating Bear classes

Instructor Nicola

I live with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome, fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue syndrome, a chronic pain state and psoriatic arthritis. My experience of living with chronic pain, chronic fatigue and physical restriction has given me a unique insight into training and teaching Tai Chi and Qigong.  I have trained the practices personally since 2006, experiencing the raw ebb and flow of chronic health since and seeing the benefits these practices can offer. I have trained many students with a differing base line than the norm, in private tuition in the home, in the community, in homes for the elderly, at chronic health support groups, at physiotherapy studios, on behalf of the council, on behalf of the chronic pain clinic at the hospital and through my live online classes.

 
I have supported students with the following conditions:

Breath Work

At the core of all Tai Chi, Qigong and meditation training is developing your breath work. Breathing is the key to life and is especially of benefit when you are in a chronic health flare, living with pain or are injured. If you cannot move enough to exercise, there are many techniques to help calm the mind and release physical tension. Learn how to improve your breathing and why diaphragmatic breathing is so important to life long health. Follow along with my blog series called 'Nourish through Breath'.

As with all medical conditions, injuries and/or ill-health, please consult with your Doctor prior to starting a class. Tai Chi, Qigong and Meditation are not a replacement for conventional medical treatment. This article is for information only and should not be taken as medical advice.

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