backs, knees and other pains
Posted by Fiona Anderson. on Wednesday, April 9, 2014
Many people discover things that need put right, when they start tai chi. This is due to us getting into habits over decades and not noticing, then as soon as you start on posture training, you start to notice what those habits may have led you into...
In my own case, I noticed that I was crunched up in the neck like a vulture and had odd grating moments in the neck. Tai chi is not a substitute for professional treatment, so I went to see a chiropracter - I chose my tai chi teacher's son, as I figured if he was as dedicated to chiropracty as my teacher is to tai chi, then he was probably very good. This turned out to be sound reasoning:
My chiropracter - Toby Wragg, who runs a "Back to Health" practice in Ealing - took various measurements and an x-ray. This meant he could show me exactly what was wrong and then proceed to put it right, over a number of sessions. I had not only the vulture neck syndrome, but also my hips were tilted at an odd angle, my weight was more on one foot than another, and my spine instead of being straight (when looking directly on) was bowed outward. This was all obvious on the x-ray. I had become an extreme case without even noticing, through decades of building up bad habits.
Over time, each of these was gently eased back into proper alignment, while I was also given some exercises to do at home, to encourage progress with this. Nowadays, I walk upright, my spine is straight, my neck is straight, with no odd crunching noises, etc.
My tai chi helps me maintain this good posture, now the extremes have been sorted out. Tai chi teaches awareness of posture, so helping prevent me returning to my old bad habits. The two together are helping each other help me.
So recently, one of my students was talking about having back pain, and my recommendation was to ask her GP to refer her for either osteopathy or physio - I don't think you can get chiropracty on the NHS, which is a pity as it helped me so much, I am convinced it could sort out a lot of things for people. Anyway, get professional help and use your tai chi to help develop your awareness of posture and body, so that you can then develop better habits and have a healthier life.
In my own case, I noticed that I was crunched up in the neck like a vulture and had odd grating moments in the neck. Tai chi is not a substitute for professional treatment, so I went to see a chiropracter - I chose my tai chi teacher's son, as I figured if he was as dedicated to chiropracty as my teacher is to tai chi, then he was probably very good. This turned out to be sound reasoning:
My chiropracter - Toby Wragg, who runs a "Back to Health" practice in Ealing - took various measurements and an x-ray. This meant he could show me exactly what was wrong and then proceed to put it right, over a number of sessions. I had not only the vulture neck syndrome, but also my hips were tilted at an odd angle, my weight was more on one foot than another, and my spine instead of being straight (when looking directly on) was bowed outward. This was all obvious on the x-ray. I had become an extreme case without even noticing, through decades of building up bad habits.
Over time, each of these was gently eased back into proper alignment, while I was also given some exercises to do at home, to encourage progress with this. Nowadays, I walk upright, my spine is straight, my neck is straight, with no odd crunching noises, etc.
My tai chi helps me maintain this good posture, now the extremes have been sorted out. Tai chi teaches awareness of posture, so helping prevent me returning to my old bad habits. The two together are helping each other help me.
So recently, one of my students was talking about having back pain, and my recommendation was to ask her GP to refer her for either osteopathy or physio - I don't think you can get chiropracty on the NHS, which is a pity as it helped me so much, I am convinced it could sort out a lot of things for people. Anyway, get professional help and use your tai chi to help develop your awareness of posture and body, so that you can then develop better habits and have a healthier life.
