Qi Gong Classes @ Healing Foundations

Beginning February 20th, 2017—
Join Venus Sabay at Healing Foundations every Monday, 6-7:15pm

It's all about energy! 
There are days when you feel on top of it, and days when you feel stuck. As sentient beings, we unknowingly pick up a lot of unwanted energies from the environment and people, and wonder why we feel or think the way we do. Once you understand that your body is made up of energy systems, it becomes easier to clear out the clutter and intentionally draw in fresh energy. 
Utilizing the art of Qi Gong (Chee-gung) you will learn a series of 15 simple yet powerful movements that will build your life force energy (Qi) from the inside out. Qi Gong is the cultivation of energy; a self healing practice to maintain health and increase vitality. Class will end with a seated meditation.

Venus believes that we are all born with the innate knowledge and ability to heal ourselves through the power of breath.  It is the gateway to one's true potential, and overall emotional/mental, physical and spiritual well being.  Since 2006 she has cultivated the skill of breathing, and in 2012 became a Certified Medical Qi Gong Instructor under the study of Sifu Gail Galivan at Inner Alchemy Energy Medicine.  In acknowledging the effectiveness of self-discovery and truth, her objective is to guide each person to their own unique path via healing and balance in the mind-body relationship realm. Turning off the outside world while emphasizing intuition, creativity, and imagination, she utilizes the power of intention with coordinated breath and gentle moving meditations.  Her classes allow each individual to experience the inner working of their universe with significance and ease, creating a more harmonious life.

Venus has had the privilege of working with students of all levels, including the older adult population at Rush Medical Center's membership program Rush Generations, and at Mathers-More Than a Cafe, to incorporate recreational and wellness programs for the senior community. 

Venus Sabay, Qi Gong InstructorVenus@HealingFound.com

Venus Sabay, Qi Gong Instructor
Venus@HealingFound.com

Qi Gong classes are limited to 12 participants, and sign-up is required. Call 773-880-9939 to register, or

sign-up online at
www.meetup.com

What is Qi Gong?

Qi Gong is an ancient Chinese art and science form. It is gentle energy exercises through breath, postures, simple movements and meditation; similar to Tai Chi— but not martial arts based.  One’s life energy is strengthened, cleansed, and circulated throughout the body and stored. 

Qi Gong is a combination of physical postures, breathing techniques, and focused intentions. Every exercise can be done while sitting or standing, and is simple enough for people of all ages with, or without, experience of Qi Gong.  Modifications are made for those who have a specific range of motion, or a medical history, so as to work within their ability.

Qi (Chee): energy, life force that flows through all things in the Universe. Gong: work, or skill acquired through time and practice

Qi Gong improves: circulation, concentration, memory, metabolism, digestion, coordination, balance, wellbeing, awareness. Increases: health, vitality, intuition, creativity. Creates: optimistic and joyous disposition, clear and tranquil mind, relaxation response to stress.

January 2017 Update:

Hello 2017!

New Year's greetings to everyone! Nearly four weeks after the Gregorian calendar declared the new year, the Chinese lunar calendar rung in 2017 on Saturday, January 28th.  It's officially the Year of the Rooster, and we've got plenty to crow and talk about.

On January 18th, local CBS Channel 2 news broadcast a short ‘HealthWatch’ segment on ear seeds, with our own Lisa Alvarez—filmed right here at Healing Foundations. If you missed the broadcast, you can see the video here.

If yoga is on your radar for 2017, join us for class every Wednesday evening from 6-7pm, with Jennifer Gaspers—our resident yogi. For a more personalized approach, contact Jennifer for information on 1-on-1 yoga or semi-private instruction: 
Jennifer@HealingFoundationsChicago.com

New year's celebrations are a big deal in China—lasting anywhere from 7 to 23 days. If you’re feeling like you’ve got some celebrating left in you, you have our blessing! Click here for some fun Chinese New Year facts.

One-on-One Yoga comes to Healing Foundations

Beginning in January, Healing Foundations' resident Yogi began offering personalized Yoga instruction on an appointment basis. Jennifer Gaspers has been leading small group Yoga classes at Healing Foundations for almost six years, but really saw the need for a more individualized experience.

"I came to yoga first for relief from a high stress job, and then after my second car accident— to help me regain flexibility and build strength. I found a patient instructor willing to help me modify poses until I got stronger, and more confident. That began my road to recovery, but I had no idea it would lead to so much more."

 

"It's about moving with your breath, and the meditative bond that's created between the mind and body. When I discovered that, that's when my healing happened."

 

Sixteen years later, Jennifer became a certified Yoga instructor herself. "Yoga is not about contorting your body or standing on your head once a week. Yoga is about the process of getting into a pose and how you feel in that pose. It's about moving with your breath, and the meditative bond that's created between the mind and body. When I discovered that, that's when my healing happened."

"Many people enjoy the social aspect of group exercise classes, but some feel intimidated by being in a class where people of different skill levels are working together. One-on-one instruction not only allows me to give immediate feedback, but it also provides a supportive environment, where people feel like they can ask questions, and even struggle without judgement." Jennifer says this kind of instruction allows the focus to be more therapeutic, and geared toward an individual's specific needs. 

Experience this One-on-One instruction with Jennifer at Healing Foundations. Each 75 minute session includes personalized poses based on your goals or specific needs, and time for meditation. A private session at Healing Foundations is $65; semi-private (two participants) is $80. Email Jennifer to schedule your session: Jennifer@HealingFound.com

Know your practitioner: Is it really acupuncture?

Not all needling is acupuncture

Popularity of acupuncture in the U.S is growing and becomes more integrated with Western medicine practices every day. General Practitioners are referring their patients to acupuncturists on a regular basis, the use of acupuncture needles has begun filtering into a number of healing therapies. 

What is dry needling, and how is it different than acupuncture?
Dry needling is the practice of inserting acupuncture needles into tender or painful points in muscle or tissue, then rotating or lightly jiggling them to induce a spasm and/or increase blood flow. Doctors or therapists in a number of fields often offer dry needling as an á-la-carte service. Practitioners using this method are not licensed acupuncturists, and have not received the training and education required to be one. Dry needling (using acupuncture needles) is a less involved way to leverage the efficacy of acupuncture by performing it without studying or employing it's diagnostic or treatment complexities fully or practicing it in a clinical setting. Obtaining the needles used in acupuncture is considerably easier than getting the training to use them. In recent years, everyone from physical therapists to cosmeticians have begun offering dry needling services, while inaccurately promoting that acupuncture is based in psuedoscience.

 

Licensed, degreed Acupuncturists
accumulate 1,500 to 2,000 hours of hands-on experience before they're allowed to practice on their own.


Click here to see CCAOM's comparison of required study hours for different acupuncture applications.

 

 The difference is in the training— and It's the law.
Acupuncture is just one modality belonging to the holistic, drug-free therapies of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Anyone who practices acupuncture must have extensive education, and by law, must be licensed to do so. Licensed Acupuncturists (LAc) who've obtained an accredited degree and passed national certification exams have 1,500 to 2,000 hours of hands-on experience before they can begin practicing on their own. Knowing acupuncture's strengths, limitations and even risks is an important part of a licensed acupuncturists knowledge base. Even doctors in Western medicine who choose to integrate acupuncture in their practice are only required a minimum of 200 hours of training—just a tenth of a licensed acupuncturist, and they're are required to know when the scope of their training ends, and to refer their patient to a fully-licensed acupuncture practitioner. If anyone is using acupuncture needles to treat you, you deserve to know the basis of their treatment, and the amount of education and expertise they possess to perform it.

Security, safety, knowledge, and experience:
Every one of our acupuncture practitioners at Healing Foundations have graduate degrees in Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine (AOM). Eighty percent of their schooling is exclusively in AOM, and they've undergone 3-4 years extensive clinical training. When we say that Healing Foundations offers Acupuncture and Complementary Therapies, that's not just talk; our practitioners have the education and training to back up every one of your treatments, plus the knowledge and experience to carry out your holistic treatment plan.

Getting in the Game with Integrative Medicine

For many people, ya gotta see it to believe it. And everybody did. Those dark circles dotting the backs and shoulders of the Olympic swimmers caught everyone's attention...and suddenly practitioners all over the country were inundated with inquiries about cupping. Rebecca was among those interviewed for a story on the phenomenon in the Chicago Tribune. She and Lisa, Revital and Jennifer have all kept busy cupping in the weeks after the Olympic games, and now we're beginning to see those clients again, and they're bringing referrals, too.

Cupping isn't new of course, nor are any of the other therapies available at Healing Foundations—and Chinese Medicine isn't new to sports, either. If you follow us on Facebook, you know that along with scientific findings, goings on and a few pretty pictures, we like to share links to stories about pro athletes like the NBA's Pao Gasol and a few of the (numerous) players in the NFL who rely on acupuncture to stay in the game. Along with other acupuncture stories, we'll occasionally even throw a non-sports celebrity or animal story into the mix (some of the more peculiar stories involve both).

 

Athletes have a heightened awareness of their bodies and the utmost interest in getting and staying healthy.  
They don't dabble, and they don't take chances with it.

 

What's great about athletes is that they have a vested interest in maintaining their optimal health, and for better or worse, people watch and follow them. The influence of sports isn't limited to t.v. and social media. Advances in orthopedics, technology, and even nutrition that originated in athletics have greatly influenced the general public. We're not talking "breakfast of champions" here; we're talking about surgical and rehabilitation techniques, plus better safety and training practices for youth, weekend athletes, and armchair athletes, too.

We don't advocate basing your healthcare on what you see on television, but it's only natural that if someone who inspires and exposes you to something new, you're likely to take notice and engage in conversations about it that you might not have otherwise. Being aware and informed about your choices is crucial—and smart. Being "in the game" may not mean becoming an athlete, it may just mean being educated on all your options. We at Healing Foundations are healers, not pro athletes. Still, we hope that our care and the therapies we offer are part of your heath and wellness agenda.

We're thrilled when our clients talk about their experiences at Healing Foundations, but even if we'd bought a Super Bowl commercial, we doubt we could have created as much buzz and as many conversations about integrative therapies as those polka-dots upon expanses of those barely-covered Olympic bodies, and we love them for it.