What is Qigong?

I am using this space to explain what I am learning because that helps me to retain new information and integrate it inside my brain! I was introduced to Qigong at a retreat and immediately felt like it was what has been missing from my wellness routine. I felt connected to it and wanted to learn more. So I signed up for a week long online summit to go deeper into the

Chinese Medicine theories of Qigong and was exposed to about 25 different Qigong Masters over the course of that week. One specific person stood out to me and her name was Marisa Cranfill. She was teaching her own method which combined Yoga and Qigong and branded it as "YoQi".

Then I began to study her content and videos, which felt like watching and listening to information that I already knew deep in my DNA. All of the information about how our energy works within our physical body, energetic body, and spirit body made sense to me. I had already learned a little about acupressure and the meridian system in the past. I had already taken TaiChi classes when I was younger. I recently finished a certification for Intuitive Energy Healing which overlaps a lot! I have always been into yoga and meditation. It all was coming back to me. But, it was deeper than that. As I was listening to her lectures about how our frequencies are tied to the organs in our physical body and the elements (fire, water, earth, metal, wood) and the seasons, I felt like I already knew all of that...... but was finally being reminded. It's hard to explain but it feels like maybe I was a practitioner in a past life because the information was so familiar.

I decided I needed to learn more and signed up for the teacher certification program. I want to learn it for my own wellness and longevity. I want to share it with my children, friends, and family. Qigong is really like an active meditation where we attune to our bodies and nature's rhythms. We must send our awareness and intentions inwards so that the Qi energy follows our attention and is sent to the areas of our bodies that need the flow of energy. There are postures and movements that are done in certain patterns that are slow and controlled. The breath is very important, just like in Yoga, and all movements are coordinated with the inhale and exhale as well. It is a physical practice at the exact pace that I love, and yet, it's a moving meditation too.

I am learning so much and will soon be gone for 10 days for an immersive training with Marisa herself. I will then have a few more months of studying, memorizing, applying all of this to my own life in order to share it with others. In order to be certified, I will be taking tests, creating my own classes, making my own videos to show that I can teach YoQi. All of this will be reviewed and graded and eventually I will be certified and approved to share YoQi within my own community.

All of this is for me. I didn't have grandparents that I was close to. They all passed away when I was very young and I barely remember them. Also, they were sickly and passed away from PREVENTABLE illnesses like emphysema (smoking), diabetes (poor diet), and heart disease (lack of sufficient movement).

My own parents passed away too soon, when I was already a mother, from Breast Cancer and Liver Cancer. My children don't have my own parents to grandparent them anymore. And as everyone knows, my own husband passed away too young from Heart Attack/Stroke, even though he was trying his best to live a healthy life.

I want to live a long life and enjoy my children, grandchildren (in the future), and even GREAT grandchildren! I want to be one of those old wise women who have a 100 year old Birthday Party! I think learning all that I can about my own life force energy, and how to regulate it, will ensure that my entire body stays in harmony! Our bodies are self-healing machines, but we must integrate our mind and spirit with our physical body (the three forces) and help it to achieve perfect balance.

I hope to share more details soon!