Have you ever asked yourself, "why does pain arise?" or "why does pain become chronic?" Let's start by defining pain. We use "pain" to describe experiences like physical pain, emotional distress, career problems (also known as finding your life's purpose), and unsatisfying relationships. So what is the source of all this pain? We believe it to be stagnation and imbalance... physically this could be a lack of blood flow, congested lymphatic fluid (immune system), or muscle tension. Emotionally, this could be an inability to free yourself from the past or feeling unsafe expressing certain emotions (like fear, anger, or sadness). All of this, in energetic terms, is described as stagnation or imbalance. Energy is what makes you a living being, and not inanimate like a stool. Energy is also referred to as ki, qi, or chi (as in "reiKI," "QIgong," or "tai CHI"). "Ki" is pronounced as "key," and "Qi" and "chi" are pronounced "chee". When energy is stagnant, blood and lymphatic fluid are stagnant, and diseases and diagnoses come rolling in. When you've received a massage or Reiki before, you may have noticed heat building somewhere in your body. This is all indicative of blood flow, which means energy is flowing again. We can all agree that this flow leads to a wonderful state of relaxation and feeling more like yourself! If your goal is to enter into a state of well-being, then energy flow is what you're looking for! All of our services promote energy flow. Would you like to experience flowing energy? Let's give it a try! Sitting or standing, raise your arms above your head (or as high as they'll go) as you inhale slowly. Lower them as you exhale. Do this 10 times. When you're done, notice the tingling in your feet or hands. This is energy flow. Look at your palms. Do they look doppled with red and white spots? This is blood flow, which means your energy flowing. Why should we encourage energy to flow? Through years holistic work, we have never seen more results than after learning about the Traditional Chinese Medical model. Medical Qigong (the highest form of Chinese medicine) is one service we offer. This approach to wellness is centered around unwinding pathways of stagnant energy that may be connected to unresolved emotional content, physical discomfort, and habitual relationship cycles. After bringing foundations of Traditional Chinese Medicine into massage, Reiki, and our other services, our clients began reporting significantly increased physical relief, muscular relaxation, emotional release, and they reported a prolonged state of peace and mental clarity. This means they're achieving their wellness goals more quickly! As holistic practitioners, we look at all areas of your life in order to find and support alleviation of the root cause of issues. We may ask about chronic pain, anxiety, career shifts, relationship issues & more because we are educated in assessing and treating the connection between high blood pressure, for example, and its affects on failed relationships, anger issues, and tight mid-back pain. Another example is the connection between excess worry and its affects on digestive issues, anxiety, brain fog, neck tightness, and susceptibility to abusive coworkers or bosses. We find that new clients discover us when they are ready to actually become well. They are tired medical tests, trying to diagnose a mystery disease, and putting other people or tasks before their own well-being. We are here to help you, which is why we encourage using multiple modalities; you are a dynamic being and need to be nourished in multiple ways. If you'd like a consultation to discover which of our services may be best for you, contact us! We look forward to meeting you.