Presents
The Five Element Acupuncture Symposium 2013
Continuing the Journey™
September 27-29, 2013

With Special Pre-Symposium Intensive:
Five-Element Medical Qi Gong Certificate Program
September 25-26, 2013

"The best yet!"


2013 Symposium Participants

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Symposium Archives

Here are a few video invitations from presenters at this year's Symposium:


Neil Gumenick - "Patients on Video: Diagnosis and Treatment Planning"
& "Interviewing/Rapport Skills Development"




Pat Gorman - "Fertility and the Five Elements"



Stephen "Tuna" Flores - "Fertility and the Five Elements"



Joseph Soprani - "Lyme Disease in the Five Element Practice"



Lynn Schwartz - "Ethics: The Transformational Element"

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Symposium Speakers and Topics

Niki Bilton, M.Ac. (UK), MBAcC., L.Ac.
Niki Bilton holds 3 degrees from the College of Traditional Acupuncture (UK) and served on its faculty from 1988-1999, holding the positions of Clinical Supervisor, Advanced Training Tutor, and Dean of Post Graduate Studies. Niki has offered/taught seminars and clinical events throughout Europe and North America since 1995. She is President of Tending Shen Inc., providing treatment and graduate education, and Academic Dean of Ongiara College of Acupuncture and Moxabustion, Ontario, Canada

Topic - Manifesting Color, Sound, Odor and Emotion
The responsibility of a Five Element practitioner includes making a clinically effective diagnosis of the patient's CF and Withins, using the four examination skills to ascertain color, sound, odor and emotion. To engender greater healing, however, the practitioner needs to create a therapeutic relationship with the patient's body/mind/spirit, so that the patient can see him/herself in health beyond the limitations of accrued pathology. The skill of accurately reflecting the authenticity of all patients requires cultivation of the practitioner's own inner knowing-how of the five manifestations (elements) of life.

This experiential presentation will allow participants to witness the synergy of color, sound, odor and emotion in congruent expression, and then encourage them to develop greater ease with their own use of the wuxing correspondences in treatment interactions.


Roy Capellaro, P.T.
Roy began working within the healing traditions in 1973. Licensed as a physical therapist in 1978, he has been on the vanguard of his profession working within the realm of subtle energetic forces interfacing the body's structure. He is a certified practitioner/teacher of Zero Balancing and is skilled in manual based healing systems including Cranial Fluid Dynamics, CranioSacral Therapy, osteopathic and advanced manual therapeutics. He is a long time student and teacher of T'ai Chi Chuan.

Topic - Zero Balancing and Acupuncture: Secrets of the Skeleton
Our bones are pliable and alive and have significance beyond structural integrity, muscularligamentous support and red blood cell production. They are in fact are deep energy generators. The chi created from them is deeply nourishing, its effects ripple through our tissues and fluids.

The presentation will delve into a deep understanding of our bones and their energetic function. We will learn about the hidden structure of bone, its physiology and physics, bringing science to the energetic experience. There will be an exposæ on how these forces act to increase bone density. The skeletal forces’ involvement in the generation of chi will be addressed and the relation the skeleton has on our psyche is discussed.

Lastly, we will experience ways to generate these forces inside ourselves and for others and to introduce Zero Balancing. This body-mind handling system utilizes structure/energetic interface to support healing, complementing Classical Acupuncture. We will discuss how Zero Balancing can be useful in support of treatments and when to refer our patients to a Zero Balancer or other practitioners that utilize these amplified fields in their workings.


Stephen "Tuna" Flores, L.Ac., M.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Stephen "Tuna" Flores has degrees from the Worsley Institute of Classical Acupuncture, FL; The College of Traditional Acupuncture, UK; and the Academy for Five Element Acupuncture, FL. He was a member of the Master Apprentice Program™ and holds a certificate in Advanced Teacher Training. Stephen has been teaching undergraduate and continuing education acupuncture for over fifteen years and, more recently, Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong. He has also studied with Jeffrey Yuen, Giovanni Maciocia and Dr. Tan. One area of expertise, fertility, has rewarded Stephen with over 50 successes including assisting in several deliveries. Stephen practices with his wife Pat Gorman in New York City and Bridgehampton, NY.

Pat Gorman, M.Ac., B.Ac., (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac
Pat Gorman, Lic.Ac., M.Ac., Dipl.Ac. has studied and taught Five Element Acupuncture and T'ai Chi for most of her life. She began her studies at Chinese Medical Doctor and T'ai Chi Master Professor Cheng Man Ching's Shr Jung studio in 1973; She was in the TAI Sophia class of 1983, and studied extensively with J.R. Worsley until his passing. She has also studied with Jeffrey Yuen, Giovanni Maciocia, Shamans and Native American Healers. Pat co-founded the International School of T'ai Chi Chuan and the T'ai Chi Foundation, and is a Yang Style Legacy Holder. She currently teaches both undergraduate and post-graduate Five Element Acupuncture, including classes in fertility and childbirth and Roots and Branches Qi Gong and practices with her husband, Stephen "Tuna" Flores in New York City and the Long Island Hamptons.

Topic - Fertility and the Five Elements
Acupuncture is well known for being helpful in becoming pregnant. The Five Element practitioner has the challenge of staying true to the CF and addressing fertility issues. We will cover patients wanting acupuncture alone, and patients working with Western fertility doctors. We will familiarize you with the techniques and terminology; understanding of IUI, IVF, ICSI, retrieval, transfer, zygotes, motility, morphology, sperm washing, donors, gender selection and more will be included. Most importantly, along with these terms will be specific treatments, points and techniques to support each stage of fertilization. Many of these supportive treatments have been developed through Stephen's long-term focus in this area and field-tested on over 50 successful pregnancies.


Margaret Olmsted, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Margaret Olmsted trained in Five-Element Acupuncture at The Institute of Classical Five-Element Acupuncture Inc. in Santa Monica, California where she is now a part-time instructor. She has attended many workshops with JR and Judy Worsley, and participated in the Worsley Institute's Master Apprentice Program™. She is a summa cum laude graduate of Emperor's College of Traditional Oriental Medicine where she received the Degree of Master of Oriental Medicine and Acupuncture. Margaret has been practicing and teaching T'ai Chi Chuan and Qi Gong for over 20 years, as well as meditative trainings from Arica Institute.

Topic - Roots and Branches 5 Element Qi Gong - Healing the Body, Invigorating the Spirit
(with Stephen "Tuna" Flores and Pat Gorman)
Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong has been developed by T'ai Chi legacy holder, and acupuncturist, Pat Gorman,M.Ac., to specifically complement Five Element treatments. It is based on the work of Prof. Cheng Man Ch'ing, Master of the Five Excellences, and Classical Chinese medicine.

This year we will focus on powerful, yet gentle elemental healing moves, and specific postures to tonify the Spirit. These moves complement and add to those taught in the pre-symposium Five Element Medical Qi Gong Intensive. We will also teach several postures for the restoration of deep reserves, especially effective in overcoming long-term illnesses.


David Goodell, L.Ac., M.Ac., Ac.M.(UK), Dipl. Ac.
David Goodell holds a B.I.S. in Chinese Civilization from George Mason University, earned his Certificate of Competence from the Traditional Acupuncture Institute, Columbia MD (1985), B.Ac. from CTA (UK), M.Ac. from TAI (1990), and his Ac. M. (UK) from J.R. Worsley (1996). He organized and attended numerous clinical seminars with J.R. and J.B. Worsley between 1987 and 2008, was a clinical supervisor at TAI from 1995-97, and attended and helped coach participants in the Worsleys' Master Apprentice Program™ from 1997-2007. David was a founding member and President of the Worsley Institute from 1998-2008. He studied meditation with Arica Institute from 1974 to the present, and studied and taught Tai Chi with The School of T'ai Chi Chuan from 1976 to the present.

Topic - Interviewing/Rapport Skills Development
(with Stephen "Tuna" Flores, Neil Gumenick, and Eliot Ivanhoe)
The best opportunities for accurate diagnosis occur during moments of rapport. Each patient interaction becomes a fascinating adventure! In this session, participants will work in pairs, one acting as patient, one acting as practitioner, with a teacher overseeing each group and giving feedback in real time. Participants will hone their interviewing skills to more quickly and deeply reach a state of unity with patients and get to the heart of the matter, resulting in greater diagnostic accuracy on all levels and increased patient trust.


Chuck Graham, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Chuck Graham has been a licensed acupuncturist in the State of Maryland since 2001. He holds the degree of Master of Acupuncture from the Academy for Five Element Acupuncture in Gainesville, FL where he is also the Academic Dean. He asserts, "The traditional Five Element acupuncturist must understand each client as a whole being with unique aspects." It is this inherent dimension of caring that brought Chuck to Classical Five Element Acupuncture.

Master of Ceremonies


Neil R. Gumenick, M.Ac. (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Neil Gumenick is Founder and Director of The Institute of Classical Five-Element Acupuncture Inc. and has been in practice since 1981. He holds three degrees including a Masters degree from the College of Traditional Acupuncture (UK) and an Advanced Teacher certification awarded by Professor J.R. Worsley. Neil has written and taught extensively on the spirits of every point, rapport skills, diagnosis, and treatment. He was a 10-year participant and senior coach in MAP™, has taught at numerous Oriental medical schools and symposia internationally, and is a longstanding columnist for Acupuncture Today.

Topic - Patients on Video: Diagnosis and Treatment Planning
In this presentation, Neil will present a variety of patients on video from his clinical practice. You will see excerpts of each patient interview prior to treatment. Following each video, Neil will lead a discussion on each patient, including the Causative Factor, points that were treated, with what moxa and/or needle actions, and with an explanation of each point used and the rationale of the order of points chosen. Following this, you will see the patient post-treatment on video with a discussion of suggested future treatments.

Topic - Class patients: Examination, Diagnosis, Pulse Feedback, Treatment Planning
(with Eliot Ivanhoe)
In this session, two class patients will be presented. There will be opportunities to interview and take pulses of each. Neil and Eliot will share their pulse readings and lead a discussion of diagnostic findings as to Causative Factor based on odor, color, sound, and emotion. They will discuss a treatment plan for each patient, including the uses and spirits of each point selected.


Eliot Ivanhoe, M.D., M.Ac. (UK)
Eliot Ivanhoe received his M.D. from NYU School of Medicine, completed a residency in neurology at NYU-Bellevue Medical Center, and studied Classical Five Element Acupuncture with J.R. Worsley in Leamington Spa. These studies continued in the Master Apprentice Program™ with J.R. and Judy Worsley until 2005. Eliot is a certified Advanced Teacher of CF-EA, a practitioner of the Arica way of enlightenment, and serves on the faculty of The Institute of Classical Five-Element Acupuncture Inc.

Topic - Boundaries and Oneness: What Are We Talking About?
Practitioners of many healing arts often talk about boundaries. Even "healthy boundaries." But, what are we really talking about? What are they and of what are they made? When we achieve a state of oneness with our patients, where are the boundaries? We will explore the various meanings and levels of our understanding of boundaries so that we can better assist both our patients and ourselves with greater integrity.


Kathleen Robinson, B.Ac. (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Kathleen Robinson graduated from The Worsley Institute of Classical Acupuncture (WICA I) receiving her Lic. Ac. and B.Ac. in 1990. She was a member of MAP™ and is a Worsley certified Advanced Teacher. She has been in private practice for 23 years, teaching and doing clinical supervision at ITEA and AFEA (1998) for 17 years and been writing curriculum for the last 7 years. She has co-taught with both Hilary Skellon and Neil Gumenick and has studied, gratefully, with JR Worsley, until his death, and Judy Worsley every year since 1988.

Topic - Marketing Your Practice From the Inside Out
This presentation is s synoptic glance at how to build a thriving and financially sustainable practice. The approach to this industry will be through examination of potentially limiting beliefs about commerce and self worth, and the way in which we knit the two together either positive or negative outcomes.


Lynn Schwartz, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Lynn Schwartz has devoted the past two decades of her life to practicing and teaching the healing art of Classical 5-Element Acupuncture . She graduated TAI (Tai Sophia) in 1994 and has been a faculty member and creator of the ethics curriculum. She participated in the MAP™ II Program with Professor JR Worsley from 2002 to 2005. Lynn is the co-founder of the Classical Acupuncture and Healing Center where she leads PDA courses. She loves facilitating participants in transforming what IS to WHAT'S POSSIBLE!!

Topic - Ethics: The Transformational Element
We are routinely presented with ethical dilemmas and one must know how to navigate the sometimes confusing situations and shades of gray that may arise. We will explore how to address ethical issues by classroom lecture, role playing exercises, and discussing actual questions that have arisen from your practices. We will make distinctions between our morality as distinct from ethics and have an opportunity to examine our own belief systems.


Joseph Soprani, M.Ac., L.Ac.
Joseph Soprani has been involved in the field of Acupuncture and Oriental medicine as a practitioner, educator, administrator and consultant since 1985. He is certified in Acupuncture and Herbology (NCCAOM), Classical Five Element Acupuncture, and Zero Balancing. He was on the faculty and Clinic Director of the Oregon College of Oriental Medicine and was the clinical supervisor for numerous Five Element schools.

Topic - Lyme Disease in the Five Element Practice
Lyme disease and other tick borne illnesses are a growing epidemic that is showing up in our practices under the disguise of many complicated symptoms. In this presentation we will describe the etiology of the disease and its many presenting symptoms enabling you to recognize it in your practice. We will cover which treatment strategies from Classical Five Element Acupuncture can be most useful, frequency of treatment, complications to look out for and blocks that are common in this disease.


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Symposium Schedule


Friday September 27, 2013


8:00AM - 8:30AM Registration

8:30AM - 9:00AM Welcome and Orientation
Neil R. Gumenick, M.Ac., (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac., Director
David Goodell, L.Ac., M.Ac., Ac. M. (UK), Dipl. Ac., Symposium Co-Chair
Eliot Ivanhoe, M.D., M.Ac. (UK), Symposium Co-Chair
Chuck Graham, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac., Master of Ceremonies


9:00AM - 10:30AM Ethics: The Transformational Element
Lynn Schwartz, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.


10:30AM - 11:00AM Break

11:00AM - 12:30PM Interviewing/Rapport Skills Development
Stephen "Tuna" Flores, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
David Goodell, L.Ac., M.Ac., Ac. M. (UK), Dipl. Ac.
Neil R. Gumenick, M.Ac., (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Eliot Ivanhoe, M.D., M.Ac. (UK)


12:30PM - 2:00PM Lunch

2:00PM - 3:30PM Boundaries and Oneness: What Are We Talking About?
Eliot Ivanhoe, M.D., M.Ac. (UK)


3:30PM - 4:00PM Break

4:00PM - 5:30PM Marketing Your Practice From the Inside Out
Kathleen Robinson, B.Ac. (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.


Saturday September 28, 2013


7:30AM - 8:45AM Roots and Branches 5 Element Qi Gong - Healing the Body, Invigorating the Spirit
Pat Gorman, M.Ac., B.Ac. (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Stephen "Tuna" Flores, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Margaret Olmsted, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.


9:00AM - 10:30AM Fertility and the Five Elements
Pat Gorman, M.Ac., B.Ac. (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Stephen "Tuna" Flores, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.


10:30AM - 11:00AM Break

11:00AM - 11:30AM Fertility and the Five Elements
(continued)


11:30AM - 1:00PM Manifesting Color, Sound, Odor and Emotion
Niki Bilton, M.Ac. (UK), MBAcC., L.Ac.


1:00PM - 2:30PM Lunch

2:30PM - 3:30PM Manifesting Color, Sound, Odor and Emotion
(continued)


3:30PM - 4:00PM Break

4:00PM - 5:30PM Patients on Video: Diagnosis and Treatment Planning
Neil R. Gumenick, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.


Sunday September 29, 2013


7:30AM - 8:45AM Roots and Branches 5 Element Qi Gong
Pat Gorman, M.Ac., B.Ac. (UK), L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Stephen "Tuna" Flores, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Margaret Olmsted, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.


9:00AM - 10:30AM Zero Balancing-Experiencing the Listening Field
Roy Capellaro, P.T.


10:30AM - 11:00 Break

11:00AM - 12:30PM Class patients: Examination, Diagnosis, Pulse Feedback, Treatment Planning
Neil R. Gumenick, M.Ac., L.Ac., Dipl. Ac.
Eliot Ivanhoe, M.D., M.Ac. (UK)


12:30PM - 2:00PM Lunch

2:00PM - 3:30PM Lyme Disease in the Five Element Practice
Joseph Soprani, M.Ac., L.Ac.


3:30PM - 3:45PM Break

3:45PM - 5:15PM Practitioner Panel
Symposium Presenters

Participants will have opportunities to openly discuss, with senior practitioners and teachers, issues about which they have concerns or questions.

5:15PM - 5:30PM Closure
Chuck, David, Eliot, and Neil

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Presents
5 Element Medical Qi Gong Certificate Program
September 25-26, 2013
8:30AM - 5:30 PM


- A clear, powerful transmission for beginners and experienced
Qi Gong practitioners that precisely matches the 5 Element tradition.

Presented by Pat Gorman, Stephen Flores, and Margaret Olmsted.



This remarkable Qi Gong system is designed to seamlessly integrate into your practice, strengthening and supporting your patients' energy, CF and spirit. The moves, postures and massages can be used as homework, or within a treatment to further sustain your work together.


"A wonderful tool… The teaching is great… I feel empowered."
In addition, even a small amount of work is very supportive for ourselves as practitioners, to keep our energy at its peak all day long.

This program integrates the 5 Element traditions of Prof. JR Worsley and Prof. Cheng Man Ch'ing, noted healer and T'ai Chi Grand Master. For over 40 years, Pat Gorman, M. Ac., (TAI, 1983; CTA, 1985) documented the Qi Gong exercises Prof. Cheng assigned to his patients, and followed their progress. Many of the very ill attributed their survival to this combination of classical Chinese medicine and Qi Gong.

Over the past 20 years, Pat, now a T'ai Chi/Qi Gong Legacy Holder, has partnered with Gerrie Sporken, Ac.M., (CTA, 1983), Legacy Holder, to develop this work into its current form:

A simple and powerful 5 Element system of Qi Gong that integrates easily into your regular practice.

Included as a part of this program is a beautiful and inspiring two DVD set of this work, performed by Master T'ai Chi teachers, narrated by Pat and introduced by Dr. Robert Abramson, MD.


THE FOCUS of THIS TWO-DAY INTENSIVE WILL BE THREE AREAS:

  1. Learn:
    Learn powerful, subtle moves, postures, and Qi Gong energy massages, along with deep breathing techniques which strongly affect the Ancestral Jing, the Five Elements and the twelve Officials. Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong will strongly support your own qi as well as your patients.
  2. Diagnosis and Selection:
    Learn to work with your patients' CF diagnosis and state of health; select the appropriate moves for the best results; and adapt to their changes and improvements, all based on Five Element theory.
  3. Teaching One-On-One:
    Learn teaching techniques and T'ai Chi/Qi Gong principles to help your individual patients achieve a smooth flow of Chi, integrated with breath and movement, supporting the acupuncture treatment they receive from you.

"Excellent, simple techniques for myself and my patients…"

"Presented with passion and simplicity… Loved it!"

BENEFITS TO YOURSELF and YOUR PRACTICE:

Adding Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong to your practice expands your acupuncture repertoire, giving you new tools with which to approach patient issues as well as strengthening yourself.

Over the years, Pat, Gerrie, and acupuncturists Margaret Olmsted and Stephen Flores, and many others have been using these Qi Gong moves with their patients as homework, achieving remarkable results.

These include: amplifying and extending the effects of each acupuncture treatment; preventing entry – exit blocks from returning; help with recovery from serious illness or debilitating medical treatments; help with depression, will, and joy of life.

CREDITS and COMPLETION:

A beautiful Certificate of Completion from the T'ai Chi Foundation will be presented at the end of the intensive along with your fourteen NCCAOM CEU credits. The T'ai Chi Foundation is a not-for-profit organization that teaches and qualifies teachers of T'ai Chi, and acupuncture practitioners of Medical Qi Gong. Completing this intensive qualifies you to participate in other Roots and Branches trainings in the US and Europe.


"I've had wonderful results with my patients."

"Very valuable for my practice… And it feels so good!"

YOUR INSTRUCTORS:

Pat Gorman, M.Ac., (TAI, 1983; CTA, 1985); Five Element practitioner for nearly 30 years, T'ai Chi/Qi Gong teacher, over 40 years. Yang family T'ai Chi Legacy Holder; Developer of Roots and Branches 5 Element Qi Gong.

Margaret Olmsted, L.Ac.; Five Element practitioner; T'ai Chi/Qi Gong teacher of teachers for nearly 40 years. Yang family T'ai Chi Legacy Holder.

Stephen "Tuna" Flores, M.Ac., (WICA, 1996; CTA, 1997; AFEA, 2001) Five Element practitioner and teacher for over 15 years; Roots and Branches teacher for many years.


Pat, Margaret and Steve all use Roots and Branches in their practices as well as for themselves. They teach together as a team, providing a highly focused, enjoyable learning environment with plenty of personal attention. Their goal is your embodiment of the course material, giving you the confidence and support to bring this powerful work to yourself, your patients and into your healing practice.


A Video Invitiation from Pat Gorman

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Now, for the first time, with Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong, you can learn simple yet powerful moves to share with your patients, knowing precisely how those moves will support your treatments.

Qi Gong is entirely within our scope of practice as acupuncturists and is receiving international acclaim. Add this extraordinary work, which is precisely aligned with your Five Element treatments as a powerful support and addition to your practice.

Here is what acupuncturists and health professionals are saying:



Harvard University has just published a major book on the positive effects of Qi Gong and T'ai Chi entitled "Harvard Medical School guide to T'ai Chi – 12 weeks to a healthy body, strong heart and sharp mind."

The New England Journal of Medicine published a major study in February, 2012 on how T'ai Chi improves balance in people with Parkinson's disease. – The study was based on Qi Gong moves.


One of the most wonderful things about this Five Element Qi Gong program is learning moves, not just for myself but for my patients. The focus on "Principles of Movement" helped enormously. I've never taught T'ai Chi or Qi Gong, so the special one-on-one techniques I learned are invaluable with my patients, and the effects are both powerful and empowering.

~ Shion Bushner, Ac.M., (CTA, UK)  


Consistently practicing T'ai Chi and Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong improves my physical health, mental clarity, sense of purpose and focus enormously. No other activity I have done comes close. Taking responsibility for being at my best also benefits my patients by improving the quality of care I can offer to them. This is why I practice it daily and why those patients of mine who do so as well enjoy much better health.

I consider it indispensable for those who are very ill, as it supports their treatments daily, often restoring them at a deeper level than acupuncture alone. While T'ai Chi takes a long time to learn, the simple movements of Roots and Branches Qi Gong can be learned and practiced right away by almost anyone."

~ David Goodell, L.Ac., M.Ac.,  
Author: Opening the Gate of Life  


I practice Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong daily and use some very simple moves with my patients. Here's one case:

Background: A male Earth CF, fell backwards on his neck and had hernia surgery ( C3 – C4). Some of his complaints were: loss of power in his legs and stiffness, coordination in right arm, spasms in his belly and legs and extremely tired due to lack of sleep. He could not even look upwards. During his third treatment, I started him on a simple move, adding others as we went along. All these complaints are gone, from a combination of treatments and this Qi Gong. He practices daily, using the DVD, and enjoys it tremendously.

He says: "I feel more grounded, and now I move with ease. I am lighter, I now have energy to do things. I'm even clearing out my house to make more space.

~ Gerrie Sporken, Ac.M.( CTA, UK )  


1) I introduced the first move, "Embracing the Tao", to a woman in very bad health, 75 years old, asthmatic, overweight and diabetic. I got her to her feet (which was hard for her) and had her do it just 15 seconds, then rest, and try again for about 30 seconds. She looked me right in the eye and said, "You know, I have been wheezing all day and now I am breathing normally. That has never happened to me before."

2) One of my patients is a small intestine CF, 40 years old, with very weak Wei Qi. She was five months pregnant with her second child, and had been experiencing extreme itching all over her body. It was so bad that she would scratch at night to the point of drawing blood. It was interfering with her sleep and making her even more exhausted than she usually is. Once she learned and practiced the first three moves, the itching went away. Whenever it came back, all she had to do was start Qi Gong and it would go away in a few minutes and last for at least a day.

3) I taught a patient of mine two simple moves. He is 92 years old, still lives independently and is frail and has cardiac problems. He does quite well when he gets sleep at night and does poorly when he does not. If he does the Qi Gong, he always sleeps well. This has made a huge difference in his energy and overall demeanor. He is quicker of step, more steady on his feet, and his pulses have settled into a quieter and more steady rhythm.

~ Peggy Watson, L.Ac., M.Ac  


Some quotes from my patients:

"Using these practices has helped me to feel more grounded and create a more meaningful and long lasting meditation practice. I am able to sit for longer periods of time and stay in the meditation… tomorrow will be the end of my third week of a committed daily practice. Combining these two together I feel more relaxed, and also more engaged and engaging with others. Thank you."

"I found that this Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong is such a beneficial warm-up in several ways. It actually "warms" me by getting the Chi and blood flowing. It helps my mind to relax and focus…"

~ Edna M Brandt, L.Ac.  
Licensed acupuncturist since 1989  


I have been practicing and teaching Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong for many years and have seen profound changes in my students and in myself. These exercises have an immediate and long-term strengthening effect on our physical, mental and emotional state. One young mother tells me how in the midst of a chaotic angry moment with her two preschoolers, she felt herself breathe from her Tantien and the whole situation changed. She described it as "I just… let go – and then, so did they."

Another had a deep somatic experience with the "Hip Walk" the first time she did it. Her hip, which had been injured and painful for years, and was preventing her from the long walks she loved, released as she first learned this exercise. Now when they hip begins to give her trouble, she takes the time to move her awareness there through these movements. "Qi Gong healed my hip!" she tells me.

I have seen this Qi Gong help elderly people with balance issues and those weakened by heart disease, surgery and chemotherapy.

~ Tina Curran, M.S.  
Early Childhood Educator  
T'ai Chi & Qi Gong teacher over 30 years  


I have worked in New York City as a psychotherapist in the field of substance abuse for over 40 years. When I discovered Roots and Branches Five Element Qi Gong I saw how valuable it could be for my clients. Here are some of their responses:

"I feel much better after each class"

"I finally feel the energy of direction and have a plan at last."-said with tears after the Wood Element moves.

"I feel connected to life, I can let go of anger and the urge to use. And it helps with my sleep."

There is no question that this Qi Gong work is helpful in recovery. It relieves anxiety, develops willpower, and promotes a positive sense of well-being.

~ Catherine Cody, L.C.S.W.  
Psychotherapist & Qi Gong instructor  


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THE INSTITUTE OF CLASSICAL FIVE-ELEMENT ACUPUNCTURE INC.
2926 Santa Monica Blvd., Santa Monica CA 90404-9900
www.5elements.com
(310) 453-2235