Tai Chi & Qigong
Internal martial arts, like Tai Chi and Qigong, are spiritually oriented approaches that emphasize the importance of "letting go" in life by combining meditation and movement. When addicted to substances, people aggressively stimulate and trigger massive amounts of short term pleasure sensations. The skills required to respond with sensitivity to the challenges in life diminishes. Addicts become powerless and ineffective. The inability to manage stress and tension is a byproduct of addiction. Tai Chi and Qigong help to enhance the process of understanding one’s relaxation response. The controlled breathing style, slow hand movements and specific postures actively induce a long lasting relaxation response and sense of wellbeing. Even a casual understanding of this practice can help the individual to adjust and correct in response to perceived imbalance. The practice encourages acceptance and appreciation for every emotion as important and necessary. By accepting our emotions more readily, we release from them more easily and are less likely to be driven by the experience.