The Dragon's Head Blog

Today we heard several stories. One of the members has radiation pain from the shoulder to the arm. She told us that she went to the doctor the day before this workshop. He advised her to double her morphine dose. Instead she decided to register for the five-day workshop. With a big smile on her […]

  I have been regularly practicing tai chi for nearly a year now and must say that the health benefits have become clear and noticeable. Early last year, I had a really bad back with symptoms of acute stiffness and daily painful spasm.  My son who is a physiotherapist and GP put it to me […]

“Keep it simple”, says Frazer Smith as he leads 31 participants at the May Health Recovery program at the International Centre in Orangeville.  “Up, up, …” go the participants as the instructor guides us through the first few moves of the set. And slowly, gently, softly day one ends with a shifting to balance.   […]

Friday, April 7, just before 7 pm. The air is full of excitement at the regional centre in Longueuil, Québec.  It is a very special evening as the region open its doors to the public and our Members of Parliament. Within this new format, it is once again an excellent opportunity for us to present […]

As a physician, I have been fascinated to observe the benefits of practising the Taoist Tai Chi® arts in myself and others. There is no simple scientific explanation for this.  However, scientific studies can observe its effects. In 2014 at my first workshop, I asked the instructor, Dr. Bruce McFarlane, whether research had been done and he […]

Participants in Vancouver, Canada took part in some very practical tor-yu training to help make the Pacific Region Centre more accessible during a recent snowfall. The 10-20 cm accumulation of the seasonal white stuff was wet and heavy but not too daunting for the early birds arriving for Saturday morning class.

Thank you to the 6,000+ participants who completed the health questionnaire. Your support to this project made it an overwhelming success and provided our organization with a wealth of information demonstrating the benefits of Taoist Tai Chi® practice. A Preliminary Report is now available in the Downloads section at www.taoist.org/media. The link can also be […]

The last day of 2016 found participants from the Windsor, Ontario branch speaking on a local radio station about the benefits of Taoist Tai Chi® arts.  The results of our recent health survey was one of the main topics of discussion. The radio station covers all the Windsor – Detroit area and beyond and has a very […]

Did you know that Taoist Tai Chi® arts can straighten out severely damaged osteoporotic vertebrae without the aid of analgesic or prescription drugs? These two X-rays show: left the spine in 2016 and on the right 2015. 2016 shows the expansion created by straightening things out so now I can sing again as the air […]

On Saturday November 26, 2016 “The Tiger’s Mouth” took place, an event that was held in our clubhouse in Florence and was attended by members from all Italian branches, non-members, doctors and health professionals. It was an important opportunity for all to share experiences and information. Gianluigi Occhipinti, rheumatologist, although not be present, made available […]

In my prime of youth, active as a surfer and sportsman, a motorcycle accident resulted in my broken back, robbing me of the fun of life and of all sporting action. After 30 years of pain and limited movement, I was reluctantly introduced to Taoist Tai Chi® arts. I tolerated the experience for the first year, […]

All Taoist Tai Chi® arts play is about health recovery. The 108 people who attended the recent Health Recovery Day at the International Centre had the opportunity to witness the courage, persistence, grace and dignity of people with a wide range of health problems in their practice of the set and foundation moves. Hearing first-hand […]

I’ve been doing tai chi for less than a year so was a little nervous about taking part in a workshop with far more experienced practitioners. But I decided to enrol in the hope that the 5 days immersion might make it finally stick! In fact I’m not the only first timer and everyone has […]

On the first day of the international workshop currently being held at Bayswater I was privileged to receive individual instruction from Tony Kwong who is the workshop leader.  I had arrived at the workshop after a recent back episode that had left me immobilized and bedridden for a few weeks. X-rays showed that an injury […]

Thursday February 28, 1985 Branson Hospital 9:30am As I was walking from my car to my appointment at Branson Hospital, I was wishing that I was going skiing instead. The neurologist walked into the examining room. He took one look at me and said, ”You have Parkinson Disease!” After lunch, I went to the public […]

I experience the sheer joy of movement – of moving a body that has been paralyzed. These words are from one of the participants talking about their experience of doing Tai Chi at the International Centre in Orangeville. On day 4 of our 5-day Health Recovery Program there are looks of focus and determination on […]

The NYC Tri-State Branch of the Taoist Tai Chi Society of the USA was contacted for a television interview on Good Morning America, an internationally broadcast program. They answered a call that came in during last Thursday night’s class. The caller said he was from ABC News, and that the Mayo Clinic and the NIH (National Institute […]

It is now day three of the Health Recovery Program here at the International Taoist Tai Chi Centre near Orangeville, and what an inspiring experience it has been thus far! During the first few days, our knowledgeable instructor Jim helped us build a strong foundation through countless tor-yus and dan-yus.  He explained that the quality […]

A fun time was had by over 60 people and 3 dogs at the annual Surrey Branch Picnic on Saturday, July 23. Attendees from the Surrey, Chilliwack, and Vancouver branches were enthusiastic about doing the ”109th tai chi move” as they dug into the variety of foods brought for the potluck get-together. Sets of tai […]