Ilchi Lee Healing Society Blog

In a study conducted at Weill Medical College of Cornell University, Dr. Sung Lee studied the outcomes for practitioners who had taken the Dahn Yoga regular class for three months. The participants were surveyed in eight areas related to quality of life, ranging from general health to social and mental well-being. The practitioners improved significantly in all areas measured, including self-efficacy, the critical can-do spirit.
These remarkable results are probably due to the effect of Dahn Yoga on the body’s stress response, which is one of the main reasons people seek the BEST 5 training method in the first place. And this is a very good reason to seek training since over-activated stress responses seem to contribute to many modern ailments, including auto-immune diseases, heart disease, weight gain, and high blood pressure.

The abdomen warm, and energy circulates continuously throughout the body. The continuous stress that people experience is rooted in sensory input that over-stimulates the sym-pathetic response. When we meditate or practice deep breathing, we essentially turn off the brain for a while, which delivers it for a moment from the sensory burnout that has become a typical part of our lives. Multiple studies have confirmed the effectiveness of meditation. In actual fact, the brain is not turned off during meditation, but its lobes associated with the five senses are quieted and the regions associated with happiness and well-being are activated.

Do you ever feel like you are the only nonobnoxious person in the universe? Do you find yourself getting a little impatient with people around you? Maybe you fly off the handle when someone cuts you off in traffic, or maybe you snap at that telemarketer who calls during dinner. These are the sorts of reactions that are truly a waste of your energy, because they do nothing to change the situation, and they erode your personal well-being. So give smiling a try instead. Maybe even chuckle a little at yourself. Soon, you will break your habitual reactions, and you will feel a whole lot better inside.

Dr Ilchi Lee

The need to get ahold of your emotions does not mean that emotions are bad. Emotions are a little like wild horses. A horse that is not broken to the saddle is out of control and of little use to a rider. But a horse that is under control is both useful and a great companion. The important thing is to master your emotions without letting them master you.

Emotions, like a bucking horse, can be quite formidable and difficult to control. The point is not to eliminate emotions as though they were somehow bad, but rather to gain contro of your brain by using emotions in a positive, life-enhancing way. If you use them properly, emotions can become a wellspring of energy for your life.

You may already think you are fully in control of your emotions. After all, you don’t have emotional outbursts, and you are good at hiding your emotions. This, however, is more like leaving the horse to itself in the barn. It does not mean you have your emotions under control.

Emotions are a very powerful product of the brain, and it would be a shame to waste their potential. The best use for emotions is to redirect their energy in a constructive way. For example, it is obviously not advisable to act upon anger by yelling or hitting. Nor is it advisable to simply bury the anger inside where it eats away at your health and confidence.

Rather, make a conscious decision to recycle that emotional energy into a constructive form. Let go of your need to show others your emotions, to show them that you are angry or sad or jealous. Instead, ask yourself, “How can I use this emotion well?” And then watch as your anger turns to motivation, your jealousy turns to greater attentiveness, and your sadness turns to compassion.

If you find yourself dwelling within a particular emotion, try using breath to let go of the emotion and to deliberately replace it with another more positive emotion. Begin by following the steps for belly breathing, on page 31. Visualize the emotion as part of the tension in your body. You may see it as a dark cloud within you. As you breathe in, imagine that a bright light is piercing through that darkness, the way sunlight cuts through a dark cloud. As you exhale, toxic vapors from the clouds are expelled from your body. Smile gently with each exhalation, allowing the light to overcome the darkness.

(These Lines are copied From Ilchi Lee’s New Book)

Ilchi Lee says through his new book

Identify one habit in your life that you think causes some sort of difficulty for you. Ideally, this should be a purely behavioral issue, rather than one with a chemical component, such as smoking or drinking. Give yourself the challenge of stopping the behavior for twenty-one days. At the end of the twenty-one days, your dependence on that behavior will have faded along with the neural connections that support it.

Ilchi Lee says through his new book

Balancing exercises are a great way to practice finding your center in your body. In a way, you can look at them as a meditation for the body. To begin, balance on your right foot while bending your left knee and bringing your left foot up to your right knee. Make fists and hold your arms at your waist. See how long you can hold this posture. Switch and try the same thing on the other foot.

Once you can hold the pose on each foot for at least twenty seconds, try the same thing again, but with your eyes closed. If you find it is difficult to balance with your eyes closed, it means you are not finding your center within your body. Rather, you are relying on outside information, which you take in through your eyes, to help you keep balanced. Make a point of focusing two inches below your belly button, which is the center of the physical body. You might even want to tap the area with your fingertips. Keep practicing until you can stand at least one minute without opening your eyes.

Several studies have shown that very specific, concrete things happen in the brain when you meditate. During meditation brain waves resemble those seen when someone is asleep and dreaming. But, unlike when you are asleep, you are fully conscious when you meditate. You could look at meditation as a kind of waking sleep, a time when you have consciously and purposely allowed your brain to rest and relax deeply.

Meditation could be described as happiness training. Dr. Richard Davidson of the University of Wisconsin theorizes that meditation increases activity in the left prefrontal cortex, which is associated with feelings of contentment and joy. The more you practice meditation, the more your brain will gain the habit of using these regions of the brain. Also, scientists have noted that meditation calms activity in the amygdala, which is responsible for fear and stress responses.

Research confirms that meditation has surprisingly profound effects on the structure and function of the brain. In one study of Buddhist monks, who usually meditate for many hours a day, the cortical regions of the monks’ brains were found to be much thicker than average, suggesting a much greater capacity for deep concentration. Furthermore, the monks showed greater activity in the areas of the brain associated with happiness, something we all want for our lives.

Muscles in your body atrophy without use. Likewise, you must use your brain to keep it functioning at full capacity. Fortunately, you can kill two birds with one stone by moving your body. Every time you exercise your muscles, you are also exercising your brain.

The brain-related benefits of exercise are well documented. Even very simple muscle movements have been found to prompt the growth of cells in the brain. Regular aerobic exercise is known to accelerate memory recall, increase endorphins, reduce depression, shorten reaction time, and circulate more oxygen to the brain.

Exercise helps create the ideal conditions for brain development within your body. First, it helps to reduce the effects of stress by neutralizing stress hormones and by stimulating the sympathetic nervous system. Secondly, it improves the overall efficiency of your cardiovascular system, which in turn brings more blood and oxygen to the brain.

Not only does regular exercise create a healthier bodily environment for nerve cells, but the actions themselves stimulate new growth. Every time you move your body, corresponding areas of your brain are activated. If the action is complex, involving the coordination of muscles, balance, and sense, such as in the act of walking, many areas of your brain will be activated simultaneously. As a result, new growth will be stimulated and old connections between disparate parts of the brain will be solidified.

For best utilization of the brain, look for novel, unexpected ways to move the body. Our tendency can be to only move the body in habitual ways. Even people who exercise regularly tend to return to the same activities over and over again. Instead, try cross training the brain, just as an athlete might cross train the body for better results. Also, look for exercises that move the body in a variety of directions, such as yoga or dance, as opposed to exercise that uses the same repetitive motions.

Regular exercise will also give you the strength and stamina you need to act on the creative inspiration produced by your brain. Without this basic form of health, you may find yourself too tired and unmotivated to act upon your dreams. Furthermore, physical training helps develop the self-control, integrity, and willpower you will need to begin creating the life of your dreams.

Walking is a fabulous exercise for many reasons. Regular walking reduces the occurrence of many common diseases and contributes to a general sense of well-being. These benefits are probably no surprise to you, but did you know that walking is also good for your brain?

Many areas of the brain work together to facilitate this commonplace, yet remarkable, activity. Just the act of walking in itself is like a great wake-up call for the brain. In fact, many famous artists, philosophers, writers, and musicians, including Charles Dickens, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, and Thomas Jefferson included walking as part of their method of finding inspiration. It seems that the complex mechanism of walking touches on many parts of the brain and allows ideas to flow in new and exciting ways.

So use walking as a way to awaken your brain and find inspiration for your life as well. As you walk, make a point of engaging all of your senses fully. Most of us tend to rely primarily on the sense of sight, so make a point of using your ears, nose, and skin as well. Take in all the layers of sound, smell the many fragrant odors of the day, and feel every part of your body as you move through the air.

One way to gain control over your stress response is to realize when it has become inappropriate. Some stress is beneficial, but when and how does it become a problem for you? One way to determine this is to watch your physical body closely. Often, even before your conscious mind becomes aware of a stressor, the muscles in your body respond to it, becoming tense and rigid.

Dr. Ilchi Lee Said: If you are under the influence of chronic stress, you probably have a few stress-related knots around your neck and shoulders. Sound familiar? Work to release these knots through stretching, massage, and breathing exercises such as those in the following chapters. Be patient—your body has a stress habit, so these tense spots may take awhile to alleviate.

Also, notice how your body responds when you are in a highly stressful situation. Do you hold your shoulders high? Does your breathing become shallow and rapid? These little details can be your clue to the point at which stress hormones have gone from helpful to hurtful.