The Hidden Challenges of Meditation: When Sitting Still Brings Up Old Wounds
These days, meditation is really common. Its advantages—peace, tranquility, mental clarity—have all been discussed here. However, there’s a side to meditation that gets less attention, particularly for those who have a history of trauma. What if meditation begins to bring back old wounds, anxiety, or even depression rather than calm and tranquility? If this sounds […]
Why Daoist Nutrition Discourages Cold Foods: A Blend of Tradition and Science
If you’ve ever been advised against consuming cold foods and beverages by a Daoist healing arts or Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioner, you could have questioned: what’s the big deal? After all, we live in a world where it’s completely normal to grab a cold salad or iced coffee. Actually, this goes beyond mere ancient […]
What is Childhood Complex Trauma? A Beginner’s Guide
When we talk about trauma, we likely picture big, dramatic events—things like car accidents, natural disasters, or violent attacks. Trauma, however, takes many different forms and sizes; not all of it is as clear-cut as you would believe. Particularly in childhood, some of the most impactful trauma occurs silently over time. It’s known as childhood […]
The Power of Concentration Meditation for Healing from Childhood Complex Trauma
Particularly when it comes to recovering from the long-term effects of childhood trauma, meditation can be a game-changer. There are countless varieties of meditation techniques available. But after nearly 25 years of daily use, I’ve realized that my own practice has been based primarily on the most fundamental approach—concentration meditation. It’s straightforward, direct, and requires […]
The Impact of Addiction: How It Reaches Every Corner of Life
Many times described as a ripple effect, addiction begins with one individual but affects their health, relationships, job, and income among other areas. Addiction impacts a person’s physical and mental health, their family relationships, and their general quality of life; it doesn’t just change their daily behavior. Using hypothetical cases to demonstrate just how far-reaching […]
What Is Trauma? A Basic Breakdown of a Complex Concept
Everybody’s gone through difficult circumstances—times when life seemed like too much to manage. Perhaps it was a terrible breakup, a terrifying accident, or a result of total neglect when you most needed support. We sometimes move past these events and carry on. But other times something changes within us. This is when we’re venturing into […]
Using Mindful Breathing to Calm the Stress Response from Childhood Complex Trauma
If you’ve experienced childhood trauma, you’re probably aware of how draining it can be to always feel like you’re on edge or high alert. Trauma naturally causes that continual “fight or flight” sensation, as if your body is always ready for something terrible to happen. But what if I told you that something as basic […]
What Are the Daoist Internal Healing Arts?
When we think of healing, most of us picture drugs, surgery, or perhaps even therapy. But an ancient Chinese philosophy called Daoism has another viewpoint on healing that transcends the physical. Known as the Daoist internal healing arts, they’re a group of disciplines meant to enable us live in harmony with nature and ourselves. They […]
Common Digestive Disorders Linked to Childhood Complex Trauma
Do you ever wonder, especially in stressful times, why your stomach seems to bear the brunt of everything? Many survivors of childhood complex trauma report persistent stomach problems throughout adulthood. Actually, your stomach may feel like it bears emotional baggage of its own. That’s because it kind of does! In my previous piece, we addressed […]
Daoist Healing: A Steady Road to Healing and Transformation
Imagine waking up every day feeling more in touch—with the world around you, with yourself. Whatever life presents, a sense of peace comes over you and an underlying energy feeds you. It’s not a dream. It’s a possibility. And for millennia, people have turned to the Daoist internal healing arts to make it reality. You’re […]