In The Media

Åbo Underrättelser

Published: Thursday, 23 September 2004

Below follows a translation of a swedish article from the finnish newspaper Åbo Underrättelser from Turku in Finland. The original swedish article can be downloaded at the bottom of the page.

Qigong Instead of Disability Pension

– Not constantly being in pain is priceless. Nowadays it's easier to keep calm and the lump of stress in my stomach is gone. Jeanette Heidenberg, who holds a stressful job as a software architect in the IT industry in Turku, Finland, tells us how she has improved her life quality by means of the Chinese training method Zhineng Qigong.

Five years ago, Heidenberg was physically and mentally burnt out. She was only 26 years old, but her work in the hectic IT industry almost wore her out. There was even talk of early disability pension. Then Heidenberg got wind of qigong and thought she'd try it out.

– My sister and mother had both attended a course in Åland and were really enthusiastic, so when I found out that Folkhälsan were organizing a basic course in Turku I took the chance. I was very stressed out at the time and had suffered from serious back problems since I was sixteen. This was naturally not improved by my working in such a result-oriented industry. Heidenberg also admits to being the type of person that puts very high demands on herself and is never quite satisfied with her efforts.

– I had suffered several inflammations of the hands already when I was finishing my master's thesis. That type of thing can get you down.

JEANETTE HEIDENBERG

– Already after the first day of the course I slept much better. My quality of sleep was simply better. After having completed her first weekend course four years ago, Jeanette started practicing on her own and gradually noticed that she had less pain and her headaches became less frequent.

– I also noticed to my great surprise that I didn't catch colds as often as I used to. Already after my first course my resistance to disease had improved. Heidenberg admits that in the beginning it wasn't very easy for a stressed out IT person to calm down and learn how to stand still for long periods of time.

– Many thoughts popped up and interfered, but that passed and then it was just pleasant. For me qigong is better than meditation, since the constant motion makes it easier to keep concentrated. You can call it meditation in motion.

THE CHANGES

– My back is so much better now, and I only need to visit my chiropractor once every two months and my masseur once every fortnight. I feel happy and able to enjoy life. I can smile without any reason. Every life has its fair share of problems, but now I can get over them in a different way. In a stressful situation I can see which way is good for my health and me. Jeanette Heidenberg's husband works in the same industry, "a typical IT person", and at first he thought what his wife was doing was mumbo jumbo and called it "ching-chong". He has since had to revise his opinions, Jeanette explains.

– Now it's often he who notices when it's time for me to do my "ching-chong". He is a tremendous support to me. Evidently it shows on the outside as well how good qigong is for me. Heidenberg has participated in several courses since the first one and she thinks it's important to refresh one's skills and get a new start every now and then. She also participates in the groups training once a week in Turku and Pargas. Now she's looking forward to participating in the Shenxin Qigong course that takes place this weekend in Pargas.

– Shenxin is a method that hasn't been taught in Finland before. It is actually an advanced course, but beginners can participate, provided they don't suffer from any difficult conditions.

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