The Vital Force Archive

Judy Kistler-Robinson turned shut-down recreation center classes into Zoom sessions that drew friends across the country, and she still offers a free monthly online practice from Albuquerque, including one student's husband with Parkinson's.

Lynne Roberts presented T'ai Chi Chih at an annual Parkinson's Summit conference, leading Kaiser Permanente providers, hospital staff, caregivers and Parkinson's teams in Push Pull, standing or seated.

Sharon Sirkis collects four classroom moments, including Ruth's shaking key-ring bracelet, silly putty mistaken for chewing gum during Pulling Taffy, and a student who called Anugama's music a funeral march.

Robert Delano, diagnosed with Young Onset Parkinson's Disease, tracked down his late mother's teacher Sheryl Adair and found that daily practice left him yinning and yanging while vacuuming.

Carol Selby describes teaching students with Parkinson's disease and poor balance to seek the brief secure moment when both feet are flat and the hands pass in front of the body.

Joseph Selzer describes how residents at a New Jersey retirement community organized twice-weekly Video T'ai Chi Chih practice, reporting improved blood test markers, blood pressure, balance and coping with Parkinson's.

Adabelle Rychtarik's students in Simpsonville report what two years of practice changed: Sandra Johnson stands comfortably through church songs using the TCC stance, and Kathy Neely regained balance and arm mobility despite Parkinson's.

Carol Chamberlain began T'ai Chi Chih a year after her Parkinson's diagnosis, when she often needed a cane, and credits it with the stress management that keeps her tremors from worsening.

Colleen Wuebben, diagnosed with Parkinson's at 52, describes moving from gym weights and cardio to a six-week beginners' class where her tremors eased and movement became sacred.

Teachers responding to the 2005 TCC survey give Lorraine Lepine their practical advice on chairs, hearing problems, remembering birthdays, PACE arthritis training and slow repetition for students with Parkinson's.

Lorraine Levine asks teachers to return the 2005 TCC Teacher Survey by December 31 and publishes teaching tips from the first 55 responses, covering seniors, Parkinson's, dementia care, hospice bereavement groups and deaf children, plus a new Special Requests section.

Asked to teach at the Muhammad Ali Parkinson Research Center, Sher Dano was required to carry professional liability insurance and reports finding affordable coverage through the Tai Chi Arthritis Association of America.

Carrie Kinsey describes teaching her father, who has ankle arthritis and a mild tremor from Parkinson's, in a backyard class after her mother's death, and the modest gains that followed.

Sharon Sirkis, Roberta Taggart and Barbara Riley answer Carol Lesch's question on teaching Parkinson's patients, from Florence's belly laughs at an adult daycare center to Bill's improved balance after eighteen months.

Pamela Butler, a recreation director at Liberty Commons, expected karate kicks and resisted scheduling a class, then watched Ralph Garn teach seniors in Manlius and arranged an eight-week course.

Lise Calestagne recounts recovering from hypoglycemia and severe food allergies through daily T'ai Chi Chih, zazen and Chi Kung, then teaching Quebec groups including elderly students and nine people with Parkinson's disease.

Christeen McLain-Curran recounts Fargo listeners mishearing T'ai Chi as "typing" and "tongue-in-cheek," plus her blood pressure readings showing drops across eight classes and a Parkinson's support group demonstration.