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Petoskey Club Tai Chi Aims For Better Mental & Physical Health

By Linda Stephan

The Chinese martial art of tai chi is not about fighting an opponent.

"It's not like when you see those martial arts, like kung fu or whatever," says Bill Massey, as demonstrates with jerky arm movements. "It's more of a slower pace, low impact. A lot of the people here can't do those fast movements like that."

Massey is part of a group in Petoskey that's started to practice tai chi together once a week. Members of this group are all coping with mental illness and they hope the martial art will both calm the mind and stimulate a healthier lifestyle.

The Friday morning class is at the Petoskey Club, which is affiliated with Community Mental Health.

Physical & Mental
In the dining room, Carolyn Williams prepares to take the class for the very first time.

"I've set a goal to lose this weight," she says. "I weigh 269."

Mental illness puts its sufferers at greater risk for problems such as diabetes, high blood pressure and obesity, and Williams' mix of conditions is pretty common.

She's 58 and has bi-polar disorder. She was first diagnosed with mental illness decades ago, as a young adult.

"It couldn't hurt to lose weight," she says. "And, if I'm in better physical shape then my mind would kind of go with the flow, you know.

"Like, if I'm not depressed about being overweight or worried about my diabetes or my high blood pressure… nervousness causes stress and stress just only makes my blood pressure and stuff go higher."

Informal Class
For the beginning breathing routine, Carolyn joins the group, placing her hands near her abdomen. Back straight, she slowly bends and straightens at the knee while breathing in and out.

This class is highly informal. Everyone here remains in street clothes, and Don Cubby even comes out from the kitchen and joins the group without removing his disposable plastic kitchen gloves.

"I'm doing really well. I'm trying," the 38-year-old says as struggles to learn the movements and to keep his balance.

It's a small class, and Cubby isn't the only person who struggles. Williams also felt it best to sit out after those very first breathing exercises.

"Well I'm having a problem with my hip, so that's the only thing keeping me from doing it. It looks pretty easy, though," she says.

'A Better Outlook'
Students in this class are often dabbling with physical exercise, after years of inactivity.

The class at the Petoskey Club may be informal, but Instructor Mike Breen says it's also his most rewarding.

"I shouldn't say that in front of any of my other classes, 'cause I'm sure they feel they're the most rewarding too. But these guys really enjoy it. They get really amped up," he says.

Breen says some people, including Bill Massey, have been attending regularly for a year and a half and he's surprised if they ever miss a Friday session.

Massey says tai chi is fun. He still struggles with his weight and high blood pressure, on top of mental illness. But he's convinced the class does help.

"Oh yeah, I think everybody who's been doing it has a better mental and physical outlook," he says.

Hi all,

Our next conference call is scheduled for Friday January 20th from 11 – 12, one week from today.  I erroneously stated on the last call that it was Feb 3.  The work group will not be meeting before next Friday due to scheduling difficulties.

Hope that you all join the call.

Thanks

Lee 

Our next MAC meeting will be held on Thursday, February 23th at J-Town Clubhouse in Jackson. Stay tuned for more details and an agenda!

1. Click "Join this group" on the right side of the page

2. Click "Sign up for a new Google Account"

3. Enter your email address and a password.  You do not have to have a google or gmail email address.  You can enter any email you are currently using.

4. Complete the rest of the form and click "I accept.  Create my account."

We now have a calendar on the website to keep track of meetings, conference calls, and other events. It can be accessed through the 'Meetings' and 'Resources' pages.  

To add an event to the calendar, email summer.berman@gmail.com with the event title, date, time, and any other relevant information or attachements.

Click here to see the invite.

Nice work, Fresh Start!

Our next conference call is scheduled for Friday, January 6th at 11:00am to 12:00 pm.  The call in number is  877-402-9753  and the passcode is 1825946

For more information on the background of the Quality Improvement Initiative, click here.

Click here for notes from the last meeting.