“For most of my adult life I have experienced severe premenstrual pain that made my life very challenging. During my level-1A class my discomfort almost disappeared. Now months after taking the classes I have a Qigong exercise that Brendan prescribed for me to use if I feel any discomfort. It works marvelously and now my life is so much easier. I also feel calmer, happier and more energetic than I did before taking Brendan’s classes.”
Lihn
“Time is the Master Hypnosis item of life….choose wisely to be in Presence and the worlds will open to you. Brendan is a facilitator and holder of a key you will want to gain greater insights into our multi sensory world. G*d loves a good story and its Wake Up to Life.”
Cris Angel, DA, EAMP, H.DD – Bellevue, WA
“Several months before starting qigong with Brendan I was trying to learn various meditation methods to dissolve and let go of stress and tension. The profession I’m about to go into can be very stressful and I felt that finding a healthy way to let go of stress would be necessary so I wouldn’t have to carry it with me and let it build up. Eventually I started reading about qigong or chi gung and learned that it was a great starting place before trying deeper meditative practices, so I sought a class that talked about working with the body’s energy specifically.
I learned a lot from the first six session I took. From day one I learned to feel this connection between my hands and from this foundation slowly built up my awareness of this feeling throughout various points in my body. Towards the end of the first six sessions I could circulate this connection or energy around my body and even down into my feet, which was something I never thought I would personally experience for myself.
I started practicing at least 40 minutes on most days of the week. This helped a lot to slowly build up this connection I was feeling with my body, and every week my practice got a little deeper. I noticed I felt more rested when I woke up in the morning, which was a problem I had in the past. A year ago no matter how much sleep I got I would never wake up feeling refreshed. I also became more conscious of how stress affected my body, and practicing was a great way to not only dissolve stress from the day but it made me more resistant to stress as well, which was my major motivation for seeking this practice.
Brendan is a very patient and compassionate coach and teacher and this qigong method is great in that it focuses on feeling and working with “chi.” I feel very fortunate to have the opportunity to learn Brendan’s Qigong as it is something I will be able to carry with me for the rest of my life.”
Justin
“I am an acupuncturist who has attended Brendan Thorson’s Qi Gong classes for nearly 2 years. I have been an acupuncturist for 9 years and I have found the classes to be extremely helpful to me in my work. I can now feel the meridians flow in my body and have gained greater sensitivity feeling Qi during my treatments.
I first studied Qi Gong nearly 20 years ago. At that time, I learned a lot about cleansing the body with Five Organ Breathing, but I did not learn much about building my Qi or about gaining greater physical strength and grounding. I also did not feel much energy.
But when I began studying with Brendan Thorson and began practicing Brendan’s Qi Gong, I began to actually feel a great deal of Qi between my hands and up my legs and I began to build up my internal energy. I have now experienced greater grounding, physical strength and emotional calmness due to the exercises.”
Kathy Nordgren, Licensed Acupuncturist
Seattle, mailto:kenordgren@yahoo.com
phone 206-930-3401
“When I first began taking classes in TaiChi and Qigong, my initial intention and attraction was to increase my ability to feel and sense and move energy. I was also interested in learning what appeared to be a healing practice or modality. After I had taken several classes, I was excited to see that both of these were happening for me at an even greater depth than I had anticipated. I had begun to gradually sense energetic changes and movement each day. I also found myself using techniques outside of class quite frequently.
What I experienced in class throughout the different practices was a growth of awareness and sensitivity to energetic activity in my body and around it. Some of the many ways I could describe feeling the energy is like warmth, pulsing, vibration, increase or decrease of pressure, expanding and contracting, magnetic, directed flow, tingling, and peaceful and calm. Each time we met and practiced, I noticed the ability to tap into the energy at a quicker rate. I cultivated a very strong and focused concentration to maximize the effect of any given practice, including cleansing, purifying, healing, or grounding. I also learned to use my intuition to communicate with what I was sensing in my energy body. An example of this would be either choosing the right practice for what I felt or focusing on a particular area of the body that felt stuck or stagnant. By the end of the 5th class I felt 100 times more clear and aware of my body and ability to heal myself.
Some of the many other benefits I noticed from this practice seemed to integrate into my other practices. I had increased awareness of my body during yoga practice. I have experienced greater levels of peace, wellbeing, health, and vitality. Increased ability to heal physical injuries and practice regular energetic detoxes. I have noticed quicker and deeper access to meditative states and an overall clearer more peaceful mindset. I built upon my knowledge of energy movement through breath and have a much stronger relationship with it now. With all of these benefits in just 5 weeks, I am looking forward to continuing the practice and opening up to even greater opportunity and capacity to use this incredible healing life force.”
Brena, Yoga Teacher
“The practice of QiGong has given me the opportunity to experience energy in a much more tangible way in and around my body; As an Energy Intuitive, embracing this as a personal practice is expanding my sensitivity to seeing, feeling, and being energy. Brendan is gifted in teaching and modeling QiGong so it has become easily incorporated into my lifestyle not as an additional exercise, but as an expanded way to experience myself.”
MM, Energy Intuitive
“About a year and a half ago my life was in shambles – financially, physically, emotionally and energetically. Everything about me was dark and disconnected. I knew I needed help. First I did some soul searching, then some researching, and finally found my way into an introductory Qigong class, taught by Brendan Thorson.
I have found that Brendan’s Qigong allows me to cultivate an extremely powerful energetic experience, and at the same time assists me in achieving a heightened physical and spiritual state of awareness. This practice helps me to be more grounded and connected to all aspects of this wondrous life.
Although my class attendance has been sporadic, due to my travel schedule, I am continually feeling the pull to deepen my practice. Completing Level 1 Qigong, taking Tai Chi, then attending a class or two every few months along with a Level 1 CD has been helpful. I am in a much better ‘inner’ place these days.
For now, I am being gentle with myself and jumping thru the windows of opportunity as they are opened to me. My great hope is to be blessed with the opportunity to move back to Seattle, let my roots sink once again into the NW soil, and continue growing and learning Qigong thru classes with Brendan. I have found Brendan to be a kind, intuitive, and knowledgeable instructor. Thank you Brendan for sharing this gift with so many!”
Cynthia, Massage Therapist
“I suffered from menopausal hot flashes that were making my life so difficult. A friend told me about Brendan and his qigong. I began taking his private classes. After the first session I began to feel much better! I continued to take private sessions with him for the hot flashes for about 5 weeks and the hot flash symptoms were mostly resolved. The qigong has helped me in many ways beyond the hot flashes. So, I have continued to study with Brendan to learn more qigong and improve other areas of my life. I strongly recommend Brendan’s qigong if you have hot flashes or other areas you want to improve.”
Janet
“I’ve been taking Bredan’s Qi Gong for about 4 months now. The experience I’ve had is hard to put into words so I’ll just outline some of the benefits I’ve noticed.
1.) I can feel more fully what my body does and does not want. I am much more aware of how specific types of food, exercise, activities and mental/emotional states affect me. The Qigong has greatly amplified my natural feedback system so I am much more aware of my reaction to things.
2.) I do not have the urge to drink anymore. Before I began qigong I was a very heavy drinker. I am not sure if I was an alcoholic or not, but I drank the equivalent of a bottle or two of wine daily and would get antsy when I didn’t drink. After beginning to take Qigong with Brendan my desire to drink just sort of withered away. After starting my qigong practice I was left drinking out of pure habit and realized (since there were nights that I now wasn’t drinking) that I had basically spent the last ten years of my life either constantly (at least) mildly hung over or intoxicated. Since I started doing the classes the compulsion disappeared and I have realized the negatives outweigh the positives. I’ll still have a beer or glass of wine with dinner or while out and about, but it is no longer a defining part of my life, a crutch or an impediment.
3.) I realized that my body, or whatever it is that constitutes me as a person, is different from what I, as a scientifically educated, US born, biological materialist was led to believe. My body/mind/spirit/energy being is… not more complex necessarily, but different from how I’ve always thought it to be. Manipulating the Qi energy as I am learning in QiGong is like taking the reigns on parts of my life I’ve always struggled to control.
4.) I have always suffered from anxiety. Although I can’t say I’ve come close to curing it yet, I’ve started to be able to discern large complex sets of emotions/reactions/sensations that underlie my anxiety. I’ve awakened a deeper part of my mind from which has sprung an organic symbolic/visionary language of images and sensations I can use as tools for healing myself.
On top of the above mentioned benefits I can say that through Brendan’s Qigong classes I’ve begun to develop an experientially based spirituality. I am seeing the world in a much different, more full, and better way. I can’t help feeling like I’ve stumbled upon something truly amazing.”
Anonymous
“Brendan’s Qigong healed my body and aligned my spirit. I started this practice over two years ago and am still amazed at the unfolding benefits that I feel. This practice has calmed my mind and given me increased spiritual clarity. My back has been dramatically healed after trying everything from pain killers to chiropractic work. I quit smoking cigarettes thanks to the deepening awareness of my body. I am stronger and more present in my body thanks to the increased connection to the higher realms and the earth. My entire body has awakened and quite often I feel the hum of the universe coursing through me and connecting me to healing energies that before I was unable to access. This practice has been very empowering and intellectually stimulating. My entire world shifted after my first class of experiencing the chi between my hands!”
Michael, Shaman & Healer