All that is necessary for the survival of the fittest

...is an interest in life, good, bad or peculiar
APRIL 14, 2009 11:44AM

Watch Out! You're Falling...

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falling2

 

In The Brain that Changes Itself  Norman Doidge writes about a scientific experiment that has changed the way neuroscientists now think about the brain.

Cheryl Schiltz was a woman who had lost her vestibular sense, her sense of balance, as a side effect of an overdosage of antibiotics. She was told she would never get it back.  What she wasn’t told was that her life was ruined. 

As she struggled everyday to hold herself up, she could barely think. She couldn’t function. She went from a career as an international sales rep to living on disability checks.

As Doidge points out:“An unspoken and yet profound aspect of our well-being is based on having a normally functioning sense of balance….When we talk of “feeling settled” or “unsettled,” balanced “ or “unbalanced”, “rooted” or “rootless,”  “grounded” or “ungrounded,”  we are speaking vestibular language, the truth of which is fully apparent only in people like Cheryl.  Not surprisingly, people with her disorder often fall to pieces psychologically, and many have committed suicide.”

Cheryl was told this was permanent because, until recently, neuroscience has conceptualized the brain as a machine. If you damage one part of it that part simply stops working.

More and more, however, neurosciece pioneers are proving that the brain has remarkable regenerative powers if you know how to tweak them.  One of the pioneers in neuroplasticity is Paul Bach-y-Rita.  Using skills he had developed as a neurologist specializing in rehabilitation, he built Cheryl a helmet that was able to re-wire her sense of balance through her sense of taste. With this she was able to use her tongue to sense electrical currents which told her where she was in space. With twenty minutes of  daily standing practice, wearing this helmet, Cheryl was able to gradually recover a sense of balance and well being.  Most remarkably, she was able to recover it permanently, without the continuing use of the helmet.

This experiment raises all kinds of fascinating questions about neuroplacticity.  But for me it raised an equally  important question about balance.

As Doidge pointed out, the vestibular sense is a sixth sense that we don’t know about until we lose it. Except that we’re in the process of losing it right now.

The vestibular sense deteriorates, like all senses, with age.  And as it deteriorates so does our sense of well being.  The gradual, unspoken loss of our balance  is “normal” to us.  As  is a culture centered on manufacturing a million different kinds of crutches to distract us from the constant, creeping, unspoken sense that we are gradually losing control of our bodies, and as a result, our minds.

But what if it wasn't normal?  What if we collectively exercised our sense of balance with the same obsessiveness we use towards dental hygiene, or cardiovascular health?

 This is of course what they do in China, if you've ever seen pictures of people practicing Tai Chi, or standing around in all kinds of weird positions in Beijing park. What those people are doing is nurturing their chi, which is the physical energy one develops primarily throught the vestibular sense.

For years I’ve been practicing an extremely simple, but challenging Chinese standing meditation called Zhan Zhuang.  And one of the things that struck me after my first few months of practice is that I had no idea how crappy I was really feeling until my sense of balance improved.

As my practice continued, I realized that I had no idea how good I could feel until I began cultivating my sense of balance beyond the norm.

Like all exercisers, particularly in a culture that isn't really interested in your weird, mysterious Chinese exercise, I've let my routine fall. 

But here's the great thing about balance exercises. Unlike  cardiovascular, or muscle building exercises, you never entirely lose the balance skills you've mastered.   Once you’ve recognized and developed this sense it stays with you.  As the overused,  but poorly understood cliché goes, it's like riding a bike.  Once you’ve found your center, even if you don't become a world class gymnast, you don’t forget where it is.  Just like once you’ve heard music, you don't forget music exists.

Once you’ve made the connection between being physically balanced, and being emotionally and psychically balanced, that connection stays with you forever. You’ve taken a small step towards changing your brain. And once you put the process in motion, your brain pretty much starts changing itself. 

Although the cool thing is, it’s mostly changing itself back to what it was.

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Cool column. rated for making me think.
This is very interesting to me, and I'll look into it further.

I had a long episode of pretty severe vertigo about 15 years ago, and it was very depressing indeed. Even after multiple tests, I never got a definitive diagnosis, other than a possible inner ear problem. It finally resolved itself after about a year, but I'll never forget how discouraging it was, thinking that I would never feel normal. I still fear that it will come back, as I do tend to start feeling dizzy again when I'm under stress.
Thanks Lisa.

Jeanette, I had a vertigo problem too. Although it was kind of associated with a weird OCD stage I went through in my early twenties. That's around when I started doing the tai chi. Once I started practicing, the vertigo, and the OCD just basically evaporated. Ever since then I've just taken it for granted that the body and the psyche are inextricably linked. But until I read Doidge's book I never really understood the connection. I'm really happy that more and more neuroscientists are starting to hook into this because it makes it easier for me to write about it without sounding like a flake.
Juliet, I love writing about the brain and the research on the brain. Great article.
well, I'm physically imbalanced by birth (and do have poor balance).
all the more reason to seek spiritual balance?
Thanks Stellaa. Yeah, I love reading about it. So I think I'm going to start writing about it more.

Brian. I'd forgotten about your sense of balance. You should take a look at that this book I discovered about a decade ago. It is forever in print, so you can get it online. It's called The Way of Energy by Master Lam Kam Chuen. What I love about it is there's no standing around on one leg (unless you want to). You recover your sense of balance naturally, just by standing quietly for a few minutes a day, building up to twenty minutes or more. Great book. Changed my life, really.
Fascinating column. I love how new information about the brain is so much more optimistic and complex than is our general understanding. Hopefully these new revelations will allow us to better appreciate ourselves, each other, and hopefully soon the brains and lives of animals like the great apes and dolphins and whales.
Thanks Bill. Don't even get me started on the dolphins and whales! I have a friend who did an amazing documentary last year on whale brains, and whale consciousness. It's definitely on my list of things to post about.
I know you said not to get you started but I read something interesting about whales once and the introduction of humanity into their world. The large whales supposedly had the ability to communicate from the equator to the poles with a low frequency signal. It could reach 1/4 of the globe. But with sea traffic, there is so much noise that this ability is greatly reduced. I would imagine that they are pissed.
The brain is surely the greatest mystery of all.

Balance exercises as you describe have the potential to save many lives, as I suspect that it could prevent a lot of broken hips.
Good Post Juliet!

Taoist philosophy is based upon the Yin-Yang principle, which represents balance. Their belief is that the entire universe is based upon the balance between opposing forces (the Atom). Therefore, finding and maintaining our equilibrium is essential to our physical, emotional and intellectual well being. Idealistic; yet thought provoking.

Juliet,

You may find the book The Name of Your Game by Dr. Stuart Atkins an interesting read. It explores the value of balance from a behavioral and interpersonal perspective.
ABlonde, so agreed. Frailty is so connected to balance. It's tragic that we don't pay more attention to it.

Thanks for the recommendation SpinDoc. I found out about Doidge's book from a comment. I'll definitely take a look at that.
This was a very interesting read. Thanks.
this is fascinating. i'm going to look into tai chi or Zhan Zhuang. might be just what i need.
The brain is so much cooler than they realize - but then, look what's making me say that! (derived from Emo Philips).

Interesting concept on both the physical and psychological planes!
Of course, you are singing to the choir with me Juliet. This provides an excellent example of the power of finding your centre and how it extends to your whole life. I know this because I live it everyday. And I don't agree with Spin Doctor that it is idealistic for one minute. It is real and it works.

I would add to this that the skills you develop through tai chi exercises extend beyond just balance. You gain a simultaneous connection to every cell in your body. (well you always had it, you just forget about it) I am always aware of my posture, what my little toe is doing, and where my elbow is all at the same time (as an example). You have to be when you progress with tai chi practise. That is the only way the chi flows. After many years ofpractise, it just becomes part of you...as you've found with standing meditation.

I've seen and heard of many older people and people who've been in car accidents etc who have regained an amazing amount of movement through these kind of exercises. Someone in their eighties who couldn't do up buttons and needed to sit down to put on their pants is doing up buttons and standing to put their pants on one leg at a time within months of starting tai chi or chi kung exercises.

I love these posts of yours. I think sometimes it is so ingrained in me now that I forget that I might want to share some of what I've learned.

thanks.
Life truly is A Question of Balance, as the Moody Blues once reminded us. Back in my days as a high-school athlete, my greatest asset was a sense of balance, an absolute necessity for running hurdles.

That kind of balance is more or less a gift, but balance in life is a daily struggle, one I often lose, particularly when a place like this is such a lovely, interesting distraction.
Nice post. I'm going to have to put something like that in my routine.
Juliet, you write such gently-thought provoking posts! You made me want to go check out our gym's yoga class. Excellent blend of story, research, and personal experience. You should send it to your local newspaper. It would fit very well here in our Lifestyles section.
Omigosh, taste-to-balance... what a fascinating tale of the brain and the senses! Thanks for re-inspiring me to stand still just that little bit longer tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow....
rated for sci-chi
Sci-chi.... Risa I'm going to use that! Thanks.
I really enjoyed your other post on this ancient form of meditation, and I like this one, too. Balance is always a good thing and God knows, I could use it!
A fascinating post. Maybe the world needs to do some collective Zhan Zhuang to bring it into balance.
As is a culture centered on manufacturing a million different kinds of crutches to distract us from the constant, creeping, unspoken sense that we are gradually losing control of our bodies, and as a result, our minds."---that was very cool, Juliet.
I loved this post, very informative and interesting. Asian cultures tend to highly value balance. Not that this probably relates but look at the Wii, the Sports game has a lot of balance games. What western video game would focus so much attention on balance. And of course, yoga, standing meditation, etc.
wonderfully informative and inspiring post, Juliet, thank you
Fascinating - the brain is an amazing thing. I noticed that though I spent years riding bikes/horses after a ten/twenty year absence I was disoriented and scared when I got waaaay up there. After a few hours, though, I felt better. I wouldn't have done any tricks, on the horse or the bike, but I remembered what it felt like.
As a child I studied dance, and as an adult I find myself thinking a great deal about balance in the body. It is very important to address balance daily. A great and easy way to do this is by walking consciously. When walking, which I do a great deal of, it is very helpful to think about how one positions one's shoulders, the regular swinging of the arms, the erectness of the spine, the cantilevering of the hips, the placement of the foot. Think about balancing both sides of the body by regulating the movements. Good walking habits can be very helpful to an overall rebalancing of the neurological system.
M. Chariot, I couldn't agree with you more. My former Tai Chi instructor used to insist that even the most diligent tai chi practice was never a substitute for good walking habits. In fact I often think that the main benefit of ten years of tai chi instruction was that I learned to walk. I didn't know before that how poor my walking posture really was!
Juliet, I hope you don't mind me jumping in here. Tai chi teaches you how to stand, sit and walk properly. The problem with walking alone, is that the leg motion tends to be just forward and back. Tai chi creates movement in all directions and opens up the groin area in a way that walking can not. In opening up the area, it promotes lifelong proper alignment.

When you see older people shuffle, it is because their sacred bone (sacrum) fuses and limits movement with aging--even if they walk regularly. I can't stress enough the importance of maintaining an openess in the groin (your quas) area. That is why don yus and toi yus are so, so important, even if you don't do the set on a regular basis.

As for the spine, tai chi movements constantly twist and massage the spinal column and vertebrae in a way that walking (even with vigorous arm swinging) simply does not. With practise, you gain increased movement and create space between the vertebrae. We often compare the spines of beginners (and even intermediates) next to advanced students at the lowest point of the don yu, and the difference is stunning.

Foot placement, alignment of the shoulders, hips and knees etc are all integral to correct tai chi practise and continue to develop as the body changes in direct response to continued practise and the opening of the joints. However, Master Moy Lin Shin used to teach that the bow, when properly done, is a complete work out on its own. But to do the bow correctly, you require a great deal of openess in the quas. It is something that takes many years to master.

sorry to hijack your post here at the end. :)
Thank you for the wonderful comments about Tai Chi, which I have always been curious about. I'm going to make joining a Tai Chi class a priority this year.
Hey JK. Always welcolme a good tai chi debate.

I'm guessing you and I come from two different traditions. I'm a hard core Wu Styler. It's a much more minimalist practice than Taoist, which is, from what I understand, more overtly physical. Taoism is really well adapted to westerners because there are lots of big movements that easily illustrate the goals of tai chi.
Wu stylers believe, however, that you don't need big movements to defuse the joints. While tai chi can help bring yourself back into alignment, ultimately, what's important is the alignment. And if you have a good intellectual understanding of the alignment you can accomplish just as much with small movements. There are some tai chi schools, not necessarily wu, that believe that standing is even more important than walking, because natural gravity will defuse your joints even better than movement, if you do it properly.

Different schools, different styles. That's civilization for you. Never satisfied with one theory. In the end, I imagine, the tai chi that can be explained, is not the true tai chi....ha!...taoist joke, which I'm sure you get.
Ah, good joke! :)

And good discussion. Yes, I'm pretty much in the taoist methodology since my teacher was taught directly by Master Moy Lin Shin when he was alive. She also trained under Master Mantak Chia in Thailand. He is quite fascinating and very powerful. His chi has been studied by at least one well-known US university and his brain waves compared to meditators (very different).

I do understand the power of small movements. We do a modified toi yu during the kidney season that is really minimal in movement compared to normal toi yus and the power of it is quite stunning.

The expansive style of movements that we teach initially lessen as the student progresses. It is intended to help beginners to understand the moves and open their joints and bodies up to allow the chi to flow more quickly. Once the chi is flowing well, the movements become much more compact and subtle---closer to what you describe. This is possible because the quas and other key areas are open so a small move is all that is required. It is hard for beginners to understand the subtlety when their body is so closed.
So same end, different path.

After several years of practise, and when my chi was flowing freely, I realized that I could get my chi moving just lying quietly and thinking through the moves in my head. The chi and the body remembers. (also very few yoga moves will get the chi flowing)

Right now, I've been out of the physical practise for awhile, and my chi is more powerful than my body. It is a little unnerving because I find my body shaking during the standing meditation. Thus, I went out to my neighbour's field and did the short set this afternoon and then finished with a short standing meditation.

There are so many forms of tai chi, but there are some that actually block the movement of the chi rather than promote it. It is important to find what works for you and stick with a single teacher rather than jump around. I've seen fellow students start jumping around and it eventually had a negative impact on their chi.

Also, every so often someone from the hard martial arts will join the class. You wouldn't believe how jammed up their chi is. It is almost impossible for them to make the transition and they usually leave the class. I think that has more to do with the North American teaching style because that shouldn't be the case. There egos tend to get in the way as they are used to so much competition. One of them actually hurt me when we were practising throws, but that is another story. :)
Wow, Mantak Chia. I'd love to find our more about those studies.

Yeah, I love when those martial arts guys come in. My teachers were actually really, really into martial art tai chi, and used to enjoy beating them up. In fact they barely even mentioned the word chi, although they radiated it. Their seventy year old sifu used to drop in every once and a while and pull those kind of crazy chi tricks you see on youtube. He'd knock people over just by flexing his upper back muscles.

I don't know the whole pedigree of who was studying with who, but I went to a couple of his birthday parties. Turns out he was like the head of East coast martial arts conference of something. Every year about seven hundred people would show up for his birthday and there would be an hour of demonstrations.

He was hilariously non-chalant, though. Every once in a while he'd walk into the class to lead a form in his snowboots. And then he'd see someone he knew in the hallway, and just walk off on us.

Don't worry about the shaking. You're supposed to shake every once in a while when you do standing meditation. Almost like mini-epileptic seizures which usually precede a new level of skill. If you relax into it, your resting muscles should take over, which is the goal: to reach and use muscles that you don't usually use. Once the shaking stops you'll feel a new, deeper level of emotional and physical stability. It's really trippy.

I highly recommend The Way of Energy by Master Lam Kam Chuen (you can get it online at Chapters) or The Way of Power, if you can't find that. He has a chart with all the normal symptoms of Zhan Zhuang.