Rami's Blog

Like the Yin-Yang, Eastern Martial Arts and Western medicine are two halves of a whole. My mission is to preserve the ancient mind-body tools and pass them on to you.

 

June is Men's Health Month

June is the nationally recognized month for educating people about men's health, and raising awareness of health issues specific to men such as increased risk of heart disease, prostate and testicular cancer, etc.

With the exception of a few sexual health exercises, all of the techniques I have talked about on this blog are for men and women alike. One exercise, the testicle massage, is not only an important tool for improving men's sexual health, but also a perfect time to check for possible testicular cancer with a self exam. 

If you are a man, 14 years old or older, you should be doing a self exam once a month. Testicular cancer has an extremely high rate of cure when detected early. Don't let something that can be found so easily in a few minutes go unnoticed.

For men 35 and above, regular prostate exams are a must. Although the survival rate for prostate cancer is also very high, it is about 30 times more prevalent than testicular cancer, and if metastasized, prostate cancer's survival rate sharply decreases. The exam for detecting an enlarged prostate requires even less of your time than the testicular self exam, and can be done by your doctor during your annual physical.

There is plenty more to talk about regarding men's health and prevention, but I'll let you explore other resources for those things. Make sure one of those other resources is your primary care physician!

Happy stretching!

Yin and Yang in Meditation

There are, generally speaking, two kinds of meditation: passive meditation, and active meditation.

Passive meditation would be something like Zen meditation. The goal of Zen is to sit quietly and do nothing. Have no thoughts, and simply accept the sensations in your body and the state of the world around you without judgment.

Active meditation includes Taoist visualizations. You may look like you are sitting and doing nothing, but on the inside you are actively picturing the movement of energy through your body, around your body, and in the world outside. Active meditation is about willpower, and your ability to maintain focus on one thing for an extended period of time.

Both kinds of meditation are important for a healthy mind, just like both strength and flexibility are important for a healthy body. To function at 100% during the day, your mind needs to be clear. Clear of worry when you are just resting (passive meditation), and clear of distractions when you are working (active meditation). 

When it comes to sticking to your mind-body routine, both acceptance and willpower are needed. You need the willpower to get up off the couch, put down the potato chips, and do those workouts. But you also need acceptance and patience for when you don't do your workout, so you aren't beating yourself up about missing a day and giving yourself unhelpful stress.

Think about which side of the meditation balance you need to work on, and how your life, or the lives of people around you, might be different if you could do both equally well.

Mind-Body Wellness for Cancer Survivors

This Sunday is National Cancer Survivors' Day, a day for appreciating all of our loved ones who got through the trials and tribulations of cancer, and are now rebuilding and redefining their lives in the wake of their remission.

It is also a reminder of how cancer never truly leaves us. Even if our body is free of malignant cells, the impact it has on our lives, one way or the other, stays with us.

But survivors also have the power to change their lives for the better on the other side of this experience: not all the baggage we take from going through cancer has to be a burden. Many people find the motivation to change their lifestyle in the battle with cancer. But to really improve your life as a survivor, those healthy changes need to stay with you long after the countless hospital visits and surgeries and chemo sessions have ended.

I've talked a lot about how a mind-body exercise routine is key to boosting your immune system and preventing chronic illness. I've talked about how to take baby steps for learning mind-body techniques, how to commit to a regular routine, and even how to fit it into your busy schedule.

But today, the message is this: make sure you don't leave your mind-body tools behind when you walk out of that oncology ward for the last time.