If you want to achieve the best possible result, practising regularly is important. But living with small children can make that somewhat difficult. We will publish the stories of a few parents here on the website. You can read the first one here!
It was difficult making time for Qigong when my children were babies. Our days were occupied and they fell asleep late and woke up early. When we had found a routine that worked it didn’t take long for it to change. So, I didn’t practise as much as I wanted to but I tried to accept things, knowing it was just a phase. As the children got older and started sleeping at more fixed times I got up early in the morning to practise before they woke up. But quite often one or the other would wake up earlier than anticipated and my practising was interrupted. My practising routine would also get disturbed when they became ill, or simply when they changed their sleeping habits.
However, it has been possible for me to attend the longer Qigong courses. My family have also joined and these courses have been crucial to keep up my energy levels when the children were small. Our whole family has gathered a lot of qi and it has been very helpful in our everyday life.
Somewhat Older Children
Now that the kids are four and six years old it’s starting to get easier to practise regularly, especially thanks to the online training. It helps our entire family to adapt to the routine. The children appreciate that many people they know all practise at the same time as we do and that gives the moment a special feeling. I practise in their bedroom and our evening routine has become much better and calmer. When I’ve thought of skipping the training to start putting them to bed they’ve urged me to practise instead. Sometimes one of them will come sit in my lap when we practise La Qi. They will sit quietly and relax.
Games During Practise
It has been important to me that Qigong is a natural part of the kids’ day. They’re welcome to enter the room when I practise but I’d rather they don’t disturb. Easier said than done… Their favourite game is to sit on my feet when I bend forward and play house. Or hang different stuff on my arms when they’re stretched out. Sometimes when I’m done practising, my legs are tied together with a belt. Of course this affects the quality of the training but it’s better for us to keep this moment positive than have it connected to negative feelings. We also talk to the children about results and why practising is important.
It is amazing that the children can get acquainted to Qigong at such an early age, both the training itself and all our Qigong friends!