Niagara Healing Arts

01/18/2026

Everyday Practices for Regulation

Some of the simple ways I teach patients to reconnect with their bodies and increase awareness are as follows:

- Mindfulness of the breathing body. This is one of the four foundations of mindfulness, and in practice it can be as simple as what I refer to as the “3-Breath Snack”. When you do notice your breathing is “tight”, or a mood or emotion or thought is arising in a distracting way, simply pause and take slow 3 intentional breaths with a nice long exhale on each one. This may help breathe some space around whatever thought, feeling or sensation is present and diffuse its distraction a little bit. It’s like opening a window a small crack and enjoying a bit of fresh air.

- Quick body scan. If, for instance, you are prone to low back or hip pain, it’s wise to check specific areas routinely throughout the day for any unnecessary gripping or tension in your feet, quads (thighs), calves and gluteal muscles, and notice when your posture is being hoisted upwards by your shoulders. Notice when you are standing as well as sitting. This is a typical avoidance response to chronic pain. When you make a point of checking in regularly, you’ll notice any habit of gripping, which is a waste of energy. You can then take the opportunity to soften and sink into a stable, relaxed and grounded posture, reducing your gripping and effort and training your nervous system know that it’s ok to let go. The more you notice, the easier it is to let go and you are also changing the pattern. This practice can go a long way in reducing the intensity and frequency of pain.

- Qigong exercises. I prescribe a specific exercise depending on your unique condition and treatment goals. These are gentle, repetitive and simple exercises that make sense, feel good, and help you develop a skill that you will use for your lifetime.

Just remember that regulation is dynamic and relative, and restoring balance & harmony is integral to good health. Small, routine practices are super helpful not only for mindful awareness and alleviating symptoms, but developing more acceptance and trust with your body.

Thanks for reading,

Nancy

01/15/2026

Take it slow and steady out there, Niagara. I’ve got one spot free this Saturday to help you recover from your hard work making piles of crystallized flakes of frozen water. Book Online www.niagarahealingarts.com

01/11/2026

I recently met with a new patient who reported having neither experience with nor understanding of manual therapies, not to mention Chinese Medicine. They were referred by their spouse, who was a patient I have helped with treatment and education. I briefly explained my approach and what to expect during the session with their goals in mind, yet after the session when I asked about their experience of the treatment, their answer was “Confused”.

They were not as confused after I delivered my clinical impressions clearly, with a deep understanding of their patterns and concealments (without judgement, of course). They nodded in surprise and agreement.

Patients might not fully understand my modalities and methodology for treating chronic pain and malaise, and that’s okay. It takes years of study and practice to “read” another human in this way and know how to help. It’s more important that patients gain a better understanding of their unique patterns, and capacity for change and transformation.

My job is to help you feel safe enough to relax and allow me to shine a light on what’s hidden from your awareness, then bring it to your attention. How I gather that information is up to me, but what we do with the information is up to you.

Some of my longtime patients, for whom I am eternally grateful, are not entirely receptive to the ways in which my approach has evolved over the years. Treatments feel different now from when my only approach was Swedish Massage (as all RMTs are trained to do). There’s a futility in imposing my will upon your tissues, stretching and pressing your body into a shape it doesn’t feel safe in. What is the tension holding on to? Why is there armoring? What is it protecting, or protecting from? The “why” is important.

Often a new patient arrives in my clinic with an assumption that all Energetic Medicine is like Reiki. Daoist Energetic Medicine is not like Reiki.

Similarly, patients sometimes expect Craniosacral Therapy to be like Osteopathy, but it’s not. (Continues in comments…)

01/05/2026

How can I help?

I can’t write a concise mission statement. Any time I’ve tried it feels so hollow and trite. This work that I do is a calling, and although that might sound pretentious, it’s actually quite daunting and humbling. There are 10,000 reasons why I am called to this work, but the primary one is because I suffer in life. So do we all. I suppose my purpose has evolved over time, and the task of helping is not getting much easier due to the nature of change and culture. The digital age is driving us further away from the life conditions we need to truly thrive and feel safe, sane and seen. Posting on social media with my authenticity foot forward is not likely to get people onto my treatment table. My brick-and-mortar business is about old-school human touch, vulnerability, radical truth, intimacy and the magic of human transformation. Anyone who glamorizes helping work is grossly underestimating the sacrifices, discipline and self-healing the work demands, and yet I vow to not burn out. So, who am I most called to help? I can only tell you what I pray for and who gets the best results in my clinic. I pray every day to send me patients who need what I can do and are receptive to the process. The people who get the best results typically*:

1. are sensitive to Qi/Energy
2. are concurrently in counselling or psychotherapy
3. are in a helping profession themselves (teacher, therapist, nurse)
4. do the homework I prescribe and notice changes
5. are willing to examine their internal stories/beliefs about themselves
6. can make the connection between their physical symptoms and their life conditions (ie, relational conflict, job or financial stress, cultural conditioning, activities, aging etc)

*Based on my clinical case histories

Healing begins with a form of awakening to the way things really are, and I can help a little or a lot depending on many factors. I’m on this path with the rest of you, figuring it out as we go. I’m happy to help in whatever way I can.

Thanks for reading.

Nancy

01/01/2026

Fresh New Essay on Substack. Subscribe for free via link in bio, or just read it.
Happy New Year everyone.
Nancy

12/19/2025

I removed the paywall on this Substack post and pinned it to the top of my Homepage. Read it via the link in bio. It has been a long, busy and interesting week in the clinic. Before I retreat for much-needed rest I wanted to offer you this meditation. Hope it helps some of you find your own inner light in the darkness on the cusp of solstice and throughout deep winter.

If you enjoy my Substack content, please subscribe for free (link in bio) or buy me a coffee with the link at the end of any post. Your support of creative arts is appreciated and encourages me to keep writing.

If this is the winter you want to give silent meditation practice a go, and you need proper instruction from a good teacher, and you live in or can easily travel to the Niagara Region, then consider joining my 5-week (15 Hours) Art of Quiescence Workshop starting in January 2026. (Link in Bio, See post pinned to feed).

Stay radiant, friends!

Nancy

12/06/2025

Warm Winter Greeting - https://mailchi.mp/5eab8fbf522b/winter2026
Upcoming Winter Offerings at Niagara Healing Arts

12/01/2025

Too early? Just a friendly reminder that year-end arrives quickly, and the clinic is closed between Dec20-Jan 5. Want to be the first to know what fun stuff is planned for the Winter months at Niagara Healing Arts? Sign up for the newsletter-it’s coming soon, just like the snow.❄️❄️❄️

11/27/2025

11/10/2025

How I Prepare for a session…
When I first started practicing massage therapy, the long days of physically demanding work weren’t easy. It didn’t take long before I struggled with fatigue and begun absorbing toxic energy from patients. This is natural, and how energy flows between people. It often manifested in me as joint pain and headaches.

For energetically aware people it is really helpful to develop energetic hygiene skills and boundaries. These two skills go hand-in-hand to protect your health and avoid burnout.

I personally have a preparatory routine before I start my day, before and after each patient, and a closing routine before I end my day.

Some of my professional boundaries include:
- Adhere to a schedule that meets MY needs (not working too early or too late, not working on days off, time for snacks and rest)
-Referring patients who I know I can’t help, for whatever reason
-Embodying my role as an educator & facilitator of healing, taking no credit or blame for any outcome

Aside from an early bedtime, I practice Qigong & Meditation to keep my body, energy and mind attuned day-to-day, but when working with patients I include the following ritual:

- Spend some time in meditation to settle any distracting thoughts and emotions from my personal life
- Before each session I perform a specific Qigong meditation to help me establish a sacred space in the treatment room
- I end each session in a way that helps the patient and I gently disconnect from each other’s energy

In retrospect, without these practices I would never have lasted this long in my career without chronic burnout or serious health & financial problems.

If you are in a helping profession, and feel that this sort of energetic ritual might help you when working with patients/clients, I would be happy to teach you.

We need all the tools we can get.

Thanks for reading,

Nancy

11/05/2025

Ginew Benton posted this on TikTok today, and the teaching cannot be more timely.

In last week’s Qigong class, I had planned to teach some practices to help with emotional healing, but postponed it to accommodate someone who needed it.

I didn’t realize at the time that the rescheduled class would land on a Supermoon, so we will be extra kind and gentle with ourselves this evening.

It has been awhile since I taught a meditation training, but am planning one for this winter, as it is a perfect antidote for the darkness and all that comes with it. I believe that a gentle practice in community is helpful in winter, and meditation can help dispel dark and unhelpful thoughts and emotions, allowing more space for light to enter.

During a season where natural sunlight is scarce, we must create and amplify our own inner light to sustain us until spring.

If you are interested in learning or practicing meditation with me, informed by Buddhist Mindfulness, Daoist Inner Alchemy, Neuroscience, Energetic Psychology and Culture, type STILLNESS in the comments and I will message you with details once they are rolled out.

Thanks for reading.

Nancy