Dear Ed,

On behalf of the Board of Directors and the entire membership of the Employee Involvement Association Michigan Chapter, we extend our thanks to you for the wonderful workshop you facilitated at our annual Regional Conference, Using Tai Chi as a Motivational Tool, held at the Soaring Eagle Casino & Resort, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan.

The workshop was upbeat, and you delivered a first class, motivating presentation on how we can relieve the stresses associated with our daily responsibilities, work with our team members and deliver the kind of service our customers deserve and demand. For your information, the surveys returned by the attendees rated your session very positive.

Every organization should consider having you come in and present your relaxing technique, especially if they want to motivate their employees to give their best performance.

Sincerely,

Paula S. Davis, CASS
President, EIA Michigan Chapter

I tend to take “testimonials” lightly and I would never have dreamed of writing one myself. However, after feeling my life turn around in four months of studying “The Movement of Life”, I have to share my experience with you. My hope is that someone reading this will have the courage to begin this program and experience the renewal of life I’ve felt. I’m a woman in her late 60’s with a medical diagnosis of severe, deteriorating inflammatory osteoarthritis. (A Western medical diagnosis can make you feel bad just in reading it!) If you have this condition or something similar, you’ll understand why I’m writing this.
As I found myself being able to do less and less, I contacted a Physical Therapist who I had worked with in the past three years. Because I had so many arthritic joints, I had to be cautious about choosing an exercise program. Together we reviewed what I could do and what I probably shouldn’t do. We came up with Tai Chi; she recommended Ed Niam’s program specifically because she had seen the results of his work with a number of seniors in assisted living as well as in a nursing home environment. (I’m not there yet!)
I began Ed’s creative program of Tai Chi using Qui Gong as warm-up exercises four months ago and found immediately that I could attempt each move without experiencing pain. I won’t say I presented a pretty picture as I learned the moves---nor do I now! However, I felt so much relief in my entire body that, in addition to some regular home practice, I began doing individual movements when I was in pain and always found relief. I’m happy to say, I’m taking less pain medication now; the anti-inflammatory will probably continue to be necessary but I’d love to learn differently! What I’ve experienced is a rapid increase in flexibility, a confidence that continued improvement is possible, and, best of all, a growing optimism that I don’t have to be so totally limited by arthritis. I’ve moved from despair to great hope!
If you have any form of arthritis or are just becoming less flexible as you age, I encourage you to try these classes. You owe it to yourself to give your body a chance to be and to do all that it possibly can – no matter what your age. I’d love to meet you in class and hear you say you came because of this writing; my greater joy would come from knowing you had had the courage to take the first step to begin “The Movement of Life” program.
Bernadette
Shaker Heights, Ohio

Just other people's words? Yeah. But they have more substance than the stiff sterility, flowery phoniness and just plain stupidity that occupies most of cyberspace. Thanks for offering "Thoughts for the Day".

Ed was kind enough to help me when I was dreadfully ill several years ago. His gentle treatments were not only effective in healing my immediate concerns but were so deeply and profound in their reach that I actually felt better than I had in many years after his treatments. I highly recommend him and his tried and true methods.

In 2004, I became very ill with stomach problems. I had lost close to 30 lbs. in a matter of only weeks, was having extreme pain, and could not control my bowels; I was going at least 20 times a day. I went to the hospital many times for the first six months, and had no luck being diagnosed. I was on a variety of medications, and constantly was changing trying to find the right mix that would help me. I was seeing a GI specialist every month, and was still not feeling any better. I was finally diagnosed one year into it with an extreme case of Irritable Bowel Syndrome.

My quality of life went downhill as fast as it possibly could. At the time I became sick, I was an outgoing college senior having the time of my life, but that quickly changed due to this illness. I would not leave my bed because of the pain, and had constant fear of going out, not sure if I would be able to make it to a restroom in time. I was doing everything I was told to do by the doctors, specialists, literature and books. I changed my diet completely, was exercising properly and continued on the medications and treatments prescribed by the doctors. However, I was still not improving with all of this. I was still having attacks that were debilitating, even made me lose consciousness, I still couldn't get control of my bowels, and had the fear of doing anything that was not near a restroom. I went into the hospital at the Cleveland Clinic from an attack just after two and a half years of having these problems. I was then diagnosed with having Colitis. The doctors gave me a more aggressive treatment through medications. I was taking approximately 30 pills a day and also was giving myself three injections a day. Also, I would have to go to the doctor's office every month to get separate injections. I was finally starting to feel better, and even tried doing things I use to do. However, I plateaued with the treatments and was not feeling any better.

Just over three years of dealing with this, I knew I needed to get control of the condition. All the conventional medicines and treatments that I tried were not helping. If I did feel better, it was a temporary bandaid that was not curing the illness. Luckily, I was given Ed Niams name through a person who had used him before, with the same symptoms as I was experiencing. He had nothing but positive things to say about the acupuncture treatments he received and highly recommended that I try it. I was skeptical at first after hearing about how this treatment worked, but at this point, I was willing to try anything that may help me. I had my initial consultation with Ed and was very impressed with his professionalism, all the experience and training he has had in the past, and more-so the knowledge he demonstrated to me about my illness. I decided to go ahead with my first session of acupuncture treatments and noticed a change almost immediately. I was having less pain in my stomach and was going to the bathroom less frequently. Each week, I felt I was making more progress. Along with the acupuncture treatments, Ed also shared with me some Qi Gong exercises that are to be done daily, advice on my diet, and also showed me a variety of acupressure points I can perform on myself for relief. The exercises compliment the treatments, and I feel are part of the success I have experienced with the overall treatment. I continued onto a second session of treatments and noticed I was feeling better still. I stopped giving myself the injections and taking certain medications since starting the acupuncture. For the first time in over three and a half years I feel confident about going out and living life, and doing it with less pain. The changes that I have experienced since the acupuncture treatments have changed my life completely. I will always have symptoms and flare-ups due to the Colitis for as long as I live, but since having these treatments, I will able to manage these attacks and experience them less often. I highly recommend Ed Niam to anyone who is considering acupuncture.