Tai Chi in stroke rehab

Tai Chi is a form of exercise that incorporates slow, rhythmical movements and poses with focused breathing patterns.  Some have called it “moving meditation,” because when done correctly, it truly does bring your mental concentration in line with the movement of your body and your breath.  It originated from an ancient chinese form of martial arts, and has branched into various forms.  Recently the fitness and rehab communities have been raving about the benefits of Tai Chi:  improved balance, improved coordination, increased leg strength, improved respiratory fitness, decreased stress, and decreased blood pressure.  Many of these benefits have been documented in the elderly.  Some studies have also noted benefits from Tai Chi in special conditions, such as parkinson’s disease, rheumatoid arthritis, and cardiac rehab.

The use of Tai Chi in stroke rehab is becoming more common.  This makes perfect sense to me, because many of the components of Tai Chi are also core components in standard stroke rehab, such as:  focus on trunk control, mental concentration with movement, and the use of patterns of movement involving the entire body.

Does It Work?

Here are a few published studies.  Click on the journal name for a link to the article.

Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation published a review in 2007.  It has a lot of good information on the effects of tai chi on lowering blood pressure, improving mood, improving balance, etc.  It also discussed it’s potential use in stroke rehab.

The journal Neurorehabilitaiton and Neural Repair published a study in 2009 that compared Tai Chi to “general exercise” in 136 stroke survivors, at least 6 months after their stroke.  They found that “twelve weeks of short-form Tai Chi produced specific standing balance improvements in people with chronic stroke that outlasted training for 6 weeks.”

Bottom Line:

There isn’t a lot of research on the effects of tai chi in stroke rehab, but there is a solid theory behind it being beneficial.  I don’t know of any possible detrimental effects of getting involved in this form of exercise (as long as you take precautions to avoid falling).  I could help you to improve your mental focus, your breathing, your balance, lower your blood pressure, and might even help with depression or mood disturbances.