Tai chi brought peace to this Regina teacher during a time of mental struggle. Now she shares it with others

Janani Whitfield · CBC News

· Posted: May 15, 2025 7:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 11 minutes ago

This communicative is portion of a CBC Saskatchewan bid showcasing movers and shakers for Asian Heritage Month successful May. For much connected this project, sojourn cbc.ca/lovesk. 

When Xiaofeng Wu leads her people done the movements of tai chi, her dependable calm permeates the room.

Wu — who besides uses the archetypal sanction Lena — is an ardent proponent of this martial creation aft learning and teaching it for the past 13 years.

She knows first-hand however beneficial it tin be, aft struggling with her intelligence wellness erstwhile she archetypal came to Regina successful 1994 to survey astatine the section university.

"Like galore newcomers, I faced tons of taste adaptation and connected apical of that I experienced the household transitions, which led to immoderate intelligence struggles," she said.

To find an reply for the depression, she turned inward, opening with yoga, meditation and a steadfast diet.

But it was the past workout of tai chi, which she utilized to spot practised successful her puerility location of Beijing, that would truly assistance her interruption through.

"That travel and that elegance conscionable straight spoke to me," she said, adding she was fortunate to larn from elder members successful the Chinese community. "I consciousness I was precise overmuch grounded and immersed successful the travel of the movements."

Unlike Wu, those seniors didn't talk English. She was capable to service arsenic a bridge, connecting with different taste communities to stock much astir tai chi, extracurricular of her Monday to Friday occupation arsenic an educator.  

She helped to commencement the Regina Chinese Canadian Association Tai Chi Group, starring play sessions. She present besides teaches play classes astatine the section YMCA, seasonal programs with the Albert Park Community Association, and workshops done the section library, university, elder residences and schools.

Her students picture her arsenic calm and patient, mildly guiding them successful perfecting their movements.

Shelley Cochrane, who takes Wu's classes astatine the YMCA, said she ever feels much calm aft the hour-long class.

"It helps maine get grounded. It's conscionable a mode of beingness that you tin accommodate to this stressful satellite that we're surviving successful close now," Cochrane said.

Wu said she feels disheartened erstwhile she hears astir children and adults facing expanding anxiousness and depression. It's what propels her to proceed volunteering to thatch this creation that brought her bid successful a clip of need. 

Practising tai chi helps her link with the earthy portion of herself and reflects the quality astir her, she said.

"That helped maine to judge who I am. That helped maine to measurement retired of the judgmental self, and past that's however I felt similar we're each the aforesaid nether the aforesaid sun. … We're each connected," she said, pausing to bespeak connected however existent that feels erstwhile she practices tai chi.

"That's rather profound."