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Testimonials

I am writing this on behalf of my erstwhile wife and her friend who attend your Tuesday class. May I say that the time my wife has spent at your classes has been the most fulfilling and productive of our life together she has a vitality and love of life she had almost lost. Tai Chi is most important to her and she never misses a day in practicing the art you have instilled in her. I do hope we will meet one day. Thank you and good luck.

 

L C Alchin 2/7/10

I have been attending Tai Chi classes since 9th November 2009 and slowly my life has changed, from walking with the aid of a stick for 50% of the time, to not needing it at all and keeping up with my friends and family, my mobility has changed beyond all recognition. One of the most marked things that has happened concerns a diagnosis last year which showed I had high Cholesterol and would need medical treatment. My recent test however showed that I had attained normal levels of Cholesterol much to my surprise of my GP who has taken the effects of Tai Chi on general health.

 

It seems plain to me thanks to Tai Chi, green tea, my diet and my instructor Jan Simpson, my life is looking very good indeed.

 

Gillian Alchin  18/7/10

I enjoy Tai Chi because it is not a strenuous exercise. I find it very relaxing, all the movements can help some parts of our body if we have problems. Arthritis, Back pain etc, which our instructor always tells us which is very helpful. The breathing that we do in Tai Chi is very good for all of us. The massaging of the pressure points are very good once we are told what each one is for, and if necessary you can do it wherever you are. The hour is very enjoyable with lots of laughs and after the class your body feels better. My doctor is very pleased that I go to Tai Chi.

 

Ferring Tai Chi Student  9/8/10

After many years enjoying Karate, I developed osteoarthritis in my lower back and left hip forcing me to stop training. I decided to look for an internal martial art to study and found this very impressive web site. After my first Tuesday session I realized what  a wonderful martial art the 37 step Tai Chi form was. A big bonus is having warm, wonderful and helpful instructors who just happen to be very good at martial arts. It is always a pleasure to go to class and train with very sociable and friendly people.

 

R Moore  20/8/10

When I first started Qi Gong I suffered badly with repetitive strain injury in my neck and shoulder and I have found that the exercises have helped me enormously relieving the tension, easing the pain and making it so much easier for me to move my neck and turn my head.

 

Jan is a great teacher, he makes the exercises fun and adds interesting anecdotes to expand our knowledge of Tai Chi and Qi Gong. His plan is for us to learn all the meridians to know which parts of the body are affected by the exercises, this will be fascinating.

 

C Coren 20/4/12

I've been attending QI gong and Tai chi classes with Jan for six months now. That anniversary might have passed unnoticed had I not had an appointment with my  rheumatoid arthritis consultant who I first saw six months ago. It's not always possible to see our own progress with Tai chi, changes may be subtle, gradual. There was absolutely nothing subtle about my meeting my consultant. Not looking up from his computer screen he asked how I was. "Fabulous!" was probably not the answer he expected!

 

When I first met Jan in January of this year (2015), I hobbled in with a walking stick. I had to sit with my right leg straight out as my knee was locked. I'd been like this for nearly two years. I was depressed, everything hurt. After I contacted Jan regarding classes and before we met or he knew of my physical problems, he sent me a video link of a guys fight to become mobile. I watched, I cried, I wanted that and what's more I was going to get it! And I have. As I said to my consultant. I'm four stone lighter, no stick, no limp. Last week I went dancing. Last year I'd began to think my days of walking were drawing to an end. I like how Jan always encourages us, No competition, just finding a way. The power of working, moving as a group is, I find, very powerful. I can't really express how great I feel.

 

Guess Fabulous kind of says it though!

 

D Cole 20/6/15

I started Qi Qong with Jan a couple of years ago. I have had lower back problems for many years and have previously tried yoga and Pilates which I found aggravated my back. I found a local class on the internet and discussed with Jan whether Qigong would be suitable for me.  Jan was very helpful and understanding on the phone and suggested I come along to a class which I did and have continued ever since with great benefit to my back problems.

 

I did try a class locally  to where I live but this was Chen style tai chi (I didn’t realise at the time that there were so many different types) but this didn’t suit my back problems at all so I stopped.  I decided to return to the Ferring classes and haven’t looked back since. I have also joined Jan’s Ferring beginners tai chi class which I really enjoy and find the Qigong and Tai Chi go very well together.

 

I have had a bit of a problem with my hip recently which thankfully turns out to be muscular. I discussed my concerns about the tai chi causing the problem with Jan and we talked it through and it turned out I wasn’t doing some of the exercises correctly and was twisting my hip rather than my waist.  I am  happy to say that now I am doing it properly my symptoms have disappeared. I had convinced myself that I would have to stop the classes but because of Jan’s help I am now able to continue.  

 

Jan is a very patient understanding teacher and talks through all the movements. He makes the classes interesting  when passing on his knowledge of the history of Qi gong and tai chi. He writes very informative newsletters and produces small videos to assist us to practise at home. It is not all serious as we still have time for a giggle in class.

 

I fully recommend others joining these classes.

 

S Peters 13/11/15

Further to our recent discussions in respect of my on-going heart condition. I thought you might be interested in how I arrived at the situation where I decide that I should use the Tai Chi teachings which I have learned from you in a more practical way.  You will remember that around three or four years ago at age 72 I was diagnosed with Heart Arrhythmia or Atrial Fibrillation to give it it's more common name. this is a condition whereby the heart beats irregularly and can "spike" from a normal heartbeat (around 100 bpm) for a man of my age, up to 180 -200,bpm.  The heart specialists prescribed medication  for the condition and ordered an annual check up. I had two of these and on the third check-up in March 2015 I was advised that my condition was not improving and I would very likely require "open heart" surgery if things did not improve. I was then told to come back in six months and not to wait for a full year.  As you can imagine I was very unhappy with this and decided to take matters into my own hands. I had practiced  standing meditation and heart strengthening exercises with you and decided that this was something I should try as a way to support the medication.   I practiced daily for around 8-9 minutes in addition to the form. In November 2015 I returned to hospital for my six monthly check-up. It was agreed that my general condition had stabilised and and I have now reverted to annual checkups and surgery has been shelved at least for the immediate future. I must stress that the exercises have not replaced the medication, however it is my strong belief that they have certainly been beneficial and have resulted in a heart calming outcome.

 

M. Cusack. 18/1/16  Private Student

 

 

I have tried a new class the past 2 weeks and would like to let it be known how much I am enjoying it. Qi Gong on Monday afternoons is now a class I will always attend. The rest of the week I am generally pushing my body with a mix of gym work and high intensity classes. I have found Mondays, Qi Gong class is a wonderful little haven for me to holistically rebalance and also set me up for a positive week ahead. Jan is a great teacher, with a great calm but strong energy and his passion for what he teaches shines through. Already looking forward to next weeks class.

J.Bignell 30/6/16  

Having played at Taijiquian & Qigong for many years and visited many teachers on my own erratic journey. I found myself at a loose end in the summer of 2016. Probably driven by transportation difficulties at the time and a pure random selection, I decided to visit the Internal Alchemy School. I was immediately welcomed into the group by the senior instructor, Jan Simpson. Both Jan and his followers are supportive friendly and inclusive to everyone, whilst exhibiting a high level of knowledge and professionalism. I recommend that you start Your Tai Chi Journey with 'Internal Alchemy Tai Chi Chuan & Qi Gong Sussex'

I thought I would like to share with you my experience of the Tai Chi and Qigong classes that I have been attending, run by Jan of Internal Alchemy.

M. King 5/8/2019

I highly recommend the Internal Alchemy school to anyone who wants to learn or deepen their knowledge in the Chinese Internal arts. The chief instructor Jan Simpson is a very inspiring teacher who brings a lot of passion, knowledge and understanding to his students. I am so inspired by his humble, down to earth attitude and vast knowledge of Cheng Man-Ch'ings Tai Chi that he has spent many years studying, practicing and teaching. I have absolute trust in Jan and would recommend him every time.

K. Holland 19/10/2021

Being a little uncoordinated with a tendency to be slightly four legged sometimes, I thought Tai Chi would help. I contacted Jan Simpson at Internal Alchemy to see if the moves would be of benefit to an old Moose like me? Evidently, Tai Chi is natural and environmentally friendly with some of it's moves named after animals. Just the job I thought! You also must have humility, respect and a sense of humour. Cool martial moves are included as a bonus. Great fun!

Ferring Tai Chi Student 17/12/2021

After reading about the benefits of Qigong I decided that it might help me cope better with a couple of issues I have been suffering from for sometime. My plan was to try and reduce my medication as I thought it was masking the underlying problems.

Since attending Jan’s classes I feel stronger mentally and physically and feel better able to cope with problems that have been with me for years and I have managed to reduce my medication. My wife has seen a positive change in me also.

Jan is extremely knowledgeable and I find his lessons inspirational. I enjoy his explanations about the health benefits of some of the exercises which makes for a very interesting and enjoyable class. I leave the class feeling uplifted and looking forward to the next session.

Thank you Jan.

M. Dodgson 25/9/22

I am 67 years old and 30 years ago I had an accident where I damaged my back. After 7 operations, steroid injections, nerve blocks, infusions and taking morphine for 25 years the pain remained.

Anybody who has continuous pain knows how debilitating it is and as time goes on you lose the ability to deal with it and it can really overpower you. Everything becomes such an effort, taking care of yourself, communicating, and seeing the positive rather than the negative in life. Your sleep is disturbed so you are constantly tired and so the list goes on.

I have tried most things that are recommended for pain, including healing and acupuncture but to no avail, but then I heard and read about Access Bars and thought I would give it a go. 

Jan came to my house, and I had my first session. I really cannot explain how it works, you lie on a table and Jan touches your head very, very lightly. I felt my blood rushing through my body, and I heard my heart beat. It was very, very relaxing. When the session had finished, I felt wonderful, my head felt 10 years lighter, calmer.

Could I run a marathon? No; but then I never expect to. Do I still have pain? Yes, but the way that I am dealing with it now, has changed 100%, and the effect it has had on my day to day life is amazing. It took me a while to get my head around how it works, but it does.

I could not recommend thus treatment more highly to those with an open mind, it’s truly wonderful

Lindy H 6/10/22 Access Bars Treatment

I booked a treatment of Access Bars Therapy with Jan Simpson whom I knew from attending his Qi Gong classes. Jan arrived at my house with his table and after a brief chat and a few instructions I laid on the table, hands at my side whilst he proceeded to press different areas of my head.  Whilst I felt completely relaxed in his presence,  I found the experience to be quite dynamic in that I was aware of pulses of energy in various areas of my body, particularly my legs (I have painful knees). The treatment lasted just over an hour and afterwards I felt quite invigorated and alive. For about a week afterwards I had much reduced knee pain and I can honestly say that ever since (about a month now) I have felt younger and more able to flow in my daily life. Jan was very professional and I would have no hesitation in recommending him and his remarkable treatment to anyone. In fact I've already booked another treatment in a few weeks time!

 

T  Stevens 7/11/22 Access Bars Treatment

Angmering

I decided to have my first treatment of access bars because of having suffered from depression and anxiety most of my life and I would say about 2 and half years of constant pain in my arms hands and lower limbs which in the last few months has been diagnosed as the effects on my nervous system due to living in a flat with black mould ,I have now had my first session with Jan, I don't really know how to describe my own personal experience apart from having strange sensations and feelings while having the treatment done ,the first night after having treatment was the first pain free night in 2 &1/2 years and the first night and morning not having to take pain killers I also woke feeling bright and alert with no feelings of anxiety and a lighter more brighter prospective on life I feel clearer in my thoughts .thank you so much, Jan .

Leah S 19/11/22 Access Bars Treatment

I was medically retired from my employment over 10 years ago diagnosed with ME/CFS and though my health has greatly improved ,I still suffer with low energy, low mood, brain fog and lethargy etc

I have now experienced four Access Bars sessions with Jan and I am thrilled with the positive results! 

 

Jan is a true professional with a extensive knowledge of Chinese medicine and with his positive and open approach, I feel that the treatments are very beneficial!

Jan comes to my house with a folding medical bed and the treatment lasts an hour to hour and a half , whereby Jan gently touches my head with his finger tips and my body relaxes and involuntary muscle reactions occur and I in a meditative state!

 

After the sessions, I feel much lighter mentally and as such I am far more energetic on an ongoing and continuing basis, and I am able to perform many more mundane household tasks etc, and I am experiencing a better quality of life generally with my new found energy both physical and mental!

I also found that I have reacted better to stressful situations and I sleep better and I am less anxious and more positive!

 

Geoff   30/11/2022 Access Bars Treatment

I met Jan on the set of the movie Black Creek and was in awe of his story. I knew there was something special about him, and when I got injured he was the first person I went to after grabbing ice. 

 

My wrist had been hit in such a way that it was swollen at the tendon, and the pain had started radiating up my arm. This was only day 2 on set for me and I was very concerned. As the ice wasn’t really helping, I asked Jan if he could do anything. We sat together and he took my arm in his hands, one supporting my wrist, the other farther up my arm. I could feel the intensity of Jan’s touch- I knew he was working. Within minutes, I could feel the pain lifting off my wrist and arm as though it was bubbles floating into the air. It never hurt again. 

 

Knowing Jan’s healing capacity on himself and now me, we started talking further about what I could do to help my body heal in many different ways. I’d had such a palpable experience that I was able to apply the belief in his teachings, and in just two sessions of following his meditation protocol, my body has felt overwhelmingly better. 

 

As I continue to work on this meditation, my mental state has become stronger and happier. I’m learning to identify different parts of my body to heal. I feel like I’m making more progress within as well as without than I have ever before. 

 

Thanks to Jan, I have a new understanding of what our bodies are capable of and I look forward to learning more. I’m forever grateful.

Eliza Kelley 8/12/23

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