Carla Guggenheim, DO, Dances through the Pain

Holistic Systems

In 2009, when Dr. Guggenheim’s second husband, David, developed pulmonary emboli, the couple started tai chi and qi gong as a way for him to gently exercise.

Both styles coordinate posture, movement, breathing and meditation. They are infinitely deep, engaging, powerful and calming techniques, she says.

“I love to move,” says Dr. Guggenheim. “Qigong calms me down and helps me empathize with others.”

Click here to listen to Dr. Guggenheim’s interview.

She explains that tai chi movements lubricate every joint in your body by gently compressing the articular cartilage surfaces. “So for joint health, it’s just amazing,” she says. So much so that Dr. Guggenheim encourages most of her patients to enroll in tai chi classes. She also teaches them a few basic movements, such as Cloud Hands—repetitive, meditative hand and body movements they can easily perform at home. She says the movements are simple to learn and can be immensely helpful for breathing, balance and mobility.

She and her husband also teach weekly qigong classes in their home dance studio and Dr. Guggenheim’s tai chi club members trade off every week teaching each other.

“Tai chi is really complex,” she adds. “It engages your mind. You can’t think about anything else. It’s so focused, so engaging and so meditative.”

Dr. Guggenheim readily admits she is a woman of passion and suggests other rheuma­tologists discover their own passions and pursue them.

She says the most interesting observations that have been made about her have come from her residents: “They told me, ‘You’re the only happy physician we know.’”

Carol Patton is a freelance writer based in Las Vegas.