My name is Glenda McNiece. I am a Natural Therapist working on the Sunshine Coast in Southeast Queensland, Australia, which is about 100 kilometers north of the city of Brisbane.

I was introduced to Falun Gong almost a year ago, hearing of a class practising it in the suburb of New Farm, in Brisbane. My partner Gerard began going to classes to learn Falun Gong after he was told a group of people were doing the exercises there.

After a couple of months, I decided to begin practise myself, putting aside my Yoga exercise of some 15 years. Gerard had been teaching Qi Gong for nearly 6 years and learning an internal martial arts form.

Twenty-two years ago I was involved in a motor-bike accident which left me with a broken collarbone and back injuries including bruising around the vertebrae and a mal-aligned pelvis. From this, I suffered severe neck and sciatic pain. Over the years, I have managed, to a certain degree, to overcome these injuries by practising Yoga, meditation and visualization techniques. Though my mobility improved, I still suffered some neck, shoulder and sciatic pain.

I also had numbness and pain in my left foot due to a breakage ten years ago, as well as an ongoing intermittent pain in the abdominal region from menstrual and intestinal spasming.

When I first started practising Falun Gong almost a year ago I felt immediate relief from the neck and shoulder tension, as if a great weight had been lifted from me! As I continued I found my overall strength greatly improved, especially through the arms and legs.

Gerard was asked to present Falun Gong to the people on the Sunshine Coast, so after nearly a year of practice and learning Falun Dafa, Gerard and I decided to begin, as we wanted to share Falun Gong with others.

When time permits, both Gerard and I travel the 100 kilometer distance down to Brisbane to join our fellow friends and practitioners in New Farm Park. One morning when I was unable to attend, I was practising at home at the same time as the group in Brisbane. In the final cross-legged tranquil, with my inner vision, I began to see the whole group down in New Farm Park seated in a circle. I noticed Gerard leaning against a timber post for support. On his return, I asked Gerard whether he had been supporting his back against something during the final meditation. He replied he had, as it was difficult for him to maintain the double cross-legged position at first, and keep his balance while seated in meditation.

This gave me a wonderful feeling of connection with the group. In attempting to follow the Xinxing indicated in the China Falun Gong and Zhuan Falun, the hardest thing for me to come to terms with is to let go the attachment to my imagination and clairvoyant vision, as it has always helped me tremendously in the past. When I used to meditate, I used a visualization of nature to create a powerful state, then drifted on to receive visions and dreams of all sorts of content. It was very meaningful for me. I found, after a while, I would then come to a very peaceful state in my meditation.

Now, I don't have my familiar places to go to, or the deities I used to call on in order to bring peace, and I am finding I'm challenged more than I've ever been on my spiritual journey.

At times, while practising the tranquil meditation, I have seen deities whirling around together in my mind's eye, and I feel very confused and dizzy after this. Although I've never held dogmatically to being a Christian, I have been given the notion that Christ is the only savior. Because of my many years of practising yoga, the Indian deities are presenting themselves to me as never before. When I was younger, I used to always say, if anyone asked me, that my religion was love, and God was love. Now, even though I don't want to, I find myself seeking a name, even though my understanding of God has somewhat deepened.

As an alternative health practitioner, I practised hands-on healing for many years, thinking it was a good thing to do.

What had helped me, I wanted to share with others. Although I was often witness to many miracles during that time, I found I was frequently taking home the symptoms of my clients' illnesses, and struggling to let go of other people 's thoughts and feelings. Through this painful experience, I eventually learned I was not only interfering with other people's karma, I was taking in their karma as well. From there, I made up my mind to focus on the tools of my profession, rather than use my own energy for healing.

Master Li' s teachings of cultivation have deepened that understanding for me even further. I was once working on a stall in a Natural Health Exhibition opposite a stand where people were practising the healing energy. From my perspective or third-eye-sight, the people who are giving the energy had more polluted energy field than people receiving it. Individuals I've known who have worked intensively as clairvoyants without any other focus often became seriously ill or died prematurely because of this. I myself have had to overcome periods of very low energy for this very reason.

Whilst practising the fifth exercise meditation, I have seen Master Li and I always feel more peaceful when this occurs.

Physically, I have noticed that the Falun Gong has greatly improved the balance and co-ordination between the left and right sides of my body. It has had a regulating effect on my menstrual cycle, eradicating cramps and breast soreness. My intestinal spasms are diminishing. The circulation in my left foot has been restored, as there is not the degree of pain after having walked any distance, as there used to be.

A great amount of heat is generated in my body whilst doing the exercises, and the physical sensations of energy circulation are very strong whilst practicing.

Beginning the day with Falun Gong has been wonderful for me. I have often woken in the morning worrying with one concern or another on my mind. After completing the exercise, I am always able to feel more positive.

I am extremely grateful that Falun Gong has been presented to us by Master Li.

In the accelerated pace of modern living our bodies and energy fields are constantly subjected to bombardment, not only from negative things like junk food, tobacco, alcohol and drugs. Unseen forces like powerlines, mobile phones, television, radiation and microwaves all have life diminishing effects.

From my perspective experience, the practice of Falun Gong profoundly counteracts these destructive forces by clearing and building up the energy of the whole person.