○ Musical Guidance: Practice observing long-term rhythms using a "repeated" musical piece.

One of the difficulties of long-term follow-up is that symptoms often appear in a "cyclical" rather than "linear" manner. You may just be getting a little better, only to be suddenly aggravated again and brought back to square one, making you wonder: "Was all my previous efforts in vain?" The music exercise in this lesson invites you to use a "cyclical" piece of music to practice experiencing in the sound that "returning to a similar theme ≠ completely returning to the starting point".
Practice Method: Choose an instrumental piece approximately 15 minutes long, where the melody repeatedly returns to the same theme, each time with subtle variations. Before playing, draw a large circle on paper, dividing its circumference into 4–6 arcs, representing different stages of your long-term treatment (e.g., initial diagnosis and confirmation, active treatment, relatively stable period, mild relapse, integration and adjustment period, etc.). During the first half of the music, close your eyes and focus solely on how the same theme returns to your ears in different ways: sometimes stronger, sometimes softer, sometimes with the addition of new instruments, sometimes with a different background.
Once you're familiar with the musical structure, you can start writing down several stages of your real-life journey along the circumference, noting next to them: your main symptoms, functional status, and "your understanding of yourself at that time." When the music returns to familiar passages, ask yourself: "Have I also experienced a similar cycle of 'getting a little better and then getting worse again'? If this piece of music were used to describe that time, where would it be?"“
In the last few minutes of the piece, please write down a summary reminder on a piece of paper, such as: "Even if the melody returns to the same theme, the orchestration and depth are different," or "Every seemingly similar recurrence occurs at a new point in time." Let this sentence become a small anchor point for your long-term follow-up. When you feel "why is it back to the old ways again" next time, you can first recall the recurrence of this piece, instead of only feeling frustrated.

○ Eastern Healing Tea: A Cup of "Regular Retrospective Tea": Marking the Follow-up Period

Long-term follow-up is not just about arranging "visit dates," but also a rhythm of continuously reflecting on one's physical and lifestyle. This course continues the imagery of 24 types of Eastern healing teas, and, while respecting your constitution and medical advice, invites you to select one or two "teas specifically for your follow-up cycle" to mark moments of regular dialogue with yourself and your team.
You can choose lighter teas suitable for long-term consumption, such as light green tea, white tea, oolong, flower teas with a milder floral aroma, or mild herbal blends that suit you. Establish a small ritual for yourself: use the same tea to accompany you before each follow-up visit (e.g., a review every one or two weeks or one month), the night before each outpatient visit or rehabilitation session, and after each important team meeting.
While brewing the tea, please answer three questions and write down the key points: ① From the last follow-up to today, what range have my symptoms, functions, and life been in? ② What are some things I wanted to say to my doctor or therapist, but didn't because of time constraints or embarrassment? ③ In this follow-up/recording, what are the 1-2 priority issues I most want to focus on resolving, rather than "getting everything right the first time"?
The cup of tea at the end of the follow-up visit is for "the self that just got through": while drinking it, you can simply record the moments when you felt understood or ignored, comforted or stimulated; and write down: "Before the next meeting, which most basic maintenance action am I willing to hold onto for myself?" When the same tea appears repeatedly, you will gradually feel that long-term follow-up is not a vague, endless extension, but is connected by a series of visible cycles, and you are a rhythmic and subjective participant in it.

○ Chinese Food Therapy: Supporting the Maintenance Plan with "Long-Term Sustainable Basic Porridge"

Even the most meticulously crafted long-term maintenance plan can easily fall apart during implementation if it ignores the energy and nutrition needed in real life, even if it looks perfect on paper. This course, without replacing nutritional and medical advice, invites you to select one to three "basic, long-term sustainable porridges" from 40 Chinese dietary therapy porridge recipes as the physical support for your maintenance plan.
The so-called "basic porridge" is not a fancy dish, but rather a type of food you can still eat when your mental state fluctuates, your motivation wavers, or your life is hectic: the ingredients are readily available, the preparation is simple, the flavor is mild, and it's suitable for your digestive system. Examples include light millet and pumpkin porridge, yam and lily bulb porridge, oatmeal and vegetable porridge, and a thin porridge with a small amount of lean meat and vegetables. You can discuss with your medical team the best combination of medication and your individual needs.
When designing a long-term maintenance plan, please consider: ① How many days a week would I be willing to prepare or arrange for myself to have a bowl of this porridge? ② During a relatively stable phase of symptoms, would I be willing to cook an extra portion and freeze or portion it out for future periods when my condition worsens? ③ When I enter a period of exacerbation or low mood, what role can this bowl of porridge play: is it a minimum nutritional gatekeeper, or a gentle reminder that "you still deserve to be taken care of"?
You can create a dedicated section in your maintenance plan document called "Basic Diet and Porridge," where you can write down your choices, frequency, and possible backup plans. When you're explaining your situation to your doctor or therapist during long-term follow-ups, this section will remind you that not only are there medication dosages and exercise frequency, but also this solid bowl of porridge, always supporting you and helping you move forward.

Long-term maintenance
Basic nutrition
Mild and feasible

Healing Recipes

recipe

return

Recipe content not found (path:/home2/lzxwhemy/public_html/arttao_org/wp-content/uploads/cookbook/congee-1518(Alternatively, you could try relaxed="1" or use an existing filename.)

Upload your work (up to 2 pieces):

Upload an image Support JPG/PNG/WebP, single image ≤ 3MB

Upload an image Support JPG/PNG/WebP, single image ≤ 3MB

○ Theme Mandala: Viewing the "Concentric Circles" Long-Term Care Structure (Viewing, not drawing)

Please choose a mandala with a concentric multi-ring structure, unfolding outwards from the center, with each ring featuring slightly different patterns. Observe it, do not draw it. You can think of the center as "your current self," while the outward rings symbolize different stages of maintenance in the coming months or even years.
While observing, first focus your gaze on the innermost circle and breathe naturally to feel your current state: perhaps you've just emerged from the acute phase, or perhaps you're relatively stable but still worried about a relapse. Silently tell yourself, "This is where I am now, not the whole picture." Then, slowly move your gaze to the next circle, imagining that this circle represents the "maintenance phase over the next few months": What range of symptoms do you hope your symptoms will remain in? What routines in your life will be more rhythmic? Which professionals will you maintain contact with? Detailed answers aren't needed; simply allow these images to surface.
Then, move your gaze outwards to even more distant concentric circles: these circles may represent long-term stages that you haven't fully envisioned yet—perhaps the function will be more stable, perhaps you'll learn to recognize warnings and adjust your pace more quickly, perhaps your relationship with the diagnosis will change. You can pause at one of these circles and tell yourself, "I don't need to get here right now, but allow it to exist."“
If you are filled with fear or aversion to the word "long-term," you can stop at a certain circle of the pattern, silently say these words to that circle, and then bring your gaze back to the center and the near circle, reminding yourself: long-term maintenance is not a straight line forward, but more like this mandala—you can move back and forth between different circles while still being surrounded by the overall structure, rather than floating alone.
A mandala is not about drawing something, but about observing: observing how you reserve many possible paths for your future within these concentric circles, rather than only having two outcomes: "completely good" and "completely bad".

[mandala_gallery1518]

○ Chinese Calligraphy - Clerical Script: "Long-term care, neither haste nor abandonment" Practice

The practice sentences for the clerical script in this lesson are:

“"Long-term care, without rushing or abandoning."”

Long-term follow-up and maintenance plans often evoke both anticipation and fear: on the one hand, you crave continued understanding and companionship; on the other hand, you worry about "dragging it out too long," "never getting better," and even fear becoming someone else's "chronic problem." This lesson uses the clerical script as a medium, allowing you to write down a different kind of promise for yourself, stroke by stroke: this is not a surrender to "being sick forever," but a promise to "continue taking care of yourself."
When writing the four characters for "long-term care," consciously slow down your wrist movement, making the horizontal strokes slightly wider and the vertical strokes slightly more stable, as if you are paving a wider road for yourself—you don't have to walk the center line every step of the way, but there is enough space for you to walk and stop. You can recall in your mind the support that has not left you during your ups and downs: a doctor or therapist, a relative or friend who is willing to listen to you a little more, or even the journal you are still writing. When writing the four characters for "neither haste nor abandonment," please pause slightly on the last stroke of the characters for "haste" and "abandonment," as if you are gently "pressing" them down on the paper, and then put the force on the character for "no," so that the negation is close to the previous two characters: it is not that you don't care, but that you no longer use haste and abandonment as the only way to deal with difficulties.
Once completed, you can tuck this phrase into your maintenance plan document or stick it next to your calendar. When you feel disappointed after a follow-up visit or feel like you've "failed again" during a maintenance period, take a look at these eight words and let them remind you: you don't have to rush to prove that you're "cured," nor do you need to give up on yourself completely after one fluctuation—long-term care inherently involves repetition and revision.

○ Guided Art Therapy: My "Year-End Maintenance Plan Calendar Page"“

Draw a simplified "year-end calendar" on a piece of paper—no need for each day, just draw 12 small squares or 4 large blocks (representing quarters), and write the month or stage name on each square. Then draw a small illustration on one side of the paper: for example, different colors or symbols to represent "follow-up appointments/visits," "rehabilitation/psychological counseling," "self-reflection and writing day," "periods of high stress (such as exams, projects, anniversaries)," "buffer periods for rest and reduced demands," etc.
Next, review your symptoms and life rhythm over the past year, and sketch on this "future calendar page" which months you need to schedule more intensive follow-ups? During which periods do you know you are historically more prone to stress (e.g., the start of school, the end of the year, family gathering season, etc.) and need to allow for a buffer in advance? And in which relatively stable months can you try to fine-tune your plans and add a few life goals? It doesn't have to be precise, just get this paper starting to have some markings.
Then, write down a "key reminder for the maintenance period" for each quarter. This could be: "The focus for these three months is to maintain sleep and basic activities," "Be especially careful not to overtake tasks during this time," or "Contact your doctor proactively if any warning signs appear." Leave a small corner in the corner to write down your "permission list": In the coming year, roughly during which periods will you allow yourself to slow down, be absent, or take a step back without viewing it as a failure?
Finally, at the bottom of the calendar page, write a sentence you'd like to remember for the coming year, such as: "Plans can be changed, but don't let taking care of yourself go on for too long." Keep this map in your follow-up folder and refer to it periodically, making changes and adding markers. It doesn't need to be perfectly accurate, but rather serve as a visual reminder that your long-term follow-up and maintenance are not passive waiting, but can be gradually depicted and adjusted.

[arttao_Healing_Course_tts_group1516_1520]

Lesson 1518 - Log Guidance

① Looking back over the past year or the last 6–12 months, what “stages” did you roughly go through: such as initial onset, diagnosis, treatment initiation, stable period, exacerbation or relapse period, etc. Write down this simple timeline in 5–8 sentences.
② Write down a list of "long-term follow-up and maintenance projects" that you are currently undertaking or hope to establish: including outpatient services, rehabilitation, psychological support, lifestyle habits, diet and sleep, social activities and study/work arrangements, etc., and honestly write down which ones are currently only ideas.
③ Write down 1-2 realistic, moderate, and observable maintenance goals for the next 3 months, 6 months, and 12 months respectively (such as "going out 2 times a week on average", "ensuring a relatively stable diet for one meal a day", "organizing symptom records at least once a month", etc.), and avoid using vague and large goals such as "to get completely better".
④ Write down your three most genuine concerns about the “long term” (such as burden, dragging others down, being labeled, etc.), and under each one write a sentence you wish your professional or family members would say to you—even if no one has said it yet.
⑤ Finally, write 3-5 sentences for a future version of yourself who gets bored and wants to give up during the follow-up process: What do you hope they will be reminded of when they come across this lesson and this journal entry? What minimum maintenance threshold are you willing to maintain for them (e.g., "No matter how tired you are, you are willing to talk to your professional about your condition at least once a year")?

Please log in to use.

When you stop viewing rehabilitation as "a one-time cure and never seeing the doctor again," and instead are willing to work with yourself and your team to create a long-term follow-up and maintenance plan, learn to see rhythm rather than individual successes and failures in recurring music, use Eastern healing tea to insert a gentle pause in each follow-up cycle, support your life energy with a bowl of long-term sustainable porridge, contemplate the possibilities of different stages in the concentric circles of a mandala, write "long-term care, neither hasty nor abandoned" in clerical script, and draw your maintenance calendar for the next year, you will no longer be just a passive patient waiting for the next relapse, but will gradually become a collaborator on your own long-term care path. Amidst the ups and downs of conversion disorder, you will safeguard a care line that is constantly revised but never interrupted.