Former Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews posts ‘healing trip’ update in India

Nineteen months since he last played an NHL game, former Blackhawks captain Jonathan Toews still hasn’t officially announced his retirement from hockey.

However, Toews posted an update on his “healing journey” Thursday on Instagram, detailing his latest efforts to rejuvenate himself after lingering COVID and chronic immune response syndrome wreaked havoc on his energy levels and overall health during his final Hawks seasons.

“I’ve had many ups and downs, brief moments of hope working with a whole bunch of different doctors and methods, followed by doubt that things would ever get better,” Toews wrote Thursday. “But I recently spent five weeks in India undergoing an Ayurvedic detox called a Panchakarma and I’m happy to say things are looking up.

“It’s been almost five years of searching for a way to heal the inflammation and immune system issues that took me out of hockey. The wisdom of Ayurveda has taught me that everything I experience I am responsible for. Not only did it teach me better dietary choices that are specific to my body type, it has deepened my intuitive relationship with myself and the world around me.”

The Toews slipped completely out of the public eye during the 2023-24 season, but quietly resurfaced last summer when they did a few impromptu autograph sessions around the Chicago area and attended the Burning Man festival in Nevada .

He seems to follow along what he said before his final Hawks game in April 2023: “It would be nice to just let it go and just see where life takes you.”