A to B of Therapies

Acupressure

 Acupressure is an ancient therapy of massage introduced by the chinese which aims to encourage ‘qi’, or life energy, to circulate through the body. There are two types of acupressure, described as acupuncture without needles, called tuina (the most common type) and shen tao (the oldest system and sometimes referred to as the mother of acupuncture). The therapy entails applying light pressure with the fingertips, thumbs, feet or knees to stimulate acupoints on the meridians through which qui circulates. Tuina also involves vigorous body massage as well. The japanese version of acupressure, anma, has developed into what is now called shiatsu (see shiatsu below).

 What is involved in the treatment:

 A detailed medical history is taken by the practitioner and an assessment given based on “four examinations” of the traditional chinese medicine. The client should wear loose-fitting clothes and will be instructed to lie on a treatment table or floor mat. Sessions normally last from 30 to 60 minutes.

Acupressure is widely practised in the east, but is less common in the west, though it is slowly gaining popularity.

 Contra-indications – see general percautions box at end of page.

Acupuncture

 Acupuncture has been in use in china for several thousands of years. It is one of the most widely researched therapies and many conventional doctors are now training in acupuncture and are offering it in their surgeries.

Acupuncture originated from the ancient philosophy of taoism.

Taoism believed that every living thing is permeated with the life giving energy of chi and that man is one with the energies of the universe.

Part of this belief is that everything has a law of opposites, ( yin and yang) which merge and compliment each other, such as hot/cold and aggression/ passivity throughout life creating balance.

When this balance is disturbed, then ill health and disease can ensue and acupuncture is a method of restoring this balance so that the individual can return to health , balance and ease by working through acupuncture points into the meridians of the body.

Meridians are pathways of energy throughout the body , whereby the flow of energy through any particular meridian can be adjusted through the acupuncture points - minute openings or channels into the meridians.

Acupuncture consists of inserting extremely thin needles through particular spots in the skin known as acupuncture points into neuroreceptors in underlying muscles.

The needles are inserted to 0.3 to 1 centimeter deep, though some procedures require the needles to be inserted as deep as 25 centimeters.

The acupuncture points are then stimulated by twirling, pressure, heat ultrasound, minor electrical currents and light waves.

Acupuncture is a very effective way of treating ailments even if some doctors and researchers struggle to explain how or why it works.

A practitioner will take a detailed medical history and will assess what needles to use, how many and where they should be placed.

Sessions last from one hour to an hour and a half.

 Contra-indications- see general percautions box at end of page.

Clinical Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy has been traced back thousands of years to inscriptions on tombs and pyramids in egypt. They used essential oils to embalm the dead and they were much sought after for their healing abilities.

In the bible, francincense and myrrh were given as gifts to the infant jesus, which was no surprise as these two oils were always highly prized for their ability to heal.

Much to peoples surprise, aromatherapy has always been in use, though we lost a lot of knowledge about the oils when we lost a lot of medicinal healers throught the witch burnings in this country, though it continued to thrive on the continent.

During the first and second world wars, distilleries were set up in the trenches to make essential oils to heal wounds and infections that the soldiers suffered from.

Today it is one of the most widely growing therapies, schools are opening up from Japn, China and Taiwan to Europe and America.

Aromatherapy is one of the most effective therapies around to treat illnesses. Aromatherapy is not just about buying a product with an essential oil in it, it is about the knowledge and the skill of the therapist in treating you holistically with essential oils and massage to facilitate healing.

What to expect from a treatment

 Aromatherapy uses massage to allow the essential oils to be absorbed through the integumentary system affecting the blood system and the whole body including the brain and to allow them to filter into the meridians via the acupuncture points.

Massage has been widely researched and its’ benefits include balancing the circulation and blood sugar levels, calming the brain and it’s thought patterns and also for getting rid of any areas of congestion in the physical body.

More experienced therapists use deep tissue massage to heal sports injuries, bad backs and effects of operations on the muscular tissue of the body.

The use of essential oils will be unique to the person coming for treatment, depending on what physical and what emotional symptoms he/she is exhibiting at the time, no two treatments will be the same.

This is a highly effective therapy and can treat anything from bad backs to me and migraines effectively. It is completely safe in the hands of well trained practitioners and is slowly becoming established in hospitals and clinics.

An aromatherapist will also use inhalations, aromatic baths and aromatology to get the essential oils safely into the system depending on what might be appropriate to you.

The full effects of a treatment have been documented to last upto 48 hours, though the emotional aspect of well being lasts upto several weeks.

Once the oils have done their work in the system, they will be excreted from the body in the stools, urine, sweat or exhaled via the breath depending on where the oil has been working.

Visits vary but usually last between one hour and a hour and a half, usually if you are able bodied or are not pregnant, you will need to undress down to you lower underwear and lie on a massage table covered in towels.

If for some reason you cannot get onto a couch, because you are in a wheelchair, have any pain or stiffness that prevents you from climbing up onto a couch or you are pregnant, then the treatment can easily be administered in a chair or lying on your own bed.

 Contra-indications

 People on cancer treatment are advised to seek practitioners that have been trained in treating people with cancer, due to the detoxifying effects of some massage techniques, they will need to use a technique that allows the drugs to stay in the persons system for longer.

 Pregnant women should stay clear of certain oils until after 36 weeks of pregnancy.

People suffering from diabetes or epilepsy should only consult properly trained practitioners for their treatment.

The Alexander Technique

 Frederick Matthias Alexander, born in 1869 in N.W Tasmania became a successful actor and recitationist in Melbourne , Australia.

His voice began to suffer, becoming hoarse and sometimes disappearing altogether.

Realising that the problem lay in the way that he actually used his body and voice in performing, he spent nearly a decade watching himself recite with the aid of mirrors and thereby establishing the principles of ‘using’ ones body well or badly.

He began to teach the technique he had developed for the improvement of breathing, posture and voice production and found that the technique was more effective, the more ‘hands on’, the practitioner was with the pupil, a method that is still in use today.

Alexander came over to Britain in 1904 to establish his therapy here, even though, he had a thriving practice in Australia.

Many actors, musicians and writers sought his help and he wrote many books on the subject.

He also established centers in America, which were administered by his brother, and he carried on working up to his death in 1955.

Today, there are hundreds of Alexander teachers working throughout the uk.

What is the technique?

The Alexander technique is a method of psycho-physical education by which people can learn better ways of using their bodies.

Responses to the stresses of life can result in our skeletal muscles tensing, shortening and congesting , giving rise to pain, discomfort or in severe cases immobility. Other symptoms can be loss of energy, depression and headaches amongst others.

Many of us do not use our bodies in the correct way that they are meant to be used. Poor posture related to slumping at our desks or the television, or holding ourselves wrongly in life can become a habit, one that is hard to break away from.

The technique allows the individual to become more supple and poised in their movements, releasing old patterns of bad posture and replacing them with new, more fluid, graceful less damaging patterns, helping your body to feel more light and free.

Alexander teachers show pupils how to release unnecessary tension and to become more aware of themselves, better aligned and better balanced.

 A treatment usually lasts between 30-40 mins and people of any age can benefit from it.

The technique can be learnt over night and most practitioners agree that between 20-30 sessions are needed.

 Contra-indications

 It may not be suitable for people with learning disabilities or people who are mentally disturbed.

 Art therapy

Psychotherapists and psychiatrists now use art therapy as a technique for understanding the patients psyche. It is available in hospitals and clinics nationwide and is used to treat emotional and mental disorders.

Using the visual form to express inner thoughts of torment and anguish have long roots in history and were used by Sigmund Freud and Carl Jung. Rudolph Steiner, Melanie Klein and Anna Freud talked about the benefits of creative art during childhood and Rudolph Steiner schools have developed worldwide, placing emphasis on expressing feelings in visual form.

During the 1940S’, art therapy began to be established in America and the UK and was officially recognised by the British national health service in 1982

Patients are asked to make a piece of art using any material to hand, such as clay, paint paper etc which they feel either allows them to let go of their emotions or which expresses where they are ‘at’ emotionally.

Practitioners allow the patient to examine and to discover the hidden meaning or pattern in their work as practitioners believe that the person holds the key to the meaning of the piece, not the practitioner.

The art is usually made within a ‘safe’ environment, namely the practitioners room and allows the patient to feel safe enough to release their fears, anxieties or stress.

It is generally looked down on in our society to express feelings of rage, anger, jealousy, envy etc, so the usual way of dealing with them is to repress them, to swallow them.

But all emotions need a vent, a way out and art therapy provides a safe way for the patient to discover, experience and confront the emotions locked up inside them without fear of being judged or being thought ‘abnormal’.

Art therapy allows people to accept their emotions as their own and to stop being frightened of them.

Many emotions can be expressed through art, before they can be put into words.

Art therapy therefore can benefit people who are emotionally disturbed or have learning difficulties though research is being done with art therapy and some chronic illnesses such as me and aids. Children often find art therapy an easy way to voice their inner feelings in an adult world.

A practitioner may find symbols or hidden meanings, which enable the patient to discover things about themselves and so aid healing.

Treatments usually start with a referral from your doctor and are taken weekly. Sessions last from between 30 mins to an hour.

 Contra-indications- see general precautions box at end of page.

Bowen therapy

The Bowen technique developed in Australia by the late Tom Ambrose Bowen.

After working as a labourer, he developed an interest in massage and body work and spent long hours observing sports players and football trainers. Using the technique he developed, he built up a practice in remedial therapy.

In 1978, when he was interviewed by a parliamentary committee looking into complementary therapy, he stated under oath that he treated about 280 patients a week – with the help of an assistant and a receptionist- an incredible 13,000 patients a year, 88% of whom required only two or three treatments a year.

Mr. Bowen died in the 1980’S but there are a number of therapists working in the uk today.

The Bowen technique involves a gentle, dynamic system of muscle and connective tissue moves, re-balancing the body and initiating healing processes.

The practitioner uses thumbs and fingers on precise points to make rolling type moves which aim to disturb the muscles, soft tissue and energy within the body. The patient is often left resting to allow their bodies to absorb the moves that have been performed

The Bowen technique encourages the body to realign itself, there is no manipulation or adjustment of hard tissue and no force is used or needed, it is not a form of massage.

The treatment usually lasts for about 45 mins and most of the work can be performed through light clothing.

It is generally regarded as safe and effective for people of all ages.

 Contra-indications- see general precautions box at end of page.

Bach flower remedies

Dr.Edward Bach trained as a physician, bacteriologist and then homeopath, but believed that healing lay within nature rather than in scientific medicine.

In 1930, he gave up his Harley street clinic and started treating people holistically rather than just their symptoms. He believed that a persons nature had a direct effect on their health. He concluded that disease was just the outer manifestation of negative thoughts such as fear, grief anxiety, anger, frustration, envy, despair etc.

The way to cure people was to clear the negative thought that made them ill.

While looking for natural remedies that would work in similar way to homeopathic nosodes ( preparations made from the discharges of diseases which, in small quantities could be used to treat the after effects of disease), he discovered the 38 remedies, that are still in use today.

 He discovered that dew forming on flowers absorbed that plants properties and that the dew became more potent if the dew had been exposed to sunlight or if the plants flowers were in full bloom. He collected and tested the dew from several flowers and noticed that they produced positive effects on the mind.

He tested each flower by placing himself in a particular negative frame of mind and then using a petal from the flower that he was testing on his tongue felt the physical effects of the flower working.

He first felt the mental benefits and then the physical symptoms cleared up.

He developed two practical methods of getting the plants energy.

The sun method- whereby, the best flowers are placed in a bowl of spring water and then the bowl is left in strong sunlight to allow the plant to energise the water, the flowers are removed without human contact and the subsequent liquid added to brandy in bottles to preserve them.

The boiling method- used for essences that need a stronger method of extraction such as cones or buds. These are simmered in spring water for 30 mins. When cooled, the mixture is cooled, filtered and mixed with brandy and bottled.

A treatment lasts between 30 mins to an hour and is quite safe for all types and ages. Animals and children can also benefit from them.

Contra-indications- see general indications box at end of page.

General precautions