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Stress Reduction Using
Acupressure Therapy
Michael Reed Gach, Ph.D.,
Founder of the Acupressure Institute
Jenny, a thirty-eight-year-old woman complained of minor depression, anxiety, chronic fatigue, occasional insomnia, and tension headaches. Many of her problems were caused by job related stress. She had difficulty coping at work and dealing with her marital issues. Her tension, worry, and anxiety made her troubles seem insurmountable. Overwhelming stressful feelings drove her to eat compulsively. Jenny’s life was in such a rut that she felt helpless, overwhelmed, and incapacitated. Once she received a few acupressure massage therapy sessions from one of our recent graduates, she wrote the following about the changes and feelings she experienced:
“Only weeks ago overwhelming anxiety attacks created great hardships for me. I now feel the ‘mud’ around my heart lifting; my body seems to be filtering out toxins held for years. Learning to give myself acupressure not only helped me realize many of the causes of my job related stress, such as holding my breath at work, but also has enabled me to handle stressful situations with greater ease. Instead of always worrying and doubting myself, I feel more empowered to express what it going on with me. When I notice my shoulders and neck tensing, I hold a few points and almost immediately experience a greater sense of serenity – at home, while stuck in traffic, in the midst of a meeting with my boss or at a social event. I’ve found acupressure points a great blessing for my busy professional and personal life.”
Everyone suffers from daily stress from time to time, given the tremendous challenges, options, and responsibilities in our busy lives. Your occupational stress may be the result of a long day at work, rush hour traffic, tension with your boss, or a love relationship issue. But stress can be exhausting and drain your vital energy, making coping with daily activities difficult.
Stress can cause shallow breathing, which can lead to irritability, frustration, and chronic fatigue. Many people turn to unhealthy habits like smoking, overeating, and alcoholic drinking to counteract occupational stresses. Instead, you can use acupressure point therapy to transform these everyday tensions and hindrances into opportunities for personal growth
Acupressure therapy is an ancient healing art developed in Asia over 5,000 years ago. Using the power and sensitivity of the hand instead of needles, acupressure points are effective in relieving stress-related ailments, in self-treatment and in preventive health care. Acupressure releases tension, increases circulation, reduces stress and pain and at the same time heightens well-being.
Acupressure points use the fingers to press key pressure points on the surface of the skin to stimulate the body’s natural self-curative abilities. When these trigger points are pressed, they release muscular tension and promote the circulation of blood and the body’s life force to aid healing. For more information on using self acupressure, read Acupressure’s Potent Points by Michael Reed Gach, Ph.D., available on-line at www.StressReliefProducts.com
Rewarding Career Opportunity –
Learning acupressure point therapy can establish a sense of purpose, to help people wherever you go – without having to travel with any equipement; you always have your hands to use in rewarding ways. Learn to relieve common ailments such as headaches, backache, pain, insomnia, nausea, carpel tunnel and more. When acupressure points are stimulated in massage and used with other Asian bodywork techniques such as Reiki healing practices, shiatsu therapy, yogic therapy, reflexology, Qi Gong exercises, TCM practices, traditional Asian therapies, creative visualization, healing imagery, therapeutic touch, trigger point therapy, Thai stretches, and Tuina massage techniques, greater effectiveness results. Using acupressure with the Reiki healing techniques for instance, can send greater healing energy through the acupressure points and tap into the great wealth of practical techniques and healing information within traditional Chinese Medicine. You’ll learn use acupuncture points with your hands instead of using needles.
There are great advantages to using acupressure therapy as a way to balance the body and maintain good health. The healing touch of acupressure reduces tension, increases circulation, and enables the body to relax deeply. By relieving, stress, acupressure strengthens resistance to disease and promotes wellness.
Several different kinds of acupressure are currently practiced, although the same ancient trigger points are used in all of them. Varying rhythms, pressures, and techniques create different styles of acupressure therapy. Shiatsu techniques, for instance, the most well known style of acupressure therapy, can be quite vigorous, with firm pressure applied to each acupressure point for only three to five seconds. The Jin Shin style of acupressure gently holds each pressure point for a minute or more, using acupressure point formulas to balance your body’s healing energy.
Acupressure therapy uses ancient healing mind/body principles with powerful bodywork techniques. Over the last 20 years alternative medicine and complementary health care have flourished in the United States. Along with this growth in public awareness, national certification for Acupuncture and Chinese Herbology has established the professional stature of these hands-on healing arts. Wider public acceptance of Acupuncture and Chinese Herbology has also contributed to the greater recognition of Acupressure therapeutics & Shiatsu Therapy.
National Certification in Asian Bodywork
The next step for Acupressure massage practitioners and Shiatsu Therapists is to solidify our professional bodywork stature. National testing & certification can play a major role in this process. The National Certification Commission for Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM), the organization that created the national certifications for Acupuncture and Chinese Herbology, now offers national certification for Asian Bodywork Therapy (ABT). The Acupressure Institute encourages students who are on an "acupressure career path" to consider how National Certification would benefit their work and stature in the health care community.
At the request of the AOBTA (American Organization for Bodywork Therapies of Asia) the NCCAOM created the ABT National Certification Exam. This exam establishes NATIONAL recognition of a practitioner's training and competency via testing and certifies those who pass the test – making the ABT Certification the most powerful credential in the field of healing energy work.
The goal of obtaining National Certification supports the broader acceptance of Acupressure as a professional health care modality. As more states license therapeutic massage/bodywork, as more municipalities accept certification as a demonstration of competence for a business license, and as more health insurance companies use certification as a basis for treatment reimbursement, National Certification will become even more valuable.
An Invitation to Healing Work
Please take a moment to get in touch with the Acupressure Institute in Berkeley, CA and to begin your journey as a certified Shiatsu Practitioner or certified Acupressurist. Request the Acupressure Institute’s school catalog, schedule of acupressure classes, and free Acupressure Healing Resources Catalog to discover special Asian bodywork instructional books, self-care videos, and other hands-on healing resources. For more information about acupressure therapy, call (510) 845-1059 and explore www.acupressure.com
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