03/14/2018
Shiatsu massage and the elements.
Shiatsu. From the Japanese words for finger pressure. Shiatsu is a relatively new style of massage built off the principles of Amma, a Japanese massage styled after Tui-Na, which is, according to some sources, over 4500 years old.
In each of these styles, the primary purpose of the work is adjusting and rebalancing the qi (pronounced Key or Chee). Reconditioning the muscles and educating the person are also part of the process.
The principles upon which all three practices are built are the principles of Traditional (classical) Chinese Medicine. Often short-handed as TCM (not to be confused with Turner Classic Movies).
Chinese medicine is built around the concept that life is made up of five elements, and each element has yin and yang aspects to it.
Yin means deeper, darker, colder, more still, more feminine, more nurturing.
Yang means higher or more superficial, brighter, warmer, more active, more masculine, more controlling.
The five elements are earth, water, fire, metal, and wood. In harmony, earth is thoughtfulness and nurture, water is insightfulness and courage, fire is propriety and joy, metal is skillfulness and acceptance, wood is compassion and decisiveness.
In imbalance, wood is resentment, metal is depression, fire is mania, water is fear, and earth is worry.
Picture qi as all five of these combined as a boiling pot of rice.
Earth is the sweet grains of rice, water is what the rice boils in, fire heats the metal pot, and is fuelled by wood.
There are cycles in which the qi controls, and cycles in which the qi creates. There are cycles in which the qi moves from one organ to the next throughout the day (the circadian rhythm).
But in all things, the treatment seeks to bring these cycles into harmony, and the energies into balance.
The elements also have correspondence to internal organs, and each organ has a corresponding zone in the brain, as well as a corresponding channel throughout the body. Even with these, however, the objective of shiatsu is to treat imbalances.
Diagnosis of specific illnesses is a matter for physicians. However, the scope of practice for a shiatsu therapist is to discuss which energies seem low or blocked, to discuss what techniques can be used between sessions to help the client heal, or help bring things under control if they are out of control.
Shiatsu has a unique function in that while the therapist cannot provide counseling therapy, they *can* ask questions about where a client's emotions have been, and how that client handles self-care between treatments. These questions help the practitioner understand where to put their own efforts, as well as how best to educate on what the client can do to work towards healing between sessions.
As with all medical treatments, shiatsu does not claim to cure, merely treat. But the fact that this particular style of massage has grown and improved over the past few thousand years from ancient Chinese techniques and principles to the modern understanding of Western medicine, and the fact that a person's body and mind both need care for either to truly heal, should be enough to pique interest.
Shiatsu is typically seen as an intense mode of care. It is goal-driven and was designed specifically to address imbalances of the mind, body, and spirit. It can be toned down. It can be profoundly transformative while physically gentle. So no client should ever feel that they *have to* suffer through the pain if they find themselves clenching or holding their breath... But it should be understood that this is not the gliding, relaxing, spa-care style of massage most people think of.
Shiatsu is physically similar to Thai yoga massage, philosophically similar to Tui Na, and can fit snugly into your busy lifestyle, whether your work is service oriented or production oriented. Come take a deep breath and be prepared to let go of everything you think you know about you. You might even surprise yourself.
