Lucas Beaumont
This method of treating patients is a combination of two ideas with a long history. Basically acupressure involves pressure (thus the name) on specific points of the human body. The treatment dates back hundreds of years to a traditional way of dealing with pain and ailments. Chinese practitioners recognized that the body has “meridians” which they believe are energy-flow lines. Using pressure or even acupuncture (needles) to address certain points along these lines, practitioners seek to give the body its necessary energy flow.
Acupressure can, according to its proponents, also help prevent some common health conditions, including tension and headache. Some people have learned enough about the method to apply it to their own body or to others. There are still some cynics and doubters among the educated medical personnel, though may have recognized the value of strategically placed pressure on the body.
The key to the technique is not to repair or remove tissue, as is the case with modern medicine. Acupressure is meant to stimulate the body and assist it making its own corrections. One of the key benefits of proper acupressure is the release of tension in the muscles. This relaxation allows better blood circulation, which is crucial to a feeling of general good health.
Through the years, research on acupressure and general use by the population has shown that it can be very effective. If this method is performed with basic knowledge and care, it can be very helpful and will seldom cause harm. The fact that this can be practiced with our own two hands makes it very desirable as a way to relieve tension and mild pain.
Some doctors report that clinical use of this method is not only helpful with tension and headache it can also help relieve chronic sinus conditions and pain resulting from strain. Some patients have tried a number of chemical and physical treatments over a period of years only to discover that the proper use of acupressure will relieve their pain and muscle tension.
Acupressure is sometimes used with success in treating people who have sleep problems, as the method helps them relax and go to sleep more quickly. In combination with deep-breathing methods and other non-aggressive exercise, this technique can be effective for many who have suffered from various problems.
Chinese practitioners also maintain a close connection between the physical help that acupressure can give and the overall emotional/mental state that is often produced by relaxation. Two of the key words used in association with this pressure treatment are “harmony” and “balance.”
As modern, fast-paced life has caused many more people around the world to suffer from tension headaches, muscle pain and tightness in various parts of the body they have turned to a technique that goes back at least 5,000 years. People of all ages have found benefit from acupressure, whether their pain and tension is due to lifestyle, age, poor nutrition etc.
Many of the health problems in our society – from bad backs to arthritis – are the result of living unnaturally. Stress, tension, lack of exercise, poor eating habits, and poor posture contribute to the epidemic of degenerative diseases in our culture. Acupressure is one way to help your body fight back and balance itself in the face of the pressures of modern life. Stimulate the chemicals in your body (endorphins) with acupressure and you may feel better in a short time.
