Acupressure-A Natural Therapy
upressure is a natural alternative therapy even older than acupuncture, originating in China and dating back over 2,000 years. Not only is it used to heal many health problems, it’s also been shown to be effective in preventing problems, particularly those that accompany aging.
Chinese medical practitioners, acupuncturists, and massage therapists all include acupressure into their treatments. It is an effective way to help your body regain balance, an important aspect of homeostasis the body and always looking for, especially with the fast-paced, high pressured, and stressful lives we all lead.
While acupuncture uses needles to target key points, acupressure uses the human hand, the fingers, thumbs, and knuckles to press key points on the skin. Both procedures are painless, since needles used in acupuncture are so thin, you can hardly feel them. Acupressure and acupuncture both use the same key points, they only differ and how these key points are stimulated.
Pressure bands can also be bought and used when constant, continuous pressure is required, like when treating nausea. Acupressure can be used on children as treatment if they are afraid of the needles used in acupuncture. In adults, acupressure is normally used to decrease stress, with effective results. You can learn how to use acupressure easily, and you can apply this to yourself or your family members, unlike acupuncture, which needs several years of specialized education and experience.
Chinese medicine has named 14 channels, called meridians, which are used to transport the movement of chi or qi (both pronounced as ‘chee’, which is the ‘life energy’) inside our body. By applying pressure to key points along each meridian, acupressure helps your circulation, reduce tension, balance the body, increase endorphins, and strengthen resistance to illness. It can also be used to cure everyday pains like headaches, stress, and eye strain.
Acupressure can also reduce labor pains as well as shorten the length of labor, results show in a study done at Dankook University in Korea. It’s also been found to be an effective way to induce labor, and for this reason, only someone experienced in acupressure can apply it on pregnant women.
In Taiwan, research showed acupressure to be more useful in decreasing lower back pain than traditional physical therapies, with results lasting six months following treatment. One recent study shows that acupressure applied to the P6 (located in the wrist) had significant results in relieving acid reflux.
Acupressure is not intended to make you more tolerable to pain. It shouldn’t hurt in the first place. If pressure is applied and there is pain, stop the pressure immediately. There can be slight numbness from acupressure, but never pain.
There is no logic why western medicine is reluctant to embrace the techniques of other cultures, even though they have been proven to be effective for centuries. Perhaps modern day doctors fear their services might no longer be needed if everyone starts using natural therapies and remedies for their health related problems.
