Canadian Shiatsu Society of British Columbia

"Shiatsu" is a Japanese word meaning "finger pressure".  It is a "hands-on" therapy used both as a compliment to conventional medicine and as a preventative/alternative therapy.

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Why Shiatsu is an Effective Treatment for a Child with Cerebral Palsy
By Toshifumi Hirashima Sensei / 平島利文先生~てのひらの会・咲夢
Translated by Chiharu Sato CCST Secretary
Edited by Samantha Orr Levrat, R.Sp.

This is not unconditional, but Shiatsu therapy is very effective in treating the variety of disorders faced by a child suffering from Cerebral Palsy. For instance, it is effective in relieving the excessive muscle tension which is a particular symptom of a child suffering from Cerebral Palsy. Most of the children suffering these symptoms are not hypersensitive, but under pressure from this excessive muscular tension. It is hard for a healthy person to imagine the difficulties faced by a child suffering from this disorder. Among the difficulties faced is a feeling of helplessness, due to the fact that they cannot move.
For a healthy person, reading a book in a park is an enjoyable pastime, but for a sufferer of Cerebral Palsy, this simple action is made impossible due to the fact that it feels as though they have casts on their arms and legs.
If the patient痴 condition includes a speech impediment, it makes the aforementioned condition even more difficult because it feels as though they have cotton in their mouth and are wearing a mask.
These feelings are some of the contributing factors that lead to excess muscular tension in a patient suffering cerebral palsy.
Shiatsu treatment quickly affects the nerves to make you mentally and physically relax.
One of the principles of Shiatsu treatment is not to create any tension or pain. If we do not abide this principle, not only it is ineffective, but also can be dangerous.
The moment when the body receives pressure, the body unconsciously reacts defensively. Moreover if the pressure is unsuitable, the body will exhibit a stronger defensive reaction. 哲o pain, no gain・is not a treatment. This is not a test of wills whether the Shiatsu practitioner痴 thumb wins or not.

►Diagnoses and Therapy Combined - Shiatsu Spirit.

We call the spirit of Shiatsu treatment 泥iagnose and treat immediately・ This means we do not separate the diagnosis from treatment, but we diagnose from each pressure point and treat at the same time. From the moment we apply pressure, we are able to pick up the body痴 reaction and tension levels, and based on these findings, we are able to skilfully and correctly apply the correct technique. When the correct technique is applied, we reduce the defensive reaction and are able to manipulate the muscle to a tensionless state. We call this technique 鍍ension unluckier・ During treatment, Shiatsu practitioners will continuously assess the condition and reaction of the patient痴 body, and modify treatment based upon these findings.
If we unlock the defensive nature of muscle tissue, we can press further into the abdominal region as you can see in the picture, and we can get a smile from the patients. Truly, this is the advanced Shiatsu treatment technology at work. The ultimate technique of Shiatsu treatment is to release the unease and fear felt by the patient toward the Shiatsu practitioner, as when this apprehension is overcome, the patient痴 muscle tissue relaxes to an almost unconscious level of relaxation. Shiatsu痴 ultimate expression is the very dramatic result, achieve by the use of this very technique. To tell you the truth, it is meaningless to talk about Shiatsu treatment without understanding or acquiring this skill.

►All Mothers Must Be Witch痴 For All Mothers Have Magic Hands・

You need a driver痴 license to drive a car. Once you get a license, you can gain experience by driving public road afterwards, but just as the racecar driver cannot improve his skills on a public road, a Shiatsu practitioner can not learn his skill from anyone but a professional Shiatsu master. In the same way as racecar driver, you need to understand the methods of treatment and also you require special training from a certified Shiatsu master. We guide a method of the Shiatsu treatment to mothers. Do not hesitate to learn because it is very advanced skill even for the professional. Mother痴 hands are magic hands.

►Children Never Refuse Their Mother

Even for an expert in Shiatsu treatment, it is difficult to give a treatment to a new baby. Everyone feels unease and fear toward strangers. Once you understand the purpose of treatment, it will lessen the feeling, but it is hard for a baby to understand it. No one but their mother can easily release the baby痴 mental defence.

►Mother痴 Powers of Observation Are the Best

Shiatsu practitioners observe the reaction of the muscle with their finger tips and adjust the pressure and power accordingly. This is vital because there is not much information to gain from the patient痴 facial expression. It is far more accurate to receive this information by touch, than it is to ask the patient about the reaction of unconscious tension in muscle tissue. In cases of children with cerebral palsy, we have learned from experience that things are slightly different. The difference between a healthy adult and a child suffering from cerebral palsy are that the child exhibits unusual excessive muscle tension, and another noticeable difference between a healthy adult and a child is that we can see the reaction immediately on the child痴 face. However only a mother can truly read this change of expression accurately, so we ask a mother to stay with a child and confirm the expression change by muscle defence.

►Shiatsu Treatment For Your Child

Shiatsu treatment is an original hands-on skill. To master the skill, you have to repeat the steps accurately one by one from the beginning. To receive a dramatic result of Shiatsu treatment, you need to master this skill of unlocking the excess defensive muscle tissue and release the unease and fear of the patient, and make the patient feel totally relaxed mentally and physically. Even for a master who has government certification, acquiring the Shiatsu treatment skill is not very easy, but the effectiveness of Shiatsu from ones mother is an amazing fact. As it happens, a child always reacts without any muscular defences from their mother痴 touch, as the level of trust causes the muscles to be very relaxed. When the correct technique is applied, the patient should not feel any pain during the entire treatment. As a result of minimizing the patient痴 discomfort, the overall effectiveness of the treatment is improved. Being the patient痴 mother, you can achieve great result with very little guidance and only a few words of advice.

 


     


 
 

Shiatsu treatment for Knee Pain
Masanori Funatsu, Sense
Translated by Hikari Ikenaga, Shiatsupractor & Judy Thompson, Shiatsupractor

In day to day life, there are many people suffering from knee or lower back pain. There are many different causes of knee pain. In standing, walking and kneeling, the burden of the upper body weight is borne by the knee joints. There can be upward as well as downward pressure and an injury easily happens during flexion, extension and rotation. Lateral pain used to be common but now medial pain is more common.

How to knee Function
The knee joint is the most complex joint in the human body. It dose not have just one pivot point. In the case of flexion, the pivot point can change. This adjusting allows complexity of movement.

Dislocation is caused when the joint rotates over 70 degrees and there is no sliding. With no movement of the pivot point, the knee joint can only flex to 120 degrees. No kneeling is possible.

  1. If the joint can flex only 0 to 20 degrees, only rotation is possible.

  2. If the joint can rotate and side, the knee can flex from 20 to 150 degrees without dislocation. Kneeling is possible if the knee flexes 150 degrees.

Causes and Conditions

Knee pain can be caused by over exertion. Tightness of the knee joint can be caused by lack of exercise. Injuries to muscles, ligaments and tendons and fatigued muscles as well as lower back and limb pain are all connected to knee pain. Aging (arthritis knee deformities), accidents (contusion, sprain, fracture), chronic rheumatism of the joint, injury to the patella, too rapid growth during adolescence, fluid in the joint and sports injuries, gout knee arthritis can all cause knee pain.

There are subjective as well as objective symptoms. Such as:
inability to walk due to pain, starting to walk is painful, standing up is painful, standing for an extended time is painful, kneeling is painful, when lying on the stomach the knee is painful, there is continuous pain, there is pain when ascending or descending stairs.

Shiatsu treatment of Knee Pain

Chronic fatigue, Osteoporosis
Diabetes, Arteriosclerosis, Myocardial infarction, Stroke, High blood pressure
Stomach pain, Feeling of cold, Low blood pressure
Muscle and joint rheumatism, Hip joint dislocation
Headache, Frozen shoulder, Gout
Herniated disk, Sciatica, Low back pain
Sprain, Contusion, Fracture
Others accident, too much exercise

Muscles and Nerves need for treatments
Quadriceps femoris
Rectus femoris, Femoral nerve
Vastus lateraris, Femoral nerve
Vastus intermedius, Femoral nerve
Vastus medialis, Femoral nerve
Adductor magnus, Obturator nerve
One part of adductor magnus, Sciatic nerve
Sartorius, Femoral nerve
Biceps femoris, Sciatic nerve
Semimembranosus, Tibial nerve
Semitendinosu,s Tibial nerve
Illiotibial tract, Sup.gluteal nerve

Lower limb
Tibialis anterior, Deep peroneal nerve
Extensor digitorum longus, Deep peroneal nerve
Extensor hallucis longus, Deep peroneal nerve
Peroneus longus, peroneus brevis Superficial peroneal nerve
Gastronemius, Tibial nerve
Soleus, Tibial nerve
Flexor hallucis longusk Tibial nerve
Flexor digitorum longus, Tibial nerve
Tibialis posterior, Tibial nerve

Shiatsu treatment of knee pain (may be associated with shoulder pain)

  1. Full body basic Shiatsu treatment

  2. Technique
    Standard pressure, Sustained pressure, Interrupted pressure, Palm pressure

  3. Treatment
    Fukuga position
    sacral region, gluteal region, femoral region, popliteal fossa
    Gyouga position
    femoral region, patellar region, lower limb,
    Ouga position
    gruteal region, Namikoshi pressure point

  4. Stage of pressure intensity
    light pressure, medium pressure, strong pressure

Step 1
left side of body- strong pressure to the sacral and gluteal regions as well as sustained pressure to the Namikoshi point. Apply standard pressure to the posterior femoral region.
To the reaction Points of the shyoufu, lnmon tusbos, apply strong, medium pressure. Then, grasping the posterior femoral region with the fingers, treat the lateral femoral region with thumb-by thumb pressure.

Step2
Treating the reaction points of ichiyuu, gouyou, shouzan tsubos, using standard pressure. (light, medium pressure). Treat the calf of the leg with the thumbs on the lateral side and fingers on the medial side, “squeezing” as in the basic treatment using light and medium pressure and the sole of the foot with strong and sustained pressure. If there are sensitive points, we can use strong, sustained presser on then.

Step3.
Continuing with the patient in fukuga position, flex the left knee 45 degrees. Treat the reaction points of hikan and ryoukyuu using standard and sustained pressure. Move to the inryousen and sanlee tsubos of the lower limb applying sustained pressure. Treat any sensitive points in the same way. Then apply pressure to the right side of inryousen. Return the leg to straight position.

Step 4
Holding the posterior femoral region with the fingers, apply pressure with the thumbs to the anterior femoral region. Using strong and sustained pressure, treat ryoukyuu and kekkai reaction points. Using interrupted pressure, treat reaction points of cyuutoku, youkan. Then, bend the knee at a 45 degrees angle and treat the reaction points of gori, shitsukan, kyokusen using light but sustained pressure.

Step 5
Extended knee. Behind the knee treat sensitive points with interrupted and sustained pressure. Using standard pressure, treat youryousen, sanlee and inryousen. Then using strong, sustained pressure on any sensitive points. Treat the toes as in the basic treatment.

Step 6
Ouga position- treat the Namikoshi point, lower back and legs.


 
 


 


 
 


Shiatsu Workshop for Diabetes
By Alison Bacon, Student of the CCST

Thirteen students from the Canadian College of Shiatsu Therapy attended the workshop "Shiatsu for Diabetes" given by Mei -Yu Chen, Sensei on February 16, 2002.

Mei-Yu Chen Sensei is the President of the Taiwan Shiatsu School She was appointed by Tokujiro Namikoshi Sensei to be responsible for the Japan Shiatsu Association in Taiwan. Her son Robert acted as her translator.

Mei-Yu Chen Sensei outlined a brief treatment specific to diabetes. The treatment focussed on the Medula Oblongata, Supra scapular, Interscapular and Infrascapular points L1 & L2. These points are all important for regulating the digestive system and the nervous system.

The digestive system is related to diabetes because the pancreas produces both insulin and glucagon. Glucagon starts the breakdown of glycogen to glucose and assists in the formation of glucose in the liver. Insulin is involved in the removing excess glucose from the system and increases the synthesis of glycogen.

The pancreas is located directly behind points L1 & L2. If the muscles in this area feel hard and swollen, it could be a sign that the patient has diabetes. Stiffness in the lumbar muscles can also indicate problems in the stomach and small intestine. If the patient shows symptoms of diabetes these points can be repeated several times with deeper pressure.

On the front of the body points on the abdomen are done to soften the stomach thereby increasing the function of the pancreas, liver and small intestine. These points should be done softly and any tense spots gently worked out with palm pressure and breathing.

It was a great honour to have the opportunity to attend this workshop with Mei-Yu Chen Sensei. It was the first opportunity I had had to observe and learn from a great master teacher. Her depth of knowledge and technique tremendously inspired me. I left the workshop with a sense of awe and renewed inspiration for my studies of shiatsu. Many thanks to Kiyoshi Ikenaga, Sensei for organizing this great event.


 


 


 


 


The Effectiveness of the Hand
Kiyoshi Ikenaga, Shiatsupractor
Director of the Canadian College of Shiatsu Therapy

In the correct form of Shiatsu Therapy, one's hands and fingers are utilized. This is clearly stated as the definition of Shiatsu in "Theory and Practice of Shiatsu" published by the Ministry of Health in December 1957. Therefore, any method that applies force by the use of elbows, knees or feet cannot technically be called Shiatsu.

For your reference, below is a definition quoted from the Japan's Ministry of Health:

"Shiatsu technique refers to the use of fingers and the palm of one's hands to apply pressure to particular sections on the surface of the body for the purpose of correcting the imbalances of the body, and for maintaining and promoting health, and it is also a method contributing to the healing of specific illnesses."

Then, why is it so important to only use hands and fingers?

"Diagnosis and Therapy Combined = Essence of Shiatsu" describes how hands and fingers are indeed excellent sensory instruments that can recognize and treat 'trouble spots' in the body. Yet there is also a mystery hidden in the mechanism of the hand itself.

In Japan today, people still use the word for 'treatment', 'te-a-te', which literally means "hands-on". This means that by laying hands on the body, we can cure illnesses. Historically, this refers to the hands-on technique of healing, and in a broader sense, this can be traced back to the origins of "Shiatsu".

In fact, Hands-on healing methods are not exclusive to Japan; as suggested in historical documents in many parts of the world. Hands-on Therapy have been an integral part of peoples' lives as an effective treatment method. In Japan, up until TCM was imported around the period when Buddhism was introduced, Hands-on Therapy would have most likely been the main medical treatment. However, in the year 984, in what is considered as Japan's oldest existing medical document called "Ishinb", compiled and edited by Yasuyori Tamba, in this document, he introduced the Chinese system of Meridian Line and Meridian Point along with Traditional Chinese Medicine. Also, until so-called Western Medicine was imported during the Meiji Restoration Period, methods introduced from China such as TCM, acupuncture, and moxibation took over center stage in Japan's medical practice for approximately 1000years.

However, during the Meiji Era, the simplest and most effective form of Hands-on Therapy was practiced under the guise of acupuncture and Chinese Medicine by historically renowned doctors such as Ryozan Goto and Fuzai Ohta. Needless to say, until Tokujiro Namikoshi Sensei developed Shiatsu, the only form of Hands-on Therapy used was not Shiatsu, but Anma Acupressure technique based on the theory of the Chinese Meridian Line, Meridian Point system.

Today, Anma Acupressure derived from China, western forms of massage, and uniquely Japanese Shiatsu are each accredited by Japan's Ministry of Health as distinct methods of Hands-on Therapy.

During the initial stage of policy restructuring, Shiatsu, along with massage, was categorized as a branch of Anma Acupressure for some period of time. For that reason, still today, some people tend to make such assumptions. However, based on its history and theory, Shiatsu differs completely from Anma Acupressure. In fact, Shiatsu can be categorized in the spectrum of treatment methods somewhere between massage and chiropractic.

Therefore, while both techniques effectively use the hand, Shiatsu does not rely on the TCM theories of Meridian Lines or Chi Gong in the same way that Anma Acupressure does.

The effectiveness of the hand in Shiatsu therapy is extremely connected with blood circulation. Medical Doctor, Fumimasa Yanagisawa clearly explains the relationship between Shiatsu Therapy and blood circulation.

There are numerous negative ions in the palm of a person's hand, which react with the positive ions within the bloodstream, which in turn help to improve the circulation of the blood. In other words, while calcium is the main component of the positive ions in the bloodstream, when the palm of the hand adheres closely with the surface of the skin, this increases the calcium component in the bloodstream. When the percentage of calcium in the blood increases, Potassium, interfering with blood circulation, in turn, decreases. This brings a fresh new blood supply to the whole body and acts to promote the natural healing powers innate in the human body, helping to prevent and heal illnesses. Moreover, with Shiatsu, the pressure penetrates to deeper regions compared to massages which may merely rub the surface of the body with oils etc., thereby bringing forth greater effectiveness.


 


 


 


 


Prosection at University of Hawaii
By Hikari Ikenaga, Student Shiatsupractor

I would like to report regarding of dissection, (actually, the bodies had been already dissected by the instructors, these are called prosections) at Hawaii University on March 23rd and 24th, 2002.

It was held from 9:00-12:00 (lecture), 1:00-5:00 (lab) and there were about 40 people (from Japan Shiatsu College, students and teachers, teachers from all over the world).

The teacher was Dr. Scott Lozanoff, (Professor and Chairman, Department of Anatomy). Actually, his lecture was easy to understand, because it was the second time for me learning Anatomy and a good opportunity to review.

The first day, we had a lecture on the spinal cord, thorax, anterior abdomen, inguinal region, back, scapular and humeral regions, forearm and hands.

In the lecture, the teacher’s explanations were similar to those in our the classes of Anatomy and Physiology. (e.g. bones, arteries, veins, nerves, etc.).

Then we moved to the lab. Before prosections, the Dr. explained that we must respect the persons who donated their bodies and also explained we could take pictures except for the faces because that it what identifies the person.

In the lab, there were about 15 bodies and we used 6-7 bodies each day. Also, another Dr., Dr. Dee, assisted us. (She tried to explain to the Japanese students, in Japanese, things like Shinkei (nerve) and Kinniku (muscle).

Actually, the bodies' details are the same as the coloring book of Anatomy, (of course, it is much better to see a real body to understand rather than from the book).

The first day, we could see almost all the upper body. (bones, muscles, nerves, arteries, veins, visceral organs, etc.) and also, we could touch them. We could feel the weight of the heart, lungs, liver, stomach, pancreas, spleen, gall bladder, small intestine, large intestine,…) and touch the skin. In the heart, we could see the coronary artery. We looked inside the lungs.

Some lungs had many dark dots. (That is from smoking. If you smoke, probably, you have the same lungs. Be careful!!). The liver was quite a big organ as we learned. The stomach was flat and small. The gall bladder, (as you learned, is where the bile is stored bile). It was dark green. Of the arteries, the most impressive one was the aortic arch. It was such a big artery!

We could see many muscles of the back, humeral regions, (we checked carefully for the rotator cuff), forearm and hands. One of the anterior abdominal muscles, rectus abdominis, (very important for holding the visceral organs,) is a very strong muscle.

The second day, we learned about the gluteal region and thigh, the leg and foot, superficial and deep neck, superficial and deep face, cranium and brain.

The lecture, it was the same style as the first day and after that, we moved to the lab again.

That day, we could see the muscles of the gluteal region, gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, gluteus minimus and piriformis. The Dr. said that it is very small muscle, but very important because, right under the piriformis, there is the sciatic nerve. So, if the muscles push on the nerve, the person will probably have low back pain or Sciatica.

In the thigh, we could see the hamstrings,(extension of the hip joint, and flexion of the knee joint). We could check that biceps femoris has 2 heads, the medial thigh, (this is for adduction), the anterior thigh, the leg and foot.

In the neck, we could see sternocleidomastoid and other muscles. In the face, of course, (it has many muscles.) it is interesting that the trigeminal nerve (V), is very thin and separates in many directions. We could also see the facial nerve.

The cranium and brain, dura mata, is a very thin, shiny membrane which is difficult to take off.

At last, I would like to say thank you to Indei sensei at Aisen shiatsu school for arranging this course and also Japan Shiatsu College for giving me a great opportunity. I would like to say thank you to Drs. Scott and Dee. It was very nice lecture.


 


 


 


 


The Treatment of My Brain Infarction by Shiatsu as
told by Sakae Io, Sensei

Translated from the Japan Shiatsu Association Newsletter
by Hikari Ikenaga, Student Shiatsupractor

Shiatsu treatment for brain infarction (right side hemiplesia)
Sakae Io, Director of the JSA
I became paralyzed on the right side with hemiplesia because of a brain infarction and was admitted to the hospital where I stayed for fifty days to recover.
The doctor told me, “the problem is inadequate blood flow to the left forehead”.
First, I had intravenous drips for one week. For the next two weeks, I. took medicine. Still there were no signs of recovery. I worried about my condition.
At that time, I had a vision of Tokujiro Namikoshi sensei who came up said to me, "Mr. Io, your left hand is free."
I realized then that I should do self shiatsu immediately. However, I could use only my left hand. I tried using my fingers in many ways to do self shiatsu from the cervical to the head. As the doctor had indicated, I tried especially to improve the blood flow to the left side of the head.
As a child, when I had a headache, my mother used to press my head (from the top to the side). After that I slept very well.
Anyway, I did shiatsu for two weeks, and then, what a surprise I had! My fingers began to move, next my toes, and two or three days later, the elbow and knee could flex!

I was very happy. It was like dream come true. I was very thankful for shiatsu. After three weeks in bed, I could walk with crutches. After four weeks, I could climb the stairs.

My doctor was very surprised that I recovered so quickly. I said to him "that is because I did rehabilitation, but also, I did my best with self shiatsu". It seemed as if the doctor didn’t believe my explanation.

After six weeks, my condition was very good and I didn’t need crutches to walk.

Another thing, there was a forty two year old man next in the bed next to mine. He stayed there for three months and walked somehow with an artificial limb and crutch.

I sympathized with him and asked if I could try shiatsu without consulting the doctor. I did thirty minutes of shiatsu followed by a ten minute break, repeated for a total of three hours. After that, he could stretch the knee joint.
He was very happy and thereafter, he did self shiatsu and stretched the knee that night and the next morning. Then he practiced walking with only crutches. (without the artificial limb).
I said to him "please be careful walking because, if you slip, you might get a fracture." The doctor told him to wear the artificial limb when walking.
However, he forgot our promise of confidentiality and told the doctor, "Yesterday, Mr. Io gave me shiatsu and then my leg could move!"
At last the doctor believed in the effectiveness of shiatsu. He also asked me to teach Namikoshi shiatsu to the rehabilitation doctors.
How wonderful shiatsu is!!


 


 


 


 


Shiatsu for Pregnancy Workshopi
By Marcy LeBlanc, StudentShiatsupractor

On May 5th 2002 Sensei Kiyoshi Ikenaga held a workshop at The Canadian School of Shiatsu Therapy on 142 Lonsdale in North Vancouver. Approximately 20 members of C.S.S. were involved with learning about Shiatsu for pregnancy. Two pregnant models, a one month and a five month were used as demonstration patients with the focus on ‘morning sickness’ and ‘toxemia’.

Kiyoshi began explaining about the symptoms of morning sickness that starts at about 5-6 weeks and usually ends after the sixth month. Morning sickness symptoms involve back pain, constipation and pollakiurnia. In Shiatsu we practice and use fukuga until the women is in her 5th month of pregnancy after which we use the gyouga position for morning sickness. The purpose is to adjust the overall health for the duration of the pregnancy.

The important pressure points (tsubos) focused for treatment were the anterior cervical region which prevents and adjust the functions of the stomach and intestines; the posterior cervical that treats malaise; the inner and infra scapular; abdominal region that adjusts the stomach and lower limbs that adjusts the body fluids.

With the second model (five months pregnant) Kiyoshi practiced on symptoms of toxemia that can occur in 80% of pregnant patients between 28-35 weeks. The patient may have high blood pressure, swelling, proteinuria, decreased functioning of the kidney and numbness of fingers. Toxemia is caused by an accumulation of toxins in the body. The patient must relax physically and mentally and should keep the back and legs warm at all times. Areas of treatment for toxemia that were covered by Kiyoshi were the anterior cervical; auxillary region; cubital fossa; areas of the abdominal; lateral brachial region; interscapular and lateral crural region.

The essence of Shiatsu therapy aims to promote a holistic approach with non-invasive treatment to correct potential problems that may coincide with pregnancy and childbirth.
Incorporating a proper diet, restful sleep and moderate exercise should also be practiced by the pregnant mother


 


 


 


 


Application of the Basic Shiatsu Treatment
Shigeo Sasaki, Sensei
Japan Shiatsu Association board member

Shiatsu treatment
Shiatsu treatment means that the practitioner presses the body surface with the thumbs and fingers to treat and prevent diseases as well as promote and maintain good health.

The Purpose of Shiatsu Treatment
Shiatsu treatment can achieve the following results:
1. Vitalizing the skin
2. Limbering the muscles
3. Stimulating the circulation of body fluids
4. Regulating neural functions
5. Controlling the endocrine system
6. Adjusting the skeletal system
7. Conditioning the alimentary system

Characteristics of shiatsu treatment
1. Pressing on the surface of the body is the shiatsu treatment. We can diagnosis by the temperature of the area where we press (hot or cold), stiff, cutaneovisceral reflexes. Each time pressing the body a diagnosis can be made. If this is done correctly, we can do exactly the right shiatsu treatment. 2. Shiatsu is not need any equipment. The practitioner needs only to use the thumbs and fingers. 3. Well practiced fingers and thumbs can give the patient very comfortable treatment with no side effects.

Directions for shiatsu treatment
When you do the treatment,
1. Be careful your remarks and show and earnest attitude.
2. Have clean hands and cloths.

How to use the hands.
1. Press the finger print part of the thumbs or index finger or middle finger called Ichi-shiastu (One-shiatsu).
2. Press index finger and middle finger together called Ni-shiatsu (Two-shiatsu)
3. Press index finger, middle finger, ring finger together called San shiatsu (Three-shiatsu)
4. Palm pressure


 


 


 


 


Shiatsu treatment for Asthma
Toru Namikoshi, Sensei
Translated by Hikari Ikenaga, Shiatsupractor & Judy Thompson, Shiatsupractor

It is best to do shiatsu for the asthma suffer when they are calm and not experiencing an acute attack. When the person is calm, shiatsu will improve their condition and help prevent asthma attacks.

1. Patient in Ouga position

Start from the left anterior Stenocleidmastoid to relieve the tension in this area as well as the Vegas Nerve. With the patient lying on their right side in Ouga position and the head resting on a pillow, place your le\ft hand on the forehead.
Hold the posterior cervical spine with the thumb on the patient’s left side and the four fingers on the right side. Gently pull the head (pushing against the base of the skull), to stretch the neck for five to eight seconds. This will relieve the narrowing of the bronchial tubes as well as spasms.
Next, perform Shiatsu on the lateral cervical, medulla oblongata, posterior cervical-as well as the entire neck region, as well as in the basic treatment.
Then Seiza (Kneeling) at the top of the patients head, with the left thumb perform Shiatsu on the anterior, lateral and posterior cervical areas, as well as on the Supraspinatus and muscles Infraspinatus.
Next, from behind the patient, place one hand on the left scapula with the other on top (hand-on-hand). Using the two hands and cupping (slight suction) motion make counter clock wise circles ten times, then make clock wise circles ten time. Then repeat the treatment from the beginning on the right side.

2.Patient in Fukuga position

Treat both sides, Suprascapular, and Infrascapular regions. Place both hands on either side of the spine with the thumbs touching (hands made a “W”) and the heel of the hand at the level of the diaphragm. With cupping action (Kyuin-Appo), push up and down (similar to the adjustment for back position in the basic treatment) ten times. Then spread the fingers open and repeat the up and down motions ten times. Then open a space between the thumbs (move the hands slightly to the lateral) and repeat the up and down motion again ten times. Repeat this up and down pattern (using the three hand positions) several times.

3. Patient in Gyoga position

Kneel at the head (Seiza), hold both shoulders with the four fingers of each hand on the deltoid muscle and the thumbs in the Delto-Pectral region. Press 5 or 6 points in the Delto-Pectral groove. Then, with the thumbs, treat the pectoral region (intercostals muscles) and the sternum. Treat this area with palm pressure as well.
Next, do the basic Shiatsu treatment for the abdomen. Next, treat the area of the abdomen just under the ribs, 5 or 6 points on each side.

4, Patient in Seiza position (Kneeling position)

First, treat the whole neck (anterior, lateral, posterior, cervical), the supra scapular and Infrascapular areas. Have the patient clasp her/his hands behind their back, holding them at the sacrum. Stand behind the patient and place the hands around the shoulders. Pull the shoulders back and hold for ten seconds. Do this several times to open up the chest area.


 
 

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