Exam One is Done!

Yesterday – I was being tested in my Intro to Eastern Medicine and Shiatsu class. I must admit that this final has been the one that I have been most anxious about. Shiatsu (which literally means Finger Pressure) is an extremely celebrated medical practice in Eastern Cultures such as China and Japan. It has been documented as a means of health and healing as early as the Chinese Yellow Emperor in 2697 BC. So what…that makes this practice 4,706 years old!?!

At the Swedish Institute we are being trained in the art of the Five Element Energy Shiatsu. (I’ll talk more about the Five Element aspect in a later post!) This type of Shiatsu is based on the traditional Chinese medical principals of treating the Mind, Body and Spirit through touch. I like this. I like this because so often (at least here in America) we only think of our health when something is wrong - and many times we are not truly aware that the way we feel is not just physical, nor is it limited to being just mental. Eastern thought works with the idea that a malady is an imbalance in your healthier self. Just that - an imbalance. There is nothing wrong with you. You aren’t judged for it, because let’s face it – no one is as balanced as they ideally could be! You are not being punished with a cough, a sour stomach or high blood pressure. You are just imbalanced. A Work in Progress! So working with a Shiatsu Therapist is like having an assistant to get things sorted out! A personal health trainer to help balance out your Mind, Body and Soul.

Doesn’t hurt that the treatments of massage and stretches are a lot more fun than cough syrup or Tylenol too!