For someone who has scoliosis and who spends a lot of time hunched at an office desk, I have a lot of knots on my back. I also carry around a rather heavy day-to-day bag which adds to the discomfort.
So as part of this week's self-care routine this week, I went to have my first cupping therapy. And I had a great time and I felt naturally "high".
The therapist starts the session by putting something flammable in the glass jar and lits it. Once the fire dies out, the jar will be placed on the area that is being treated. The heat inside the jar creates a vacumm that lifts the skin and the tissues in that area upwards.
Towards the end of the therapy, there will be a massage where the therapist uses a hot towel. And this was my favorite part.
Therapeutic touch was developed by Dolores Krieger and Dora Kunz in the 1970s as a non-invasive nursing intervention (Kelly et al. 2004). Jackson and Keegan (2009, p.614) defined therapeutic touch as “a specific technique of centring intention used while the practitioner moves the hands through a recipient’s energy field for the purpose of assessing and treating energy field imbalance.” The original theory of the technique proposed by nursing theorist Rogers (1970) is that individuals as a unified whole have their own permeable energy fields that extend from the skin surface and flow evenly when they are healthy. The energy field of the ill physical body is disrupted, misaligned, obstructed or “out of tune” (Huff et al. 2006). TT has the potential to re-pattern, reorganize and restore the individual’s imbalanced energy fields through the open system extending from the surface of the body interacting with the environment constantly (Krieger, 1979). The earliest studies of healing touch were carried out in the 1950s and 1960s: biochemist Bernard Grad (1965) collaborated with famous healer Oskar Estebany to demonstrate the significantly accelerated healing effects of therapeutic touch on wounded mice and damaged barley seeds. The central aim of healing therapies is to relax and calm patients in order to activate patients’ natural healing ability, and it does not include any religious activity (Lorenc et al. 2010).
This machine used an intravenous drip which was hooked up to the patient. The IV would start dripping a solution of saline. When the patient was ready they pushed a button and this solution would stop dripping. At this time the machine would release a drug called thiopental, better known as sodium pentothal, a general anesthesia for sixty seconds. After this the patient would be in a coma. A timer would stop the first drug and the release the next one called potassium chloride. This drug will cause a heart attack and the patient will die in their sleep. (Gibbs, McBride-Mellinger; PBS.org.
Acupuncture had immediate effects on my levels of stress. I simply was not the same person at work. Co-workers could not believe the difference in my disposition. Clients continually comment on my relaxed nature given the stressful environment I have put myself in (CPA, working with taxes). I believe it has helped me stay healthy over the last 9 years... (http://www.acupuncture.com/Acup/AcuStats.htm).
By stimulating the largest organ in our body, that is the skin, cupping is believed to yield immense health benefits.[1] Chinese medicine works based on the principle of flow of energy, _qi_. Illnesses occur when there is a blockage in the flow of energy. Cupping aims at facilitating the free flow of energy to restore balance and healing. There are quite a handful of studies on cupping benefits, but most of them are inconclusive and call for further studies. Here are some of the conditions that could potentially be eased by cupping:
Cupping therapy is also an ancient Chinese procedure belonging to traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), in which a local suction is created using cup through either heat (fire) or suction. The targeted skin is gently sucked inside the cup by creating a vacuum in the cup and leaving it for about 10 to 15 minutes. It helps treating pain, muscle knots, swelling and mobilizes blood flow in order to promote healing. Similar to acupuncture, Tui na is another TCM method of attempting to stimulate the flow of qi by various bare-handed techniques that do not involve
Something as simple as taking a walk around the facility can prove to be a battle with patient X. From the day I met patient X it was noticeable that she was lacking her memory. Patient X could no longer tell me her name and everyday it would be different struggle, but for that day it was getting her out of bed to take a walk. From the moment I walked in and introduced myself, patient X could not provide me with her name. Patient X constantly asked if I was her baby, and when dealing with an Alzheimer patient, it’s always best to go along with what that patient is saying. As I got patient X up and out of bed, she started to become violent and resistant. Patient X took forty-five minutes to simply get out of bed and dressed, and that was the very beginning of the battle that would consist all day.
Posture Correction – Poor posture is a major issue involved in back pain. Poor posture is also unattractive and unhealthy to the body. Good posture helps the body maintain balance and stay aligned. Inversion therapy helps to realign your spine so you can enjoy the health benefits of good
Symptoms starting from the neck create tension and the muscles began to tighten. The neck area is one of the major problems in modern society in which in the duration of sitting and twisting or bending of the trunk. Risk factors in this particular injury can be divided in three work related categories. Neck flexion, arm posture, arm force is evidence for neck pain and work related issues.( Scandinavian Journal of Work, E...
The concept that pain means injury or damage is deeply embedded in the American consciousness. “I have never seen a patient with pain in the neck, shoulders, back or buttocks who didn’t believe that the pain was due to an injury, a “hurt” brought on by some physical activity.” Says Dr. John E. Sarno, M.D. “The pain started after I lifted my little girl” or “Ten years ago I was involved in a hit- from- behind auto accident and I have had recurrent back pain ever since.” Of course, if the pain starts while one is engaged in a physical activity it’s difficult not to attribute the pain to the activity. “But this pervasive concept of the vulnerability of the back, of ease of injury, is nothing less than a medical catastrophe for the American public, which now has an army of semidisabled men and women whose lives are significantly restricted by the fear of doing further damage or bringing on the dreaded pain again” (qtd. in “Healing Back Pain”). With good intentions, this idea has been encouraged by the medical profession and other healers for years. It has been assumed that neck, shoulder, back and buttock pain is due to injury or disease of the spine and associated structures and ligaments surrounding these structures- without scientific validation of these diagnostic concepts. “On the other hand,” States Dr. Sarno, “I have had gratifying success in the treatment of these disorders for seventeen years based on a very different diagnosis. It has been my observation that the majority of these pain syndromes are the result of a condition in the muscles, nerves, tendons and ligaments brought on by tension.”
...ritually, and physically cleansing. Many people who took part in the ceremonies, or in the sweat lodges were rid of their own physical ailments such as back pains or migraines, and the healing seems to be permanent. With Tommy's more serious case, the healing was temporary. Unfortunately, on May 5, 2001, Tommy passed away. It was obviously devastating and still hasn't totally sunken in. The one thing I gained from the experience was an intense appreciation for alternative medicine. It was terribly hard to lose him but at least the ceremony made the pain subside for awhile. If one doesn't believe in the power of spirits and "magic" one still must believe in the power of love and family. It is not every lifetime that a person gets a chance to take part in something so miraculous, and I hope my sharing it will bring others a little bit closer to understanding.
Meaning that each session she was exposing herself and the therapist to the event. Though the therapist did not go in detail about the steps and how the therapy would like traditional exposure therapy. Sandy dictated the therapy. She would do the same thing by having the therapist lay on his belly, put his legs and arms behind his back, as if he was “hog tied”. As the therapy continued the episodes of her instructions of the therapist became less and less. It came to the point that she did not do it at
Hasenbring, M.I., Rusu, A.C., & Turk, D.C. (2012). From Acute to Chronic Back Pain: risk factors, mechanisms, and clinical implications: Oxford: OUP Oxford.
There is a total of five steps in the Therapeutic Touch technique. The first step is called centering, which is meditation this is used to make sure that the patient is calm. The second step is assessment, which is where the practitioner moves their hands 2-4 inches over the patient to detect where the patient has an imbalance of energy. Third step is unruffling it’s also called intervention, which is when the practitioner is trying clear the energy flow so it can be symmetric. The forth step is balancing or rebalancing energy, this is when energy is being redirected to where it needs to be. The final step is called evaluation/closure, which is when the practitioner decides when they’re finished, but they usually repeat this process 2-3 times. Usually this process does not involve any type of contact unless the practitioner uses the old form of Therapeutic
Acupuncture doesn’t allow people to get ahead of themselves like Victor did; the way of thinking brought about is that of a natural sense. The techniques of the alternative medicine allow people to remember how magnificent and sacred the human body is and realize that it cannot be created through lab work or perfected through medicine. With Western medicine, patients can take up to four or five medications before finding one that suits their needs and most can have many life threatening side effects. With acupuncture, it is one procedure and one attempt to heal a patient with NO major side effects. Acupuncture is a unique ancient art that is backed by thousands of years of Chinese thought and research and has been proven affective for many people and their illnesses.
I began taking advanced placement classes to challenge myself, to be the best I can be. Although it was difficult to maintain good grades, practice 10 hours a week for the swim team, and working a part-time job, I enjoyed the push and the outcome I received at the end. Due to wanting to be in the Medical field, I took Honors Anatomy and Physiology in order to learn more about the human body; prepare myself for the memorization and the use of note cards. All the information felt like my head was bottled up, I wanted to enjoy my high school years, because “they pass by so fast, make the best of them” my brother would constantly say to me but failed to mention if I really wanted to do what I loved, I had to let all that go and focus on school; which became my biggest responsibility. There were times where I just wanted to take the easy way out and drop the class, but I knew no good would come from that; instead I balanced out my schedule by prioritizing my time between school, practice and work.