Posts Tagged ‘acupuncture’

Important Information Related To Using Acupuncture For Anxiety And Depression

May 13th, 2010

Due to hectic lifestyles and various life issues of today’s world, many people face depression and anxiety issues nowadays. Some people believe that it is possible to use acupuncture for anxiety and depression related problems.

For those who are wondering about acupuncture, it is an alternative medicine, which originates from China. Dating back to 5,000 years ago, it also includes other areas such as diet, lifestyle and herbology counseling for treatment purposes. Considering the strong link between the body and mind, the state of the mind may influence a person’s physical health.

Likewise, the physical ailments of a person can effect his or her emotions and mental health. In relation to this, anxiety and depression can lead to many types of serious physical sicknesses, if not treated properly and allowed to worsen. Anxiety cases can vary from simple ones to more serious ones like post-traumatic stress or PSTD and panic attacks. Chest pain, increased heart rate and shortness of breath are all indications of anxiety.

To treat anxiety in acupuncture, the pulse and tongue of the patient is checked beforehand to figure out the pattern of anxiety. Most of the cases have something to do with the heart and kidney. Since heart is classified as the Fire organ and kidney is termed as the water organ, both of these organs should be in proper balance. Any excess of Fire can result in heat related problems in a person’s body. This could lead to a disturbed mind.

In relation to this, body or auricular acupuncture can be used to treat anxiety. Among the body organs, the liver is thought to play an important role for the distribution of vital energy or qi. An estimate of 20 percent of a country’s population is thought to undergo depression at some juncture of their lives. When a person is depressed, he or she may feel extremely tired. A person may want to do something but he or she may feel the lack of energy to do so due to depression.

In terms of energy channels, there are fourteen such channels from the liver. If any particular were stagnant or blocked, then, it would have low flow of vital energy. This may cause sleep related problems, lack of proper digestion and so forth. Hence, the main focus for treatment of depression is liver in acupuncture. Other secondary organs are heart and spleen. Qi is the term used for vital energy in acupuncture.

The cause of low vital energy flow could be due to a stagnant or blocked area in the body. As such, the objective is to bring about proper energy flow into the affected area of energy. The blocked area is unblocked for proper energy flow from the liver. For better results, taking any mind and body exercises such as yoga, tai chi and qi gong with regular acupuncture treatments would be a good idea.

Normally, hair thin and sterile needles are used in acupuncture. These needles are usually not used twice. Although it might seem painful with the using of needles but generally, acupuncture is painless. Apart from treating anxiety and depression, acupuncture can also be used for treating other illnesses. It has been practiced in the East for years to cure many forms of ailments faced by people, bringing back their vitality and energy.

A skilled practitioner can use acupuncture for stress and anxiety. Acupuncture is based on Eastern principles and is safe and natural.

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Take The Headaches Away With Massage Therapy

March 29th, 2010

There are many alternative methods for relieving headaches and that includes robotic massage chair recliners. A nice relaxing massage on your own massage chair goes a long way in soothing headaches, and especially those resulting from what are called cervicogenic (stress) headaches. You may also use other alternative healing techniques like meditation and acupressure along with massage for more serious problems, and or check with your doctor if the problem of a serious headache just doesn’t go away.

When you are starting out with a series of massage chair sessions, it is best to set up a regular schedule and start off with not more than one session per day for the first week or so. Some adapt quicker to the massage chair therapy and can begin multiple daily sessions right away. The purpose of massage is to relax those stiff muscles in the back, shoulders, neck, and back of the head, where typically a headache will start.

Massage helps to relax muscles and de-stress the tension in the body, helping you to function and at night get a great sleep. Scientific studies tell us that massages, from massage chairs or from massage therapists do help to relieve the pain associated with headaches.

Reflexology is an important massage based art form, where gentle massage of points on the soles of the feet help to relieve pain which might be present at any point within the body. This works on the guiding principle that every portion of the body is linked through the nervous system and mapped at some point on the sole of the foot. By pressing on the respective areas and massaging it, we might aim to cure any problem associated with that area on the foot. Most massage chairs have nodular foot plates to help simulate reflexology therapy.

Acupressure claims that it can positively help people suffering from headaches by improving blood circulation and dissolving tension from associated and nearby muscles. For headaches, the most effective technique is to apply pressure on the area between the eyes, and on top of your head. Massage can also do this by applying even and gentle pressure on certain areas of the body, and unlike acupuncture there are no needles, you can administer the treatment directly to yourself and finish within a few minutes and get instant relief.

Cranio-sacral therapy is another massage based technique where a massage therapist massages your skull and scalp for an invigorating experience which will rejuvenate you. This particular therapy breathes new life back into your body by soothing the nerves which carry pain information back to your brain. Some massage chairs also have roller tracks that are long enough to massage both the cranium and sacrum to simulate this therapy.

Deep-tissue and neuromuscular therapy works on specific areas of the body by targeting certain trigger point in your body’s muscular system providing deep-tissue massage while relying on the deep finger pressure and stroking to reach muscles tension and troublesome spots on the body. The therapy can be quite painful as they are affected by compression and overworked muscles. Massage chairs and Shiatsu massage therapy programs can work the same way.

You should always seek a qualified masseuse that will offer just what your body needs and let him/her know where the pain is so they can focus on those trigger points to ride of any aches and pains, esp. headaches. When you are receiving a massage make sure to also keep the massage at a level that is comfortable for you, so as to not harm your body later.

Massage chairs come in different shapes and sizes. When shopping for a massage chair there are many features to consider.

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