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THE MIND/BODY CONNECTION:
THEORETICAL FOUNDATIONS AND THERAPEUTIC APPLICATIONS
by
Denise Prokop Vecchio
A SENIOR THESIS
ill
GENERAL STUDIES
Submitted to the General Studies Council in the College of Arts and Sciences
at Texas Tech University in Partial fulfillment of the Requirements for
the Degree of
BACHELOR OF GENERAL STUDIES
_Approv,ed
DR. SUSAN KASHUBECK Department of Psychology
.Co, Chair o~ The&!~ Committee
b}f"EsTifER0WEEKES
Department of Health, Physcial Education, and Recreation Co-Chair of Thesis Committee
Accepted
DR. DALE DAVIS Director of General Studies
DECEMBER 1997
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
PCS'-5 rs
Cop' <^ I would like to thank Dr. Susan Kashubeck, Dr. Esther Weekes, and
Dr. Dale Davis for all of their support, patience and direction in the
construction and completion of this thesis.
I would like to thank my parents, who supported me emotionally,
mentally and physically as weU as finandally. They were "wholly" there for
me to experience one of the greatest transcendental periods of my life.
I would like to thank my husband, Stephen Vecchio, who patiently
pushed me to complete this circle. He is also responsible for helping me to
attain my aspirations of becoming a Registered Massage Therapist through
financial and family-related support.
I wish to extend my appreciation to Rachel Phelan, R.M.T., my
Swedish Massage Therapy instructor, who integrated the spiritual
connection with the "whole" experience.
I would like to thank David Sloan, R.M.T., my director, mentor and
friend for befiiending me, teaching me and behoving in my work.
I appreciate the message that was indirectly sent to me from Robin
James via Wendy Seldon, that certain projects begun must be completed
before other endeavors can be successful.
And last but not least, thanks to httle Miss Sage who continually
teaches me the art of patience and that some things are worth the wait.
u
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ii
LIST OF FIGURES iv
CHAPTER
I. INTRODUCTION 1
II. ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE AND CONVENTIONAL
MEDICINE 6
m . MODES OF MIND/BODY INTERACTION 14
The Impact of Thought and Language on Health 14 Stress and Its Biological Functions 17 Irrational Stress Response 19 Power of Touch 22 Connective Tissue 25 Tissue Memory 28 Evolution of Imbalance 29
IV. MASSAGE THERAPY
Historical Developments 32
Current Conditions 35
V. SPECIALIZED BODY-WORK THERAPIES
Theory and Practice of Rolfing 39 The Hakomi Method 43 Reflexology 45
Reiki 49
VI. CONCLUSION 52
REFERENCES 55
u i
LIST OF FIGURES
1. Visualization of what the connective tissue of the body is like 25
2.1 Example of the major body segments stacked like blocks 40
2.2 Example of poor posture compared to an anatomically correct posture 40
3. Chart of the reflexive points on the hands 46
4. Chart of the reflexive points on the feet 48
5. The Reiki Symbol 51
IV
CHAPTER I
INTRODUCTION
Health is not just the absence of iUnoss, but is the result of a balance
obtained physically, mentally and spiritually. life demands such a balance in
order to exist; for every summer there is a winter and for every spring a fall.
Nature does not have a choice about removing itself fi'om the natural balance
of hfe. Man/woman, who has been given the abihty to choose and know, has
too often chosen to ignore and disrupt the natural rhythm of his/her life and
hve in disharmony with his/her own body. Thus, dis-ease is created and is the
resulting force behind actions that oppose the healthy flow of life.
Through the research I have put into this thesis and through hfe
experiences, I find over and over again that there must be a balance of aU
three areas (body, mind, and spirit) for a healthy equihbrium to be achieved
in life. While attending school at the Massage Institute For the Health of It
during the summer of 1996,1 had the opportunity to meet several interesting,
diverse and searching individuals. Among this group was a Roman Cathohc
priest, ordained eleven years, who was in Dallas for the summer seeking
treatment at the Environmental Health Center. The largest area of
concentration in his hfe was obviously spiritual imtil he developed
environmental toxidty. Introducing himself to his peers, he revealed that
through his commitment to his (jod he had neglected the physical aspect of
his being imtil that part demanded his attention in a most abrupt and life-
threatening manner. As treatment for his condition he sought, and continues
to seek, traditional and non-traditional methods. The alternative approaches
led him to the imderstanding of how unbalanced his hfe had become and how
essential it is for himians to develop the mind, body and spirit as one. His
new- fovmd physical awareness strengthened and initiated growth in his
spirituahty. His mental facilities were enhanced through the work and
studies that he performs as the Patriarch of his church. He has now
incorporated into his "job" the need to extend his new imderstanding of hfe to
those he works with.
My original thesis question was "How does massage therapy
incorporate mind-body interaction to facihtate the healing process?' Now I
would phrase it thus:(^ow does massage therapy incorporate mind-body-
spirit interaction to facihtate the healing process?" Whether a health
practitioner chooses to acknowledge all three areas in his/her profession is an
entirely individualistic matter. Even more important is whether the dient
seeks such a balance. Proving that there is a mental and physical aspect to
humans is an easily researched area and is less disputable. Since the role of
the spirit as a fundamental component to health and well-being is such a
personal and controversial matter, I have chosen to place emphasis on
mind/body interaction with the role of spirit to be understood and/or
interpreted individually based upon the reader's own convictions and behefs.
Whenever I have come across sources that place emphasis on the spirit role, I
will indude this information in order to give complete acknowlec^mont to
that source.
"How does massage therapy incorporate mind-body-spirit interaction to
facihtate the healing process?" This question lends itself to the idea that an
interaction does occur between the mind/body, and that the mind and the
body play an interactive role in disease, iUness and health. The mind/body
connection is the underlying basis for certain areas of research that differ
fix)m traditional and sdentific methods, and creates new paradigms of
thinking in health. These areas of research are commonly referred to as
"Holistic Health," "Altemative Medicine," Treventive Medicine" or "New Age
Medicine."
This paper opens with the behefe and theories that the altemative
viewpoint is based upon. Chapter II addresses some of the main differences
between altemative and conventional medicine. The intention here is not to
compare altemative vs. conventional medicine in terms of which is better, but
to simply make the distinction. Many areas of holistic health strive to work
in conjunction with sdentific medicine; therefore, conventional medicine
should not be viewed as the opposing force. I had a very successfiil experience
with this combination in my own hfe.
I chose to put my prenatal care in the qualified hands of Brenda
Woods, C.N.M. (Certified Nurse-Midwife). The difference between a Midwife
and a Nurse-Midwife is that a Midwife generally works only out of the home
and uses only natural, non-medidnal techniques in the care of his/her
patients. A nurse-midwife works in conjunction with a hospital and a medical
staff of doctors and nurses. The role of the doctor is minimal in the actual
dehvery; he/she is just available if medical attention is needed. The nurses
are present to operate aU the medical equipment and monitors that a regular
midwife does not use. I found the experience of using a nurse-midwife to be a
grand display of how s)niergistically traditional and non-traditional methods
work together.
Chapter HI emphasizes and vahdates the powerful interaction that
occurs between the mind and body. This effort begins with the role that
language, thoughts and actions have upon the physical state of the body. This
is an important step in the development of this thesis since many areas of
altemative medicine behove that language, expression, emotions, and actions
all have an impact on the state of a person's health. Altemative medicine is
carefid how it uses its language with regard to how suggestible the mind is to
information.
Chapter m defines stress and its effects upon the body. Stress is a
natural and necessary fimction of the body that can damage the body when it
does not complete its cyde or is inappropriately apphed as in the case of
anxiety. Prolonged and irrational stress responses and their effects upon the
physiological mechanisms of the body are behoved to mediate the influence of
disease and iUness. The fact that individuals can bring stress upon
themselves is helpful in understanding the mind/body connection. Chapter
EH also goes into further detail about irrational stress responses.
Induded in the modes of mind-body interaction is the power of touch on
the mind-body which is explored through the aid of case studies and extensive
research on the part of medical professionals. This section goes into great
detail about the effects of tactile stimulation upon the mind/body mechanism.
The importance and role of the connective tissue to the body's state of
being follows the power of touch. The connective tissue or fasda is dearly
physical in nature yet it has deep ties to the mental fimctions of humans.
This section details the connective tissue fi:om a physical and tangible sense
with its ties to the mind detailed in the section on Tissue Memory. Tissue
memory is the body's way of storing memories and emotions in the physical
and chemical makeup of the actual body as well as the intangible regions of
the mind.
The final section in Chapter HI explains how humans evolve to a state
of imbalance and poor health and what paths and patterns serve to imbalance
them. This is not to say that aU people are in need of repair, but there are
obviously those in need or the health care industry would not exist. From the
varying fields of health care, subsequent sections detail some altemative
methods.
In this hght of these earher chapters, this thesis espedaUy explores the
use of massage therapy as treatment for disease and illness in Chapter IV,
which traces the history and progression of massage throughout time to its
present day apphcation. Massage therapy is the basis for most forms of body
work, and massage training is required in order to perform other spedahzed
techniques. Massage therapy is identified for what it is and then expanded
upon through the indusion of more specific forms of body work induding;
Rolfing, Hakomi, Reflexology and Reiki.
CHAPTER n
ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE AND CONVENTIONAL MEDICINE
The term "altemative medicine" might raise the question, "an
altemative to what?" The answer is that it is an altemative to conventional
or western allopathic medicine. Altemative medicine is also referred to as
"holistic health" and it is the definition of the word "holistic" which gives
meaning to this health care approach. Holistic comes fi:om the word "holism"
which is defined bv Webster's Encvdopedic Unabridged Dictionary of the
Enghsh Language as, "the theory that whole entities, as fundamental
components of reahty, have an existence other than the mere sum of their
parts" (1983, p. 677).
It is the opinion among biologists that "the fundamental character of
the hving thing is its organization" (Lewis & Lewis, 1972, p. 46). Biologists
feel that an understanding of the co-ordination among parts cannot be found
in the analysis of the parts alone. The Lewises dte biologist Ludwig von
Bertalanffy, of the University of Alberta, who argues that even the most
thorough examinations are incomplete if they do not take into accoimt the
comphcated system in the hving whole (1972). Hohstic healtii bases its
practice on the idea of hohsm, and considers the mind to be a fundamental
part of the whole. This marks the greatest difference between holistic healing
and conventional medicine.
Conventional medidne is firmly rooted in Cartesian thinking. Rene
Descartes, a French philosopher, viewed nature as two separate realms: that
of mind and that of matter (Dossey, 1982). In this way of thinking, the
material universe operates hke a machine according to the mechanical laws of
nature. The body of a healthy person is hke a dock that is operating correctly,
whereas the parts are broken in a sick body. Sir Isaac Newton completed
Descartes' mechanistic view of nature. Thus the Newtonian model of the
universe dominated aU sdentific thought fi-om the second half of the
seventeenth century to the end of the nineteenth (Dossey, 1983). Despite
advances in altemative theory, Newtonian and Cartesian theories still
dominate the modem medical framework. Conventional medicine does not
adhere to the idea of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts. This
is evident in the use of spedalization by medical doctors. Spedahzation is the
localization of disease and illness within the body. The body is treated
symptomatically piece by piece. In conventional medicine, when an illness
occurs, the symptoms are first determined and then a part or parts of the body
are pinpointed as the causes of the ailment. Treatment is then administered
to the body part or parts in question.
Lamb (1974) feels that spedalization among doctors firagments the
patient when the spedaUst becomes so involved with the organ of his/her
spedalty that the patient as a whole is ne^ected. The actual "bod} '̂ is treated
in segments without consideration of the full body system, which indudes the
mind. Marilyn Ferguson comments, "every part of the body is a different
doctor's turf* (1980, p.266). If there is a problem with the eye, then an
optometrist is sought. If a person suffers fi:om mental trauma, then a
psychologist may be the answer. However, in contrast, holistic health does
not just treat the eye in isolation from the rest of the body and mind. As
Ursule Mohnaro explains, "mind, soul, and body are interdependent
reflections of each other and... one of the three cannot be abused separately
without harm to the total" (1971, p. 19). A simple example of this would be
that when a person ingests into his/her body potentially harmful agents such
as alcohol and drugs, the mind is affected.
Dossey (1982) explains that westem medical training is based on logic,
reasoning and mathematics, and the human body is studied much hke a
machine in shop dass. According to this school of thought, disease is the
result of a malfunction in that machine, and it is the job of physidans to
localize the problem and exterminate i t . This explanation does not mention
anywhere the indusion of the mind as part of the human machine.
This view is possibly no fault of conventional medicines alone. The
roots of medical sdence developed in a manner that did not search for a
fundamental nexus that ties the parts of the human body together.
Conventional medicine evolved through the careful study and dissection of
cadavers in an attempt to understand how the human body functions. A
cadaver is not a hving system and does not provide a student of medicine with
a complete knowledge of how the human mind^ody works. Cartesian
thinking allowed for anatomic dissection. This was acceptable with the
church since no harm could come to the soul if the soul was not connected to
the body (Dossey, 1982). Dossey feels that this view may have once served
sdence, "but now can only be maintained; by the most rigid and dogmatic
inflexibihty" (1982, p. 14). He describes the traditional set of guiding
prindples as the "modem medical model" or the "molecular theory of disease
causation," which inspires doctors to always be looking for a specific reason or
molecule that is acting up. Dossey once firmly held to this model and way of
thinking, but experiences led him to question his method of practice and
attempt to bridge the gap between the views of altemative and conventional
medicine.
Dossey (1982) detailed an experience he encountered with a coUeague's
patient in which there was nothing medically wrong with the patient other
than the fact that his health was deteriorating and he appeared to be dying.
The patient finally told the colleague that he was under the curse of a hex
that was concocted to deplete his health and eventually kill him. The
colleague could see his patient's behef in the curse as the only describable
reason for his deteriorating health, so he dedded to conduct an experiment
with the aid of Dr. Dossey. Dossey was skeptical of partidpatingin the
experiment for the sake of ludicracy and his reputation, but he agreed to do it
anyway. One night after hours, the colleague and Dossey met with the dying
man and told him that they had found a reversal cure for the hex that had
been placed on him. Success of this cure depended on a lock of hair, a brightly
burning blue chemical and the patient's sworn oath never to speak of the
ritual lest the cure be reversed. So the colleague bumed the lock of hair in the
bright blue substance and chanted some nonsense as the man and Dossey
watched. The next day, the man was feeling so good and appeared to be in
such good health that he was allowed to be released firom the hospital, which
he was allowed to do without giving the shghtest explanation as to why he
was better.
l ^ s experience enhghtened Dossey to the powerful impact the man's
state of mind had upon his physiological condition. This realization forced
Dossey to question and change his own philosophy and practice of medicine.
From that point on, he was no longer able to consider health care in terms of
the physical alone. Even though he worked to "bridge the gap" between
altemative and conventional medicine by accepting a more holistic approach
to health, it appears that he did not fully adopt the idea of mind^ody
interaction in disease and illness. Dossey (1982) behoved suffering to be
physical in nature with the occasional interference of psychological events.
This interference is a reahty that is termed "psychosomatic." Rehance on this
phenomenon as the only means of explaining the mind's contribution to
iUness underestimates the power and influence of the mind's interaction with
the body. If a doctor or qualified health practitioner is of the holistic view,
then he/she must consider aU of the components when administering
treatment. With this imderstanding, holistic health would be neghgent in
treating illness if it just directed treatment at the parts instead of the whole.
To make the distinction between holistic and aUopathic medidne
dearer, Ferguson (1980) provides readers with a comparison of the two
practices. For example, conventional medicine focuses on pathology and
disease, whereas altemative medicine looks at prevention. The Westem side
makes a rigid separation of physical and emotional problems, whUe the mind
and body are regarded as one to the altemative. The conventional way
creates an asymmetrical relationship between an aU-powerful physidan and a
submissive patient, whUe an altemative healer seeks to attain a level of
mutual tmst and respect through communication with the patient.
Holistic health is a medical approach based upon a different way of
thinking. Hohstic medicine views the mind/body as one mechanism or
process. The mind and the body are not two separate systems, but they are
integral parts that cannot be separated. Hohstic medidne also views disease,
illness, and health as processes that act upon the mind/body process.
According to this way of thinking, healing must be experienced by the entire
system; hence the term "holistic." Ferguson behoves that "...health and
disease don't just happen to us...but are active processes issuing firom inner
harmony or disharmony, profoundly affected by our states of consdousness,
our abihty or inabUity to flow with experience" (1980, p. 257). She feels that
the recognition of disease and illness in this way carries with it personal
responsibihty and opportunity. For example, if we are partidpating in the
process of disease, either consdously or unconsdously, then we have the
option to choose good health instead. In this viewpoint, we become actively
involved and directiy influential for the events and outcomes of our hves.
John Selby and Manfred von Luhmann (1987) reiterate this point with the
opinion that we are, by nature, partidpants in the ongoing flow of hfe. '
Viewing health, disease, and the mind/body as processes takes the
focus off symptoms and localization. To the holistic health practitioner,
disease and illness are not seen as some external invading factor but more as
an internal physical process with a non-physical companion. The two can
operate together to communicate to dients the areas of imbalance in their
hves. Understanding health fi'om this viewpoint helps control the
10
degenerative effect of disease and illness on human hfe. If a health
practitioner can communicate to an iU patient that his/her illness is not a
tragedy, but that it can be a turning point in life, then optimism can dominate
the Ghent's state of mind. A positive attitude aUows people to keep their
spirits lifted about the condition of their health. Having a positive attitude
towards one's health in times of sickness is very benefidal to the recovery
rate.
Through implementation of the altemative viewpoint, disease and
iUness become opportunities for health and transformation. The presence of
iUnoss creates an opportunity for change. Change and transformation are
critical to the ongoing flux of hfe. Some dients of Selby and Luhmann (1987)
reported that their ailments were blessings to them because the iUnesses
alerted them to areas of disharmony within their hves. Based on these
testimonies, Selby and Luhmann feel that "Illness, properly utilized, can be a
passageway from one period of our hfe to a new period of better balance"
(1987, p.2). The title of John Harrison's book. Love Your Disease: It's
Keeping You Healthy (1984), adds to this point. It imphes that disease alerts
us to the condition of our health and influences us to improve it.
Harrison behoves that "disease is both self-created and self-cured"
(1984, p. 1). People loam to be sick and they can learn to be weU. It might
seem absurd to say that a person creates his/her own diseases. This idea,
once again, views the individual as the responsible party for his/her own
health. Harrison quotes a patient, Norman linslay, as saying, "|My disease]
went away of its own accord; because I had no further use for it" (1984, p. 1).
This is a profound statement in its imphcation that Norman's disease was
something that he needed in his hfe. The occurrence of the disease created a
turning point in Norman's life. The disease was the critical factor that
brought about transformation, and when its job was done, the disease ceased
to be. Dossey (1982) describes disease as a natural disturbance that brings
11
people to new levels of intemal richness by offering them the chance to evolve
to a new and higher level of psychological complexity. He explains that
disease is not a tragedy, but rather an initiator of human survival
mechanisms such as the immune system. The good and seemingly bad
occurrences in hfe have served and continue to evolve humans and animals
ahke into greater survival modes that ensure the endurance of the spedes.
It seems that those who are in favor of one type of health practice or
the other support their choice in opposition of the other. It is almost hke a
rehgious decision. What makes a person choose to seek out an herbalist or a
massage therapist in times of sickness and health? A person makes such a
decision because she or he is open to explore that method. Once behef and
trust are estabhshed through the experience of positive results with a method,
then that is the method that is sought in times of need. I personaUy seek
altemative methods in my regular health maintenance and also in times of
sickness because I behove that my body, mind and spirit are aU interactive
components in my state of health. Therefore, I am drawn to a health care
system that adheres to and administers treatment hohsticaUy. (However, if I
get shot, please dial 911!)
No intentional attempt is made at discrediting medical sdence and its
contribution to health care; the purpose is simply to make a distinction
between the two practices dearer. According to James Redfield, Eastern
mysticism and Westem sdentific studies are links on the same chain of the
world's evolution (1997). Maybe, in time, this separation wUl become
integrated. Ferguson (1980) explains that in this century medical schools are
undergoing paradigm shifts in order to put more humanity into treatment.
The paradigm shifts involve the indusion of the holistic viewpoint into the
conventional medical community. Anthony Robbins (1986) states that
sdentists are discovering that health, vitahty and depression are decisions.
12
Incorporation of such discoveries can greatiy serve to shift the practice of
conventional medicine.
I would hke to indude some information given to me by a registered
nurse and a certified 2nd degree Reiki practitioner. She explained to me tiiat
in order to maintain registration, nurses must accumulate 30 hours of CEUs
(continuing education units) each year. The National State Board of Nurse's
aUows Reiki training to count for 8 of those 30 required CEU's. The lady
worked in ICU at a hospital, and she used Reiki on her patients there. Reiki
is energy work. (Chapter V explains Reiki in more detail.) This information
surprised and thriUed me in that it indicates the breakdown of such rigid
separations among conventional and altemative methods.
As this chapter has sought to show, hohstic health's usage of terms
hke health, disease, iUness, mind and body has different contextual meanings
than conventional medicine's use of these same terms. In fact, the way in
which a holistic health practitioner speaks of health sounds different from
that of a medical doctor. The reason for this is due to the conunon behef in the
altemative health arena that thoughts and words heavily influence the state
of health - the topic of the next chapter.
13
CHAPTER m
MODES OF MIND-BODY INTERACTION
The Impact of Thought and Language on Healtii
A new vocabulary emerges with this growing holistic emphasis in
health care. Along with this new speech is the importance of what and how
something is stated. This is not just important on a professional and ethical
level, but supports the behef that our language can be detrimental or
benefidal to the body.
Ferguson (1980) explains that the body is very hteral in its
interpretations of what we say. For example, continual usage of a phrase hke
"pain in the neck" is behoved to be assodated with spinal and neck
discomfort. This possibUity emphasizes how powerful our thoughts and
expression of those thoughts reaUy are. The connection between the mind
and body is strengthened through the idea th^t thoughts, by way of languagi^^
and expression, make their way into the physdcaTrealm by acting upon the j ,
body.
The Lewises (1972) refer to this idea as "fixation' or "symbolism." Their
area of interest is psychosomatic disorders and the characterizations of such
diseases. In fearful situations, a person's body experiences a number of
physical reactions in response to the stress. These physical reactions indude
changes in heart rate, musde tension, blood pressure, and body temperature.
(The next chapter on stress response goes into fiirther detaU on these
physiological reactions.)
The Lewises (1972) feel that psychosomatic diseases are characterized
by the specific accentuating of one or more of the physical reactions to stress.
The specific reaction that people focus on and centers their attention towards
becomes a symptom. For example, a person becomes fiightened and takes
notice of an irregular heartbeat and then becomes uncontroUably preoccupied
14
with this reaction by centering his/her attention and anxiety towards the
heart. Such a fixation can affect the function of that organ. Often, an organ
is directly related to the emotional conflict because the organs can
symbohcaUy express the conflict. For example, a person who experiences
continual problems and seemin^y acddental mishaps with his/her eyes may
not want to "see" the truth about his/her hfe or a situation.
The Lewises comment, "figures of speech show the natural tendency to
focus on just one part of a reaction" (1972, p. 89). For example, a fiightened
person may describe how he or she feels as "weak in the knees," "scared stiff,"
or "breathless." The repercussions of such destructive use of speech are
beheved to result in weak joints, tension, physical inflexibihty, and
respiratory problems, depending on the phrase used.
Semantics is the study of meanings in language. Symbols and words
derive meaning by their capadty to correspond directly to things in the world
(Hermans, Hubert, & Kempen, 1993). Reasoning makes a connection among
symbols and words. S5Tnbols and words can come together through reasoning
and aid in the communication of bigger ideas. Louise L. Hay (1984) behoves
that people choose the thoughts they think and that they can dioose to think
either positive or negative thoughts, thus creating the direction of their life.
If it is true that thoughts can shape a person's hfe, then the power of
thought is strengthened if put into words or action. Often a person wiU think
of his/her ailments in the negative sense. For example, an overweight person
may continuaUy think and say, "I wish I was not fat." To speak, pray, or wish
in this manner only serves to reinforce the negative undesired situation. Not
only is it important to think and speak in the positive sense, but also to think
and speak in the present tense. The phrase, "I wish I was skinny," provides
the wisher with just that, the wish of being skinny and not the actual
fuMUment of weight loss. The affirmations, "I am skinny," or "I release the
need to be fat," teU the mind to begin creating that which "is" or at least to
15
interpret what it sees as such. AU matters are relative and are situation-
specific to the individual. The present moment is aU that matters in terms of
one's abihty to control and change one's hfe. To say, "I wUl be skinny" is a
reahty that exists always in the future lying just out of reach. The mind is so
obedient that when it receives messages in the present tense it communicates
that message to the body so that the body may be. For example, if a person
feels iU and thinks and/or speaks that he/she is dying, this message is
communicated to the body. The body wiU hkely experience degenerative
health from that thought.
This is the prindple and the basis for the effectiveness of affirmations.
Affirmations are present tense, positive statements about the self that
positively assert or confirm weU-being. Affirmation therapy comes in the form
of repetition of an affirmation ^propriate to one's ailment. The repetition is
necessary in order to replace old, negative and degenerative thought patterns.
These old, destructive pattems were repeated until they became a habit and
way of hfe for the individual; so must the positive replacements become a
habit. WiUiam Bates (1940) explains that anything is an effort until it
becomes a habit, and once that thing is a habit it is no longer an effort. A
person who desires to create new healthy habits must make the effort to
create that new way of hfe. If one wishes to be in good health, one must
affirm that desire in thought, word, and action. No doctor can make a person
change, as that is the sole responsibihty of the individual.
Hay (1984) explains that an incredible power and inteUigence is within
people that is always responding to their thoughts and words and that
learning to control the mind with consdous choice of thoughts ahgns people
with this power; The important thing here is that the mind is not in control of
the person, burthaTthe person is in control of the mind, and that when the
person takes control of the mind, he/she is taking control of his/her life (Hay, I
1984). The present moment is totaUy under one's control. The term
16
"grounded" refers to hving in the present with fiiU body/mind experience of
that moment.
Old emotions and feelings, compounded by stress, remove us firom the
present because their roots are in the past or the future. The past is in the
past; the only thing that can be done about past thoughts and actions is to hve
out the experiences that they caused (Hay, 1984). Some people are so far
removed firom the present and fi:om obvious present body sensations and
feelings that they are psychologicaUy existing in some past or future time
(Heckler, 1984). Stress and its negative effects upon the body serve to remove
a person from the present moment. The next section details the biological
function of stress.
Stress and Its Biological Functions
In the altemative viewpoint, health is a governing harmony: a
harmony made up of a psychological and somatic balance where the mind and
body are viewed as a matrix. As defined by Webster's Encvdopedic
Unabridged Dictionary of the English Language, a matrix is "that which
gives origin or form to a thing, or which serves to endose it" (1989, p. 884).
When stress acts upon this matrix, both the mind and body are subsequentiy
affected. An understanding of the concept of stress helps to make the
mind/body connection dearer.
Stress is not a problem in itself; it is a natural and necessary function
of the body. Stress, in the simplest terms, is the body's natural intemal
response caused by the apphcation of a stressor. A stressor is a stimulus that
induces bodily or mental tension. The stressor can be a real danger creating
fear, or it can be an individual's misinterpretation of a danger created by
anxiety. Anxiety can also be defined by the terms apprehension, tension, and
uneasiness, as formulated be the American Psychiatric Assodation (1972).
17
Fear and anxiety are simUar in that "they refer to an unpleasant feeling state
accompanied by various physiological changes in our bodies" (Kleinknednt,
1986, p. 17). The difference is that fear is a response to a dear distinct
stimulus, whereas anxiety is a simUar response, but the stimulus is imdear,
ambiguous, or pervasive (Kleinknednt, 1986). When stress acts upon the
body, whether it be a real emergency or an anxiety attack, the body reacts.
Both fear and anxiety ehdt the same physiological reactions to stress.
There are two primary biological systems that are activated by stress:
the autonomic or involuntary nervous system (ANS) and the endocrine
system. The brain is responsible for the vital bodily functions of heart,
respiration, and blood vessel diameters, and also regulates emotions such as
fear, hate, passion, rage and euphoria (PeUetier, 1977). An integral part of
the brain is the hypothalamus. Both the ANS and endocrine system are
controUed by the hypothalamus. This key component is responsible for stress
reactivity, body temperature, and hunger. It is also a pleasure center and the
primary activator of the ANS (PeUetier, 1977).
The ANS is prindpaUy responsible for the physiological activation that
occurs during the stress response. "The ANS assodation is where the
mind/body hnk is best understood" (Fritz, 1995, p. 82). The ANS mobilizes
the body's resources to deal with stressors. These stressors indude both
physical and mental ones, each causing the ANS to automaticaUy initiate a
complex series of neurophysiological and biochemical changes in the body
(PeUetier, 1977).
The hypothalamus also plays a central role in translating neurological
stimuh into endocrine processes during stress reactions. The hypothalamus
and pituitary gland (which is the master gland) both release hormones
carrying specific messages to other endocrine glands. When this happens, the
heart races, body temperature rises, and oxygen consumption increases
(PeUetier, 1977).
In terms of stress, "the hypothalamus dearly seems to respond to
emotional/psychological stimuh from the cortex" (PeUetier, 1977, p. 53). The
limbic system is related to emotional behavior and is mainly responsible for
outward expression of emotions. The hmbic system is closely connected with
the hypothalamus.
Another system that rehes on the hypothalamus is the immune system.
Responses in this system constitute a person's prindpal defense against
microorganisms. The hypothalamus is obviously "a critical link in the chain
of events through which psychological stress produces a physical reaction"
(PeUetier, 1977, p. 53).
The body systems previously discussed are assumed to "operate at a
healthy levd of tolerable non-pathogenic stress" (PeUetier, 1977, p. 39). This
healthy equihbrium is continuously upset by a wide variety of psychological,
physical, and environmental stressors. When this happens, the imbalance
results in activation of one or more of the physiological systems. A system is
said to "dysfunction" when it becomes activated for prolonged periods of time.
The body is then vulnerable to strike into a degenerative progress toward
disease (PeUetier, 1977). This paper is spedficaUy interested in prolonged
stress as the result of irrational thinking and anxiety in response to perceived
threat.
Irrational Stress Response
Irrational stress responses, when stimulated in excessive habitual
amounts, create problems and decrease functioning of the autonomic,
endocrine, and immune systems. This is how anxiety and tension reach the
point of becoming a disorder. A person's mental state is what determines
his/her level of anxiety and tension. Now, determining whether the perceived
threat is real or not is an individual matter. A person may experience the
stress because a real threat is present, or a person may experience stress due
19
to a perceived threat. For instance, if a person has a gun held to his/her head,
it is likely that he/she wiU become afraid and start to experience certain
physiological reactions. The cause of the fear is obvious, but what if a person
experiences the same physiological reactions to a hght wind blowing in his/her
face, or to a long hne at the grocery store. These scenarios are obviously not
life-threatening situations and do not logicaUy require a stress response. The
Lewises describe anxiety as "a nameless dread, a looming sense of imminent
destruction" (1972, p. 114), whereas fear is a consdously recognizable real-life
threat.
Individuals who suffer from anxiety often try to avoid their tension
through conversion reaction. Conversion reaction is the act of placating the
anxiety into the body in order to create obvious physical sjnnptoms. The
anxiety is converted into actual physical symptoms that are easier for the
individual and others to identify (Lewis & Lewis, 1972). The Lewises explain
that the act of placating is consdous, but the reasoning behind the anxiety is
unconsdous and, "unless the underlying emotional causes are reheved, it
generaUy cannot be reversed" (1972, p. 116). In conversion reaction, symptoms
can appear almost anywhere in the body and can even take on the form of
complex diseases. Lewis and Lewis give the example of a writer who is under
pressure to express him/herself on paper and commonly experiences writer's
cramp (Lewis & Lewis, 1972).
Stress-related problems arise for two basic reasons: 1) a person
develops the habit of responding to minor stressors as if they were real major
stressors; 2) the body fails to recover from the stress response. A body
responding to a dear distinct danger wiU most likely return to normal when
the danger is no longer present. A body responding to an irrational danger is
doing so because the mind of that body perceives a danger for no rational
reason. Therefore, if the danger is not dear-cut then the mind/body has no
distinct cut-off point to end the stress response. As stated earher, a person's
20
mental and emotional states are what mediate his/her level of anxiety and
tension. When stress is compounded by mental and emotional states, a
person's rate of recovery is also impeded. Thus a person is capable of
modifying his/her own physiology and anatomy through his/her mental state.
The mental state is expressed through emotions and feelings. For instance,
the emotions of depression and grief are found to inhibit the immune system
(Selby & Luhmann, 1987).
Once a disease or iUness has set in, the mental state and the stress it
generates continue to affect the body by determining its abihty to get weU. As
Selby and Luhmann explain "a person's dominant emotional states,
prevailing thought pattems and attitudes, diet and movement habits, and
underlying spiritual atmosphere play vital roles in influencing one's rate of
recovery" (1987, p. xvi). Stress disrupts the biochemical processes that lead to
recovery. Certain mental processes, namely fear, resentment and denial,
serve to maintain a disease or illness. It is hke feeding fire with fiiel in an
attempt to put the fire out. Ferguson's view of this interaction of stress,
emotions, and the body is highly technical.
Ferguson (1980) describes health as dependent on the body's abihty to
make sense of and transform new information in the environment. New
information can come in the form of stress. Often, ailments are the result of
unresolved stresses of the body. A viscous cyde of mind/body pathology occurs
when a person's rigid mental processes contribute to the tight pattems the
body gets locked into. Robbins (1987) explains that the body or physiology is
made up of one's posture, breathing pattems, musde tension, and tonahty.
Whichever leads, body or mind, the other wiU foUow in forming one's state of
being. Robbins (1987) also explains that an emotion such as depression wiU
not only express itself in the way a person thinks, but also can be dearly
identifiable physiologicaUy. He describes emotions as "a complex assodation,
a complex configuration of physiological states" (1987, p. 152). People's bodies
21
represent and display unresolved stresses to the extent that their bodies
become waUdng autobiographies of the stressors in their hves (Ferguson,
1980).
This understanding of how one's emotional state affects the body is the
basis of several massage therapy techniques, which wOl be defined in a later
chapter. The next section introduces the role of touch in the health and weU-
beingoflife.
The Power of Touch
The skin is the largest and most exposed organ of the body.
Stimulation and nourishment to this organ come in the form of strokes,
touches, caresses, hcks and cuddles. As Juhan Deane explains, "the raw
sensation of touch as stimulus is vitaUy necessary for the physical survival of
the organism" (1987, p. 50). Consider babies: (This is a subject about which I
am gaining "first hand" knowledge since the arrival of my daughter. Sage, on
August 2, 1995.) it is common knowledge that babies hke to be held, cradled
and rocked. To what extent is the handling of a baby in these ways more of a
need than a want?
This need was identified in 1915 by James H.M. Knox Jr., of John's
Hopkins Hospital, in his observation of the infants in a Baltimore orphanage
with a high infant to caretaker ratio. Ninety percent of the infants died
within a year of admission due to inadequate physical interaction despite
adequate medical care and proper nutrition (Juhan, 1987). The infants were
the victims of a disease caUed "marasmus" (a Greek term for wasting away).
More simply put, the infants died of loneliness and inadequate sensory
stimulation. Those infants who survived the first year uniformly showed
signs of mental and physical retardation. When the staff was increased, the
mortahty rates dropped, as did the number of retardations (Juhan, 1987).
The results dearly demonstrated that no amount of food or medicine could
22
produce a healthy chUd if touch was absent. These infants were not
malnourished but sensory deprived, although the symptoms of each condition
are similar. This confirms that a baby who is woU-fod does not constitute a
baby who is aU weU (Juhan, 1987).
Brown (1978) identified the importance of touch during infancy in her
artide "Rock-A-Bye your Baby," which discussed some cultural differences in
the handling of babies. Brown felt that most babies in the westem world hve
in a plastic world with aU the devices of "convenience" for handling a baby. It
seems that our culture is one of such personal convenience that it has
removed us from our very nature. Brown (1978) reports that in non-western
countries, babies rarely leave their mother's side. Various cultures have
developed ingenious devices for strapping the baby to their bodies such as
hipshngs and papooses.
Brown (1978) did a cross-cultural study of 49 cultures on the
correlation of the handling of a baby during infancy to the violence rate
among adults. She found a dear correlation between lack of physical
affection during infancy and the high degree of adult crimes such as physical
assault, torture, and mutUation of victims. For example, in Bah the baby is
carried with the mother during aU her waking hours for the first two years of
hfe. Not so coinddentaUy, "the Balinese were identified as one of 22 non
violent cultures noted for an almost complete absence of violence and hostihty
in adults" (Brown, 1978, p. 321).
Juhan (1987) discusses Dr. James Prescott, a developmental
neuropsychologist of the National Institute of ChUd Health and Human
Development, who reported on this study that deprivation of touch early in
hfe results in abnormal sodal and emotional behaviors later in hfe. He feels
that tactile deprivation is directly related to violence and rage, and that lack
of physical pleasure results in expression of physical violence. He behoves
that rage is not possible in the presence of nurturing touch. Such studies
23
indicate what a profound effect physical "touch" has on the mental and
emotional state of a person.
SimUar findings have been found with laboratory animals The
assumption exists that in pregnant animals a hormonal secretion occurs
which provides the mother with nurturing instincts. Juhan (1987) details a
study done with lab rats that were fitted with wide coUars that prevented the
rats from hcking themselves. These rats did not "nest" (create suitable hving
space for the young), and their mammary glands only grew 50% of the normal
rate of rats who were not fitted with coUars. Licking is an animal's dosest
approximation of tactile stimulation, and if deprived of this natural instinct,
normal functioning does not occur. Juhan (1987) expresses the fact that the
mouth is the most germ-ridden part of the body, and it is for this reason that
humans do not use the mouth to dean things. However, in animals, the act of
hcking creates a stimulus of intemal fimctioning that is far more important
than the removal of a httle surface dirt, thus overriding the danger of oral
bacteria.
To correspond with this finding, a study was done with rats in which
one group was handled and cuddled whUe the other group was left in
isolation. The group that received touch were more relaxed and yielding
when picked up as opposed to the isolated rats, who became tense and often
hostile when touched. The handled group was also found to develop at a
faster rate than the deprived rats. (Juhan, 1987)
Another animal study was done in the 1950's by Harry Harlow, head of
the Primate Laboratory at the University of Wisconsin. In this experiment
baby monkeys were put in cages, each containing a surrogate wire mother
and a surrogate terry doth mother. Some of the surrogates produced mQk
and some did not. Later, after the babies were given a chance to acquaint
themselves with the "mothers," a stressor in the form of a noisy toy was
introduced into the cages. The monkeys condusively dung to the terry doth
24
mothers for security regardless of whether that mother produced milTf or not
(Juhan, 1987). Apparently, the feel of the softer "mother" made the babies
feel more secure.
I breast-fed my daughter for 17 months, and through personal
experience and research on the subject of breast-feeding, I have found the
opinion of professionals and other nursing mothers ahke to be that the nursed
baby receives nourishment not only from the mother's mUk, but also from the
dose physical contact between mother and chUd. Juhan (1987) reminds
readers that in healthy situations when chUdren or pets are upset they are
often cuddled and stroked to calm them. How often is the upset adult cuddled
and stroked instead of medicated? Why not touch aU, big and smaU? The
next section detaU the connective tissue of the body.
Connective Tissue
Connective tissue, or fasda, is made up of fluids and fibers and serves
to separate and hold the skeletal musdes in position. The connective tissue, or
fasda, which surrounds the entire musde sometimes extends beyond the end
of the musde fibers to form a tendon that attaches the musde to bone. The
fasda also serves to attach musde to musde in the form of broad, fibrous
sheets caUed aponeuroses (Hole, 1978). The fasda is part of a complex
network that extends tightly throughout the entire body (See Figure 1).
Figure 1. An example of what the fasdal network of the body is hke.
Source: Deane Juhan, "Job's Body: A Handbook for Bodywork," 1987.
25
Numerous blood vessels and nerves pass through the fasdal layers.
The fasda tightly endoses groups of musdes, blood vessels, and nerves into
compartments (Hole, 1978). In healthy connective tissue these compartments
serve to contain diseases, infections, and toxins, and to keep these destmctive
agents from spilling over into surrounding tissues and organs (Juhan, 1987).
The body wiU expel destructive agents as part of a normal process. If the
connective tissue is weak or if the protective chemical properties of the fasda
are disturbed, then these weak compartments contribute directly to the
spread of disease and infection, as in the case of cancer (Juhan, 1987). The
strength and chemical makeup of the connective tissue is directiy affected by
the chemistries of diet, hormones, disease, and stress occurring in the body
(Juhan, 1987).
Healthy fasda is characterized by a flexible fluidity, whereas injured
fasda is hardened. In cases of hardened connective tissue, the goal of a
practitioner, spedficaUy a practitioner of deep tissue work such as Rolfing, is
to make the connective tissue more fluid and less gel-like. This is achieved by
increasing the fasda's capadty to aUow toxins to flow through the fasda and
be flushed fix)m the body. This function of the fasda creates thermal energy
(heat). The most effective means of increasing fasdal energy levels comes in
the form of direct pressure and stretching (Juhan, 1987). Ways in which this
energy is increased is through the warmth of the practitioner's hands to create
thermal energy. The acts of pressure, motion, andfiiction aU create thermal
energy. Squeezing, stretching, and contorting connective tissue creates a
deansing, flushing effect, simUar to ringing out a sponge or stirring up a bowl
of water that has mud settled at the bottom (Juhan, 1987). Hardened fasdal
tissue inhibits circulation, so any toxins or sediment that is trying to be
flushed from the body may become locked into the hardened tissue. When
this tissue is softened up, any deposits are also stirred up and are better able
to be recirculated and excreted. This is the "muddy water" previously referred
26
to. This sediment may also reflect the emotional results that are described in
the section on tissue memory.
Connective tissue manipulation flushes toxins and wastes out of the
interceUular fluids and into the blood stream, where they can be eliminated
from the body. This deansing toxic release created by Bodsnvork can often
make a person feel nausea, as if he/she has a hangover. These brief periods of
discomfort are justified by the resulting long-term improvements. This is an
example of how altemative methods treat the core of the problem and not just
the symptoms of pain and discomfort. The actual source of the problem is
activated and expressed from the body, sometimes unpleasantiy, thus
reheving the body of the actual problem and aU assodated symptoms.
Deep tissue work not only creates positive structural changes, but
creates healthy alterations in metabohc processes as weU. Deep tissue work
affects the body's mechanical, chemical, and physical composition. Every ceU
of the body is supported by coUagen fibers. "CoUagen is the major structural
protein of the body^ (Hole, 1978, p. 133) and when these fibers are present in
abundance, they create the dense connective tissue of the body (1978). There
is nowhere on the body that manipulation can occur without affecting the
connective network (Juhan, 1987). Juhan (1987) explains that mental and
physical elements of the body are interconnected, which on the one hand gives
body work its power (and on the other hand dictates the limitations of each
individual bodywork technique). Therefore, dynamic results can occur for a
dient, both structuraUy and behavioraUy from such body work.
Through bodywork, the therapist aids in establishing and introducing
new movement pattems to the body by educating or reeducating the body.
New pattems can not be introduced and utilized until old maladaptive habits
are removed. The prerequisite for musde retraining is rdaxation (Juhan,
1987). A relaxed musde is in its optimum state of effidency and is able to
27
perform its fiUl range of use. A tense musde must relax before it can contract
and work again effectively and effidently.
In condusion, as Juhan notes, "it is the simple truth of the matter that
our minds and thoughts exist in our skin, our joints, and our musdes just as
surely as they do in our craniums" (1987, p. 275). The next section explains
the mechanisms by which the body converts experience into physical and
chemical properties of the body.
Tissue Memory
The concept of "tissue memory" is based on the premise that memories
store in the body as woU as in the mind. This idea is also referred to as "body
memory", "ceU or ceUular memory" or "somatic memory." Tissue memory is a
pattern of construction that reflects how the musdes "remember' events such
as abuse, injury, illness, shock, fear, and anger in a pattern of tension
(Knaster, 1994). The body tissues can be viewed as a secondary storage
fadhty for the brain. Knaster (1994) brings up the fact that the brain,
nervous system and skin aU arise from the same embryonic layer. The
assodation between the skin and central nervous system is evident in the
concrete anatomical and physiological connections from each system's
development out of the ectoderm. Juhan explains, "the skin and brain
develop from exactiy the same primitive ceUs...and throughout hfe they
function as a single unit, divisible only by dissection or analj^cal abstraction"
(1987, p. 35). The skin is directly affected by the intemal states of mind and
physical health. This explains how the body and mind can perform similar
functions. Knaster dtes liana Rubenfeld (originator of Rubenfeld Synergy
Method for Integration of body, mind, and emotions): "the skin, musdes, and
nervous system record aU the memories of how we are handled from the
womb aU through hfe" (1994, p. 47). This is the reason deep tissue work such
as Rolfing eUdts the emotional releases as the tissues are being worked.
28
Knaster (1994) explains that under the right conditions a memory can be
triggered by ahnost anything that engages even one of the senses that were
involved m the original experience. Knaster (1994) dtes the findings of John
E. Upledger, D.O.:
the tissues retain memory of the position the body was in when an injury or acddent took place. The "energy of injury" penetrates mto the tissues to a depth determined by the coUision versus the density of the tissue, (p. 50)
The energy from the injury is a foreign entity acting on the body part; and if
the body cannot release that energy and aUow for normal healing ,then the
body stores and compacts that energy . The human body seeks to survive, and
in order to minimize the area of damage the body compacts the energy into a
compressed area known as an "energy cyst" (Knaster, 1994).
Knaster dtes Saul Schanberg, Ph.D., professor of pharmacology and
biological psychiatry at Duke University Medical Center, as dedaring,
"memory resides nowhere, and in every ceU. It's about 2000 times more
comphcated than we ever imagined." (1994, p.47) The complexity and
intricacy of the mind/body connection can positively serve to take an
individual to higher levels of existence or negatively rob that individual of a
comfortable healthy existence. The next section outlines the degenerative
path of the mind/body connection.
The Evolution of Imbalance
Postures develop and maintain through a learning process much hke
learning to ride a bike. This development begins when a frequentiy repeated
mental event becomes a tendency. Thus the person creates potential cause for
the mental event to become a physical reahty. If the tendency is acted out
and foUowed through long enough, it becomes a habit, and a habit exercised
long enough becomes a bit of personal identity. Postures develop as a result of
these repeated gestures, and sustained postures become fixed structures
29
(Juhan, 1987). This idea gives a more profound meaning to the
understanding of body language and reiterates the assertion of Ferguson
(1980) that people are walking autobiographies of the past and present events
of their hves. The past becomes buUt into the framework of the body, thus
affecting both general appearance and behavior pattems.
Every time this process takes place, whether it be good or bad, sensory
engrams are formed which serve as templates for body responses. An engram
is, a hypothetical change in neural tissue postulated in order to account for
persistence of memory" (Webster, 1989, p. 251). For example, the process of
learning to walk produces an engram for which the act of walking can be
reproduced. In traumatic events, emotional or physical, engrams are
produced in the form of memory cysts (discussed previously in the chapter on
Tissue Memory).
The formation of a habit has both mental and physical components.
Grood and bad habits are processed in the same manner, eUdting the same
two physiological responses: 1) the adjustments of the lengths of the musde
spindle fibers; 2) the adjustments of the tension loads on the golgi tendon
organs (Juhan, 1987). The golgi tendon organs connected to the musde
spindle fibers serve to, "stimulate a reflex with an effect opposite that of a
stretch reflex. This reflex helps maintain posture" (Hole, 1978, p. 422). The
musde tendon fibers and golgi tendon organs are responsive to weight, motion
and repetition as weU as to mental states (Juhan, 1987). Anxiety drives these
processes into high gear, whUe depression lowers these processes. Hence, the
mere act of quietly becoming anxious about something creates activity in the
mind and the body.
Due to the interaction of the mind/body, bodjrwork serves to reahgn
behavioral pattems as weU as structiiral pattems. Bodywork produces new
engrams for the body to use, replacing the old mal-productive engrams. This
is not suggesting that body diseases can be rubbed away like a magic lamp.
30
Each case of disease and iUness is situation-specific and requires its own
spedal combination of treatments to bring about recovery. A complementary
treatment to bodywork would be meditation. Meditation is the mirror image
of anxiety: that is, it is the expression of the absence of anxiety or, in other
words, serenity. What anxiety does to damage the body, relaxation
techniques serve to heal and aid proper body functioning (Juhan, 1987).
Relaxation techniques require proper use of breathing. Breathing is
the most essential element of being present centered. Breathing orients one
with reahty and acts as a constant link between the mind and body, keeping
one from drifting out of the present moment (Selby & Luhmann, 1987). This
understanding is the basis for techniques such as Tai Chi and Yoga.
Chapter IV explains the development and use of massage therapy as
treatment for health matters from early time periods to present day practice.
31
CHAPTER IV
MASSAGE THERAPY
Historical Developments
Massage is and has been used as one of the most instinctive and
natural ways to reheve pain and discomfort. Touch as a healing method
developed from many different origins. The history of massage therapy is
marked by cydes of progression and regression dating back to 2000 B.C.
Medical hterature firom the Egyptians, Persians, and Japanese can be traced
back to 500 B.C. In 460 B.C. massage made its mark in Greece during the
days when the Greeks glorified the strength and beauty of the human body.
Hippocrates of Cos (460-377 B.C.) performed the art of anatripsis, "to rub out,"
which combined the medical benefits of massage with the chemical properties
of oils to aid the sick and maintain the weU (Fritz, 1995). He introduced the
methods of traction and stretching, both of which are stiU used in therapeutic
massage today.
The Greeks passed the art of massage on to the Romans in the time of
Juhus Caesar (100-44 B.C.), who was daily pinched aU over for the rehef of
neuralgia and for prevention of epileptic attacks (Fritz, 1995). The Roman
physidan, Aulus Comehus Celsus (25 B.C.-50 A.D.), is credited for his
compUation ofDe Medicina, an eight-book series with seven books dedicated
to the preventive and therapeutic use of rubbing, exercising, bathing, and
anointing (Fritz, 1995). De Medicina was rediscovered during the Middle
Ages by Pope Nicholas V. (1397-1455 AJD.). The Middle Ages saw a dedine in
the acceptance of massage when oi^es and unediical behaviors arose. The
use of massage went underground as folk medicine in the East at this time.
(Fritz, 1995)
The development of massage in the West came firom this Eastern folk
medicine, often associated with supernatural experiences. TTiLs deviation
32
from a more sdentific approach tainted the practice of massage and brought
on the persecution of the church for doing the work of the devU (Fritz, 1995).
Vahdation of massage in the East retumed with Per Henrik Ling
(1776-1839) and his development of Swedish massage for the treatment of
disease. l ing developed an integrated program of active and passive
movements modeled after the positions and movements of Swedish
gymnastics (Fritz, 1995). As a teacher of fencing, Ling observed "that
habitual movements interfered with the development of desired movements,
and that development of a skiU depended on mental mastery of habit" (Fritz,
1995, p.6). Through this observation, in 1814, Ling developed medicinal
gynmastics involving systematic body movements. For nearly twenty years,
the Swedish medical community bitterly opposed Ling's system for his lack of
medical training and his use of poetic and mystical language (Fritz, 1995).
For this reason it is important that "massage be explained in the medical and
sdentific terminology of the day" (Fritz, 1995, p. 7). Dr. Johann Mezger
(1839-1909) of HoUand brought massage into the medical community and
coined correct terminology for the various manipulative techniques used in
massage today.
MeanwhUe in the West, spedficaUy the British dties, Chicago, and
New York, massage was given poor repute by the exposure of questionable
sexual stimulation in "massage parlors." It was during this time that an
inconsistent system of education existed. This led to the development of The
Sodety of Trained Masseuses in 1894. E i ^ t women recognized the need for
rigorous standards and modeled their program after the medical profession to
develop academic prerequisites for the study of massage (Fritz, 1995). This
group later became the Chartered Sodety of Massage and Medical
Gymnastics.
Then Sigmund Freud (1856-1939) used massage in his early treatment
of hysteria. This along with WUhehn Reich's use of massage as a
33
psychological tool brought massage back into the foreground. Alexander
Lowen, an American psychiatrist and a student of Reich, developed
Bioenergetics. Bioenergetics is a systematized approach that deals with
suppressed emotions by the body. The theory behind this type of bod5rwork is
that suppressed emotions create a protective armoring in the body, locking the
body into rigid, maladaptive pattems of use. (Fritz, 1995)
In the early 1900's, Randolph Stone, an American physidan, developed
"polarity therapy," which works with the body's magnetic field to regulate the
physiological systems of the body. The 1900's saw an increase in the
development of various types of bodywork. Bonnie Prudden is credited for
popularizing "trigger point therapy", which is the apphcation of direct
pressure on prescribed points on the surface of the body which trigger other
areas of the body which correspond to the point under pressure (Fritz, 1995).
Dr. Dolores Kreiger and her "therapeutic touch" has brought more awareness
to the use and effectiveness of energy work in nursing. Dr. MUton Trager
introduced the Trager method, commonly referred to as "rocking". Dr. Trager
came up with this neuromuscular approach when his wife was in the hospital
suffering with severe bums from a car acddent. He could not touch her to
comfort her or do anything to ease her suffering. He instinctively began to
rock her whUe she was lying in her hospital bed. The act of rocking, hke
rocking a baby to sleep, is very relaxing and stirs the fluid in the inner ear
canals responsible for balance. Combining rocking with other massage
techniques such as efifleurage increases the effectiveness of the effieurage,
because whQe the body is being rocked, it is neurologicaUy impossible to hold
on to existing body pattems. (Fritz, 1995) The goal would be to get the body
to temporarily let go of a maladaptive partem so that the underlying musdes
can be retrained into more effident pattems of response.
In the late 1940's and early 1950's, James Henry Cyriax, orthopedic
surgeon an St. Thomas' Hospital, pubhshed Textbook of Orthopedic Medicine,
34
detailing how pain can be the result of dysfunctional connective tissue. This
is the foundation of soft-tissue manipulation today. (Fritz, 1995)
The humanistic movement of the 1960's spUled over into the medical
community, revahdating the benefits of touch on health and weU-being. This
is the most recent revival of massage, which has continued to thi.s day (Fritz,
1995).
Current Conditions
Today, the profession of massage therapy is legalized with proper
credentialing and hcensing, is carefiiUy defined, has a dear scope of practice,
and is bound by ethical conduct. The educational requirements for massage
therapy differ from state to state. The state of Texas requires that any
practicing massage therapist completes 125 hours of Swedish massage, 75
hours of anatomy and physiology, 20 hours of health and hygiene, 15 hours of
business practices and ethics, 15 hours of hydrotherapy, and 50 hours of
internship. Upon successful completion of the schooling requirements, the
student must take and pass a written and practical exam th rou^ the Texas
Department of Health in Austin. Maintenance and upkeep of registration is a
continuous requirement of any therapist who wishes to continue practicing
massage therapy.
Any attempt at an adequate definition of massage must be indusive of
all the methods used. The standard and acceptable definition of therapeutic
massage is stated thus:
The sdentific art and system of the assessment of and the manual apphcation to the superfidal soft tissue of skin, musdes, tendons, hgaments, fasda, and the structures that he within the superfidal tissue by using the hand, foot, knee, arm, dbow, and forearm through the systematic external apphcation of touch, stroking (effieurage), fiiction, vibration, percussion, kneading (petrissage), stretching, compression, or passive and active joint movements within the normal
35
physiological range of motion. Also induded are adjunctive extemal apphcation of water, heat, and cold for the purposes of establishing and maintaining good physical condition and health through normalizing and improving musde tone, promoting relaxation, stimulating circulation, and producing therapeutic effects on the respiratory and nervous system, and the subtie interactions between aU body systems. These intended effects are accomplished through the energetic and mind^ody connections in a safe, non-sexual environment that respects the dient's self-determined outcome for the session. (Fritz, 1995, p.23)
The scope of practice details the boundaries within which a massage
therapist may work. Most of the hterature defines the scope of practice by
what cannot be done. "No one but the physidan has the legal right to perform
any act that falls within the parameters of a medical hcense" (Fritz, 1995,
p.24). The simple imderlying prindple is that
a person may not dispense therapeutic or medicinal advice concerning the effect of his or her services on a specific disease, ailment, or condition unless he or she has adequate training, knowledge, and experience to ensure that the advice given is sound and rehable (Fritz, 1995, p.24)
The scope of practice for massage therapy needs to fit alongside the
boundaries of professionals in the fields of chiropractic, dentistry, medicine,
nursing, osteopathic medicine, physical therapy, pediatric medicine,
psychology, and cosmetology without infringing upon the boundaries of these
professionals (Fritz, 1995).
Any health care practitioner is bound by a code of ethics. Ethics and
boundaries are based upon an individual value concept. A massage therapist
should be respectful and nonjudgemental. If a therapist has certain
prejudices that prevent the therapist fix)m touching a dient in respectful and
nonjudgmental ways, then it is the responsibihty of the therapist to refer the
dient to someone else for professional care. The "right of refusal" is the
36
dient's right at any time to refuse the massage. likewise, "disdosure" is the
therapist's right to refuse to work with anyone as long as the reason is
explained to the dient. For example, if a dient has ADDS and the therapist's
brother died with AIDS, the therapist has the right to explain his/her feelings
to the chent and refer that dient to the proper health care professional. (Fritz,
1995)
The relationship between the therapist and dient needs to be one of
trust, understanding and confidentiahty. The therapist is obhgated to give aU
appropriate information to the dient so that the dient can make an informed
choice to have a massage and understand what to expect. This is "informed
consent." There must be dear communication about how the session wUl
progress and what the outcomes wiU be. It is important to provide a safe
environment for the chent that ensures their privacy. The dient who is lying
undressed under a sheet on the practitioner's table is in a vulnerable
situation. It is the responsibihty of the practitioner to make this dient feel
safe. The therapist should ask permission before laying his/her hands upon
the dient. The therapist may choose to place his/her hands upon the dient's
back over the sheet and hold them there for a moment in order to greet the
body and acquaint it with the therapist's touch. The state of Texas does not
require that the dient be fuUy draped during the massage; this is an
individual decision. Many therapists establish their own strict work codes
and may insist upon draping and refuse to work with anyone who wishes to
be uncovered. Draping procedures need to be explained prior to the massage
and need to be part of the dient's informed consent. A good therapist is able
to pick up signs that a dient is uncomfortable or uneasy with the session.
One due is whether dients choose to remove their under garments or not. A
chent who is looking for lower back work and has had several massages in the
past may be more likely to remove everything in order to receive fuU benefits
from his/her session than is the person who has never received a massage
37
before. Once again, the therapist needs to take aU factors into account and
taUor each session to meet the needs and comfort levels of each dient. (Fritz,
1995)
The relationship between the therapist and cUent must always be one
of professionalism. Due to the intimate nature of the field, the relationship
should not be confused with sexuahty. Some people confuse touch with sexual
contact if they do not have much experience being touched in a loving,
nurturing, or therapeutic manner. A dient who is looking for sexual
treatment is in the wrong place, but if a dient is simply not used to non
sexual touch, oftentimes this confusion is bjT)assed when the therapist creates
deep relaxation for the body and works on painfiil knots and trouble spots.
The body becomes aware that the purpose of the touch is to help it and that
therefore, sexual feelings may be dismissed. (Fritz, 1995)
Due to the structure and design of the human body, it is possible that
during a session a chent might become sexuaUy aroused. The abdominals,
lower extremities, buttocks, and genital area are fed with sensory information
from the lumbar nerve plexus and sacral nerve plexus (Fritz, 1995). When
working in the surrounding areas, nerve signals could stimulate the genital
region. This is obviously no form of sexual misconduct and needs to be
handled so that the dient feels no embarrassment or shame towards natural
body functions. Sexual responses are usuaUy short hved and are quickly
replaced as the massage continues to communicate deep relaxation (Fritz,
1995). Sexual issues may be easUy diffused by the therapist's professionalism
and creation of a safe environment.
Therapeutic massage is as extensive as, but limited to, its definition.
Massage therapy is the foundation for more advanced and spedahzed forms of
bodywork such as Rolfing, Hakomi, Reflexology, and Reiki, aU of which wiU be
described in Chapter V.
38
CHAPTER V
SPECLALIZED BODY-WORK THERAPIES
The Theory and Practice of Rnlfin|n;
Rolfing, or Structural Integration, is the technique of connective tissue
manipulation that was perfected by Dr. Ida P. Rolf, formerly an organic
chemist with the RockefeUer Institute. The term Rolf, and aU forms of it, as
weU as the term Structural Integration, are trademarks of the Rolf Institute of
Structural Integration (Roger Pierce, 1978).
The Rolfing technique is deep intense tissue manipulation that takes
place in a series often sessions normaUy spaced one week apart. The goal of
Rolfing is to reahgn the body's major segments ~ head, shoulders, thorax,
pelvis and legs -- along a vertical axis. In the course of the ten sessions, the
Rolfer works his/her way down the body from the head to the feet so that aU
the body segments are treated. It is important to work aU of the segments
instead of just the obvious areas of discomfort, because when an imbalance
exists in one of the segments, an imbalance exists in aU of the segments. The
major segments can be viewed as blocks that, ideaUy, should be stacked
evenly on top of each other (See Figure 2.1). If one block is off center,
consequentiy, the entire body becomes disorganized (See Figure 2.2). For
example, a stiff neck and a head that is slumped forward is the result of
possible tilt in the pelvis, which may in turn be a result of locked knees or
ankles that turn in and do not properly support the weight of the body at the
base. The problem does not just he in the neck and shoulders and must be
treated at aU points of imbalance (Pierce, 1978).
39
Figure 2.1. Visualization of the body with the major segments as stacked blocks.
Source: Roger Pierce, "Rolfing," 1978
Figure 2.2. Comparison of poor posture to an anatomicaUy correct posture.
Source: Roger Pierce, "Rolfing," 1978
Reordering of the major segments balances the left and right sides of
the body. A balanced body is one that is in a resting state of preparedness for
responses of aU kinds (E*ierce, 1978). A balanced body is one that can
accurately respond to and recover fix)m stress. When a body responds, it
becomes unbalanced through its response movements and then ideaUy
returns to a state of balance, which is its resting state. When a body responds
and does not come fiiU drde to an action of completion, imbalance sets in.
When the body is out of ahgnment, the force of gravity becomes a
burden and a destructive force to the body. A graceful relationship with the
field of gravity is maintained when the body's weight disbursement remains
dose to the vertical axis. The average person has shortened his/her body by
letting the body weight shp out from the vertical axis. Examples of this
imbalance can be seen through a head that' is slumped forward, sag^^ng
shoulders, a buttocks that is carried up and out, or apparentiy different
lengths of legs with one hip higher than the other. As if this is not a problem
40
in itself, these pattems of imbalance are reinforced by the body in that after
years of habit, they feel comfortable and natural (Pierce, 1978). The body
takes on the habit of misahgnment.
The development of sldUs depends on the mental mastery of a habit.
What efforts cause a body to take on bad habits? Pierce (1978) explains that
from a purely mechanical viewpoint, the connective tissue that envelops the
musdes and that gives the body shape is remolded by apphed force, resulting
in distortions of the fasdal tissue. The apphed force is primarily repeated
pattems of self-use in sitting, sleeping, walking, etc. If a person's pattems of
self-use are ineflfident, the pattems set or fix themselves in tiie fasdal
network as unbalanced pattems of structure. The muscular and skeletal
systems take on ineffident weight-bearing functions. These systems are not
aUowed to perform their jobs correctiy. If a musde's function is to contract in
order to create movement, but that musde is forced into a continual or
habitual state of contraction without release, then that part of the body gets
locked into the contracted position inhibiting its range of motion. The musde
takes on the role of a bone by holding the incorrect body position in place, so
that the fasdal tissue of that musde eventuaUy becomes hard and inelastic
like a bone. When the fasdal tissue hardens, circulation of blood vessels
running through the fasdal network become restricted. Examples of this
hardened fasdal tissue are the "knots" that can be felt on a person's stiff and
aching neck.
Lewis & Lewis (1978) report that both the mental and physical
activities of the body depend on alterations in the body's tissues. What this
means is that mental and emotional states are directiy linked to the body's
tissues in addition to the obvious physical connection. This fact is recognized
by the Rolfing technique and is an important factor in the theory and practice
of Rolfing.
41
Chronic tension in the body carries with it an emotional load. Pierce
(1978) explains that muscular tension and emotion are two aspects of the
same organic pattern. He gives the example of a young cluld who feels
threatened by a parent and shrinks away with his/her head down, shoulders
raised, and chest cavity depressed in an attempt to bury his or her self and
escape the threat. The chUd's escape posture becomes his/her normal pattern.
The emotional tone of the threatened chUd locks into the pattern as weU. If
the pattern is not released and is carried on through the chUd's life, the
emotions assodated with the onset of the pattern carry on too. This emotional
load inhibits appropriate emotional responses to other stimuh.
When a person is undergoing Rolfing treatment, he/she may experience
physical pain due to the deep tissue manipulation aimed at restructuring
his/her body. He/she may also go through the release of the emotional pain
assodated with the physical pain. The physical reactions and characteristics
of a person's body and the assodated emotions that are appropriate for a
survival response oftentimes get permanentiy locked into a person's
framework. This happens because the systems of the body faU to recover from
the temporary stress response. People carry predispositions in their locked
frameworks to react to future stimuh on the basis of a past survival mode.
WhUe "Rolfing' certain parts of the body it is common for a person to recaU
specific traumatic episodes assodated with a part of the body. This is why the
actual physical changes in a person's structure are often accompanied by
changes in behavior and personahty after the Rolfing treatment. If a person
has held on to a past behavioral response pattern because that response was
locked into the physical makeup of the body and that part of the physical body
is readjusted then the person may be able to release old response pattems and
adapt new more productive ones.
42
The HakoTTii Method
The Hakomi Method is a technique based upon the mind/body/spirit
connection and is grounded in the recognition of the diversity and tension in
the world today. "Hakomi" is a Hopi word that means "how I stand in relation
to the many worlds" (Kurtz, 1990, p.3). It is a treatment that has been
developed with a spedal relevance for our time. Kurtz (1990), founder of the
Hakomi method, developed this technique in the mid 1970's as a culmination
of his study and experience in the areas of psychology, sdence, and
phUosophy, along with influence from the body-centered therapies (e.g.,
Bioenergetics, Rolfing, etc.), modem systems theory, and the Eastern
phUosophies of Taoism and Buddhism.
Kurtz (1990) describes Hakomi as a non-violent psychotherapy that
operates through the combined use of dialogue or naming, hands-on body
work, movement, and attention to sensation. The goal of an Hakomi therapist
is to help create "mindfulness" (a distinct state of consdousness in the dient)
and to aid that individual in turning inward towards the innate wisdom of
his/her own mind^ody. LogicaUy, this must be the goal of the dient as weU or
he/she would not be seeking Hakomi as treatment. The dient must also make
it his/her goal to be ready to remember pain and aUow him/herself a chance to
grow. The dient is an active partidpant in the process of change. Kurtz
(1990) refers to change as evolution and explains that in evolution there is
pressure. It is never a violent pressure or an inappropriately apphed force to
an unwUhng or unready individual. It is the job of any good therapist to
know when and where to apply force. Chent / therapist sessions are situation
specific and do not foUow a rigid stmcture. However, there are specific
techniques and training that a therapist must know in order to be able to use
the appropriate method at the appropriate time. The goal of Hakomi is to
contact and work with core material, to create a safe environment, and to
work towards the growth of the dient.
43
The Hakomi Method is based on five prindples, which are used to
sustain and evaluate method and techni(jue. These five prindples are:
1- Organidty: To look for and foUow the natural processes of Living Systems (hving systems self-organize, self-create, and self-maintain)
2- Mindfulness 3- Nonviolence: Reverence for Life 4- Mind-Body Holism 5- Unity: A Partidpatory Universe
As stated earher, a session is comprised of dialogue, hands-on work,
movement, and attention to sensation.
Dialogue begins with a discussion of the dient's history. The dient is
always encouraged to talk about any feelings or sensations he/she may
experience during a session. Verbal communication also comes in the form of
"naming," where the therapist draws attention to cues the dient gives,
verbaUy and non-verbaUy. Kurtz gives the example of recognizing moist eyes
and noting this with the simple question, "Some sadness, huh?' (1990, p. 7).
If this moment had gone unrecognized, the dient would likely hold back the
assodated feelings. The therapist's mindful awareness and attimement to the
dient creates an atmosphere of trust and compassion for the dient and open
the door to deeper work. AU this "talk" serves to deepen and stabUize the
experience, but it is not yet going for the core. Kurtz (1990) promotes a
psychotherapy that is not just talk, but involves experience as weU.
Experiences are evoked through mindful reflection on habits and core
organizations and by probing the dient. The therapist probes with different
techniques to bring the chent to the core material and the desired meaning.
The therapist wUl ask the dient to take notice of his/her reactions as the
therapist asks questions and makes statements. This serves to bring
attention to the present and root the dient in the experience of his/her own
body, or to use the words of Kurtz, "to create mindfulness". Hands-on work
and movement are unhke regular massage and the manipulation of tissues.
44
The therapist may simply put his/her hands on the dient and ask that he/she
remain mindful to sensations experienced. This is attention to sensation.
The therapist can assist the chent by "talcing over" a physical gesture. For
instance, if the therapist notices the dient holding his/her head, the therapist
can offer to take the weight of the head into his/her own hands. The purpose
of this is to aUow the chent to concentrate less on the work of holding up
his/her own head and more on the session. If reaching out to people is an
issue with a person, the therapist may ask the dient to reach out with his/her
arms and describe how this movement makes him/her feel. It is important
that the dient always remain mindful of the act that the therapist is taking
over in order to uncover meaning beyond just the pleasure of touch or
interaction. If a dient holds his/her shoulders up in a poor posture, the
therapist may assist the chent by restraining the shoulders in the poor
posture for the dient. This could also indude some PNF (Proprioceptive
Neuromuscular Fadhtation) work to reheve the tension, but the chent must
stay focused on the feelings and sensations that accompany the poor posture
to uncover the core.
The uncovering of core meaning is a precursor to transition and growth
and is accomplished by firustrating pattems of past dependendes and directiy
supporting efforts towards growth. Kurtz (1990) makes a comparison of the
dient/therapist relationship and its efforts to reach this goal to a mother and
her infant. The mother first nurses her infant and aUows him/her to be
dependent; then she weans and teaches him/her to feed hun/herself. As Kurtz
explains, "it is a combination of firustrating one thing and supporting another
that helps direct the path of growth" (1990, p. 112).
What I consider to be one of the reaUy wonderful things that must
result from an Hakomi session is that the dient leaves with a sense of self and
an awareness of his/her mind/body that can be used outside of the therapy
session.
45
Reflexology
Reflexology is a type of body work that helps to decrease or reduce pain
and normalize body fimctions through the apphcation of pressure to reflex
and pressure points. Reflexology primarily refers to the "reflexive" points of
the feet and hands. There are reflexive points found through out the body,
but this section wiU focus spedficaUy on the feet.
In 1913, WiUiam Fitzgerald introduced Zone Therapy to the U.S., a
therapy based upon the practice of Chinese acupressure. Reflexology is a
branch of these techniques (Connor, & McKim, 1978).
There are 72,000 nerve endings connected to different areas of the body
that meet in each foot. The two dominating theories for the practice of
Reflexology are: 1) that massaging the feet stimulates nerve impulses to the
corresponding areas of the body; 2) that massaging the feet activates energy
points along the meridian hnes detaUed in acupressure (Connor & McKim,
1978).
When a person is Ul with symptoms from colds, flues, and headaches,
certain reflexive points on the foot are found to be congested and painful and
feel gritty as if there are tiny partides of sand trapped under the skin
(Connor, & McKim, 1978). The gritty stuff is deposits of uric add and caldum
crystals, byproducts of incomplete metabohsm. When a body is out of balance,
proper digestion and metabolism does not occur, and these byproducts deposit
in the feet, blocking the nerve endings and interfering with the normal
fimctioning of assodated body regions (Connor, & McKim, 1978).
Reflexology serves not only to relax the body, but to crush up the grit so
that the body can reabsorb and excrete it. This is primarily achieved through
direct pressure to the troubled pressure points accompanied with overaU
massaging. The removal of toxins from the body can make a person fed
nauseous. The intake of plenty of fluids during this process is advisable.
Highly toxic individuals should only receive short treatments of about five to
46
ten minutes to prevent too many toxins from being released into the body at
once (Connor & McKim, 1978). .
There are several charts detailing which reflexive points correspond
with which areas of the body (See Figures 3 & 4). These charts wUl vary from
practice to practice as to the exact location of the reflexive points. A
practitioner should not diagnose sore spots as being specific problems (e.g.,
thyroid problems).
Lymph Drainage Bronchial
Back Muscles
-Sinus Area,
Thofacic . ., Adrenal^ /
Kidney
Lumbar-^ / [ ^^^p^aVf Utenjs / Prostate' '
-Original Ingham Method-
.Sinus Area,
Shoulder Arm
Diaphragm
Gail Bladder
Spleen
Waist Line-intestines-
Sigmoid Flexure Ileocecal Bladder
Sacr\jm / Coccyx' / Ovary/Testicle
Lymph Drainage Bronchial
Back Muscles^
Head Neck
-Cervical -Thyroid
-Adrenal '^^^Thoracic ^Kidney
^Pancreas 7V^ Lumbar
Right W m Up Xjtems / Prostate
Figures. The reflexive points of the hands. Source : Byers, Dwight C. International Institute of
Reflexology, 1983.
47
Pineal
Sinuses
Esophagus
Eyes
Ears
Shoulder/
Pineal
Sinuses
Esophagus
Eyes
Ears
iShoulder
Heart .
Spleen
Gall bladder
Ascending colon
Descending colon
Figure 4. Chart of the reflexive points of the feet. Source : Connor, L., & McKim, L., "Reflexology", 1978.
Reiki
Reiki is a gentie, hands-on, oriental healing art used to reheve stress,
reduce pain, and accelerate the heahng process (Rand, 1991). "Rei" refers to
universal energy, and "Ki" is the hfe force which flows through every hving
thing- people, plants, and animals. This universal energy is also referred to
as "chi" or "prana".
Reiki is merely a technique to balance the energy (the "Ki") of people,
plants and animals. Reiki is described as an activator, an energizer, a
releasor, an accelerator and a transformer. It works on aU levels of our being-
-physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual-to create harmony and balance.
Reiki works independentiy of any behef system.
Reiki is not dependent on a massage therapy background, and can be
done independentiy of such experience. As a certified first degree Reiki
practitioner ,and I would hke to explain this technique with more detaU. I
ahgn my practice of Reiki with Dr. Mikao Usui, originator of the Usui Reiki
System of Natural Healing (Rand, 1991).
Reiki is not a skiU that is learned, but is more hke an "attunemenf
which is passed on fix)m master to student. Any willing person may obtain
the Reiki attunements from a master. The lineage to which I belong only
recognizes three degrees. First degree is energy work which is only activated
through direct contact, or within a few inches of the practitioner's hands and
the redpient. Second degree aUows Reiki energy to be sent across time and
space. Third degree is mastership and the level in which a person may pass
on the Reiki system to others. Each degree is accompanied by certain symbols
which are like formulas. This is what is meant by "attunements". A student
is introduced and "attuned" to the symbol(s) for that degree and then is able to
activate the energy that resonates from that level. My greatest
understanding of the importance of symbols came to me when I understood
49
them as formulas. Activating and working with Reiki is merely an act of
intent. It is that simple, if my intent is for Reiki to flow, then Reiki flows.
In a Reiki treatment, the chent remains dotiied and sits or hes down in
a comfortable position while the practitioner places his/her hands on the
dient's body in prescribed positions. There are twelve positions, which are
commonly referred to as energy centers or chakras. These centers of the body
directiy correspond to the major glands of the body and the organs assodated
with those glands. A fiiU treatment that covers aU twelve chakras serves to
balance the hormonal functioning of the body (Rand, 1991).
Reiki is also very effective when apphed directiy to trouble spots, such
as bruises, bums, broken bones, etc. Reiki apphed directiy wUl accelerate the
healing process and reduce pain. It is not absolutely necessary that the area
in need be directiy treated because Reiki works by its own inteUigence and
goes where it is needed most. If a practitioner leaves his/her hands upon the
chent long enough, the dient's entire body wUl become fiUed with the Reiki
energy. Depending on the practitioner and the dient. Reiki energy is felt in
different ways. To some, it feels very warm; to others, it could be cold; some
may tingle or pulsate, whUe others have no obvious sensations (Rand, 1991).
The effects of Reiki can be very subtie, ehdting a relaxed meditative
state, or the results can be more dramatic. Some Reiki practitioners of my
acquaintance attribute miraculous results to some of their sessions. One
woman, who wiU be given the name Mary, had been working on a cat for
several months. The cat was previously in a degenerative health state from
cancerous tumors in its brain. After several months of continuous work, the
tumors eventuaUy worked their way out to the cat's nasal passages, where the
tumors could be removed.
The important thing to understand here is that Reiki is not an
egocentric type of bodywork. The practitioner is not the source of the energy
and is not doing the heahng. The practitioner is the conduit for the energy to
50
flow into him/her, out through his/her hands, and into the body of the chent.
Reiki is only as effective as the chent aUows it to be. Reiki fadhtates the
body's own natural abUity to heal itself as do most of the altemative healing
approaches.
This chapter has been induded because Reiki work involves physical,
mental, emotional and spiritual experiences within a treatment.
n
X Figure 5. 1st Degree Reiki Symbol
51
CHAPTER VI
CONCLUSION
Massage therapy incorporates mind/body interaction through physical
manipulation of tissues that have direct ties to mental faculties. When a
person receives massage therapy, the direct physical contad simultaneously
activates this connection. This viewpoint is prevalent among practitioners in
the altemative health arena. I behove it would be hard not to accept the
connection between mind, body and spirit when performing body work such
as massage therapy. During my massage training, the trainees were taught
about the physical composition of the body and tissues and how to manipulate
musdes to promote healing and relaxation. My training also prepared me for
the emotional and mental releases that so often come with physical release.
This information does not come firom a bunch of crystal rubbing star gazers,
but from the knowledge and understanding of the interconnection among
mind, body and spirit. As a result of my study and research for this thesis,
espedaUy concerning connective tissue, tissue memory and hands-on
experience, there is no doubt in my mind as to the powerfiil connection that
exists between these areas. The connections are as simple or complex as the
person.
I find that, when people are not ready to let go of old emotions and
pain, the knots in the fasda are equaUy as stubborn and resistive. I also find
that a simple phrase such as "your body is resisting therapy" can have a
powerfid impact on people's states of mind. It can also bring them to a doser
awareness of their trouble spots and possible non-physical components to the
problem. Massage therapists are not psychologists, and the job being
performed should not cross professional boundaries, but there is an extremely
dose and personal relationship that may be present between and dient and
therapist, and I thmk it is important that the therapist have sensitivity and
awareness regarding what may be going on. Obviously, state boards of health
52
feel the same, or they would not indude mind^ody interaction in the massage
curriculum. The importance of referral is also part of a student's training.
When in doubt, refer out. Anytime a situation is beyond a therapist's scope of
practice, the therapist is expected to refer a dient to the proper health care
practitioner. (Isn't networking wonderful?)
I would hke to share a story about a dient that came to see me with
sdatic nerve trouble. I was in the process of working her lower back, sacrum
and glutes when she began to question out loud possible reasons for the
sdatic flare up. She could not think of any strenuous activity or exercise that
might have triggered it. She mentioned to me that she was in the process of
deansing her colon with dietary supplementation and hydrodonics. I said to
her that it was my understanding from information that I have read about
colon deansing that the colon is said to be the "seat of emotions" and that
during a deanse the body rids itself of more than just toxic waste. During
fasts and deanses, a powerful healing process is activated, whidi imder
normal eating habits is otherwise not possible. She became quiet and said,
"You know, I bet the reason that my sdatic nerve acted up is due to a stress
response I learned as a httle girl when my father used to abusivdy spank me
until I was 14. I would dench my bottom in fear and antidpation every time
he would approach me. Now that I think about it, when I am under heavy
stress, I dench my bottom in the same manner. I have been under a smaU
amount of stress at work, and this may be a combination of psychological
factors and deansing releases." I was amazed at the darity with which she
detaUed her situation, and coinddentaUy (as if there is such a thing), the
sdatic nerve pain stopped.
I have had chents who have the "a-ha" experience at the same time a
big fasdal knot breaks up and dissolves. I am careful not to analyze a
situation or su r e s t why something is happening, but I find these experiences
53
to be so wonderful and amazing that I look forward to contributing to others
in their healing processes.
The research that I have put into this thesis has laid the groundwork
for the profession I have chosen. I would not have known how much if I had
not entered the field of massage therapy prior to completion of this paper.
The experience and work that I have compUed to this point have made it
possible for me to look at some of my original viewpoints and see how dose or
far I was. I can see my growth and maturity in so many areas, and I am
thankful to be in a position that aUows me to help others as weU as myself
54
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