Shiatsu is more than acupoints
In the news, Personal Development, Shiatsu Practice
It was surprising to come across this comparison of complementary treatments for lower back pain in the Daily Mail that rates shiatsu so low. From the article one cannot say how the ratings were calculated especially as the evidence for shiatsu reads:
One study at Drake University in America involved 66 people with lower back pain; each were given four shiatsu treatments. Two days after each massage, the patients were asked to quantify their level of pain. Pain and anxiety decreased significantly with each massage.
So why shiatsu is only worth 2 stars is a mystery. It seems to miss the point about what shiatsu is and can do for people. What my clients really seem to enjoy about the work is the range of movements, stretches, and rotations that shiatsu employs. For those who have experienced acupuncture but not benefited, it is the dynamic moving nature of shiatsu that makes the difference.
This is the aspect of my shiatsu that I am receiving unsolicited praise for. A year ago I was meticulously pressing points along meridian pathways with my thumbs but now I can offer a more active treatment. It is the fact that shiatsu can offer this detailed point work or an active, dynamic treatment, or even a comforting hug that gives it that edge.
Tony Brown @ July 23, 2007
[…] But it goes to show that the word shiatsu is out there, people are concious of something called shiatsu but do they know what it is? Apart from a brief mention in an episode of the Sopranos it does not crop up much on TV unlike acupuncture or osteopathy and chiropractic. I did see it mentioned in a daily newspaper but the review was less than glowing. […]