What is Acupressure?
Acupressure is a gentle, yet extremely powerful form of bodywork. It works with the energy systems of the body, which profoundly affect our physical health, our emotional state, and our spiritual wellbeing. By creating flow and harmony at the energy level, acupressure also brings deep relaxation and healing to our bodies, our emotions and our spirit.
Your Acupressure Session
During a session, you usually lie on a massage table fully clothed. The practitioner will ask you about your symptoms, and also take your pulses – acupressure recognises twelve different pulses at the wrists. Using all this information, the practitioner then creates a treatment that is uniquely crafted to the particular energy imbalances that are related to your symptoms.
Acupressure points are held in pairs until the blocked energy in the points is released, which usually takes two or three minutes. The finger pressure is adjusted from gentle to strong, and the length of time varies, depending on what’s needed to release the energy, and the practitioner only moves on as it flows in each point. Energy moves from areas of excess to areas of deficiency, creating balance in the whole system and allowing it to be available where needed. While you may or may not feel the actual energy flows, you will usually feel both refreshed and deeply relaxed as the treatment progresses.
As your energy field changes, so will your symptoms and feelings, and the practitioner continually incorporates these responses into the treatment so that it is always sensitive to your particular healing needs. Treatment becomes a dynamic flow.
When our imbalances are relatively recent, then treatment can usually restore balance quite quickly. But when our imbalances have lasted for a long time, and we find ourselves with chronic illness, then treatment can take longer to restore health. Yet even with chronic conditions, we usually notice improvements after as few as one or two sessions.
As we can see, while acupressure is called bodywork, the body is merely the place where we begin. As energy begins to balance and harmonise, all levels of being are impacted, not just the body, but also emotions, mind and spirit. All these aspects are intimately intertwined, and all find health through the magic of acupressure.
Five Element Acupressure
Five Element Acupressure has its roots in the ancient cultures of both China and Japan, but it has also been influenced by western culture. Modern psychology has provided deep insights and understandings of the emotions and the mind, and this knowledge has been woven into the practice of Five Element Acupressure. Traditionally, there was understanding of the way certain energy blocks relate to certain symptoms and illnesses. Now, we also understand in much greater depth the emotional patterns that are related to both.
In ancient times it was noticed that the energy meridians and their associated physical and mental states seemed to arise in five broad groups, and these groupings were found to relate to each other in predictable, systematic ways. Each grouping seemed to have qualities similar to a particular element occurring in the natural world, and so the five groupings, or Five Elements became Water, Wood, Fire, Earth and Metal. This became the foundation of Five Element Acupressure.
The Elements are constantly alive within us, dynamically interacting with one another. When the harmony of this system is disrupted, some Elements have too much energy and others too little. It is this disharmony which creates ill health. At the heart of Five element Acupressure is the balancing of the Five Elements, in other words, the balancing of the whole physical, mental and spiritual organism.
Getting to the Core
We all have one Element that becomes the fundamental orientation of our life. This is called our Constitutional Element, and is the lens through which we see, hear, smell, taste and touch the world. When we are in balance, it is our gift, but when we are out of balance, it becomes our struggle.
Five Element Acupressure can identify and treat our Constitutional Element, and not simply our symptoms, and the healing effects can go deep to the core of who we are. When our core Element is balanced and happy, then all the Elements begin to move into harmony.
Knowing Yourself
Five Element Acupressure does not just treat our imbalances, but helps us uncover and understand the underlying patterns that are causing our ill health. Understanding allows our symptoms to lessen and loosen their hold on us. A fundamental premise of this work is that self understanding and self awareness are the keys to long lasting change. Thus Five Element Acupressure is a powerful support for the journey of inner exploration, understanding and ultimate healing.
Benefits of Acupressure
The benefits of Five Element Acupressure are wide ranging, and can touch every part of who we are.
Because Five Element Acupressure seamlessly addresses body, emotions, mind and spirit, it supports physical and emotional healing, greater awareness and healing of the emotional issues that are associated with physical ills, and ultimately greater peace of spirit.
The specific benefits of this work are as varied as those who seek treatment. Following are just some of the gains in wellbeing that clients report.
- Relief from pain
- Relaxation of muscle tension
- Greater structural balance
- Greater flexibility
- Improved digestion
- Improved detoxification
- Improved fertility
- Relief of menstrual problems
- Easier childbirth
- Deep relaxation
- Greater aliveness and vitality
- Feeling supported and understood
- Understanding the emotions under illness
- Seeing how old patterns cause ill health
- Reduced anxiety
- Healing the effects of trauma
- Ease of connection with others
- Opening of the heart
- More joy, humor and spontaneity
- Deeper empathy for self and others
- Mental clarity
- A general sense of balance and harmony
- A sense of direction and purpose
- More freedom from the Inner Critic
- Greater trust in the process of life
The Five Elements
The Five Elements together form a cycle of changing energies. We all have all of the Elements within us, but their mix is unique for everyone. When we are in balance and health, the Elements flow freely and we have access to all of their gifts. But when there is imbalance and ill health, we can notice blocks in our bodies, our minds and our emotions that are the result of this lack of free flow.
We can bring ourselves back to balance and harmony with Five Element Acupressure. The practitioner recognises which Elements are out of balance and holds points along the meridians of these Elements to release energy blocks that are causing the imbalances.
There are things that you can do too. Specific changes in diet and lifestyle can really support the practitioner’s work. At a deeper level, understanding the emotions, ideas, beliefs and attitudes that contribute to these imbalances begins to release their hold on us and open us up to more freedom in our lives.
In understanding these five energies, we can have no greater role model than Mother Nature herself. The seasons of the year are the most obvious manifestation of the Elements, and all other associations of the Elements can be drawn from the seasons.
As you read these sections on each of the Elements, you may recognise the places you are free and the places you feel stuck. The suggestions that follow each Element are meant to offer guidance to support bringing that Element back to balance.
Water
The season of Winter is that of the Water Element. It’s the time of year when Nature withdraws within, when seeds are stored for the following year, waiting patiently for the time when growth will begin again. As humans, if our Water Element is in balance, we will feel comfortable with the colder weather, seeing the opportunity to spend more time indoors, doing less, reflecting, gathering our own resources. It’s a time to sleep a little more, eat a little more, and do a little less in our lives. Among the gifts of Water are the ability to listen deeply, to have the wisdom of inner knowing, to conserve resources and gather power, to rest, and to trust.
When our Water is out of balance we become unsure, anxious, fearful, not able to trust in ourselves or the world around us. In our bodies, the organs of the bladder and the kidneys don’t function properly and we can suffer from low back pain. Our ears and our hearing may suffer. We might struggle with the cold weather and feel drained, weary in our bones. We lose our will.
In treating the Water Element, the practitioner holds points along the Water meridians of Bladder and Kidney in order to support those meridians that are our reservoirs of energy. They are like the lakes and rivers that store and carry our precious Qi.
As participants in our own health, we can support our Water by getting plenty of sleep and rest, especially in the winter, keeping warm, and being sexually moderate. Foods that support Water include beans, fruits and vegetables that are blue or black in colour, small amounts of salty food like seaweed, tamari. Breathing exercises that bring the breath to the belly are great for warming the lower back and abdomen and thus supporting Bladder and Kidney meridians. Massaging the muscles of the lower back also helps to invigorate them.
The emotion of Water is fear. We can look at our relationship to fear and how it affects us. We may consider, Are we over-fearful or are we daredevils? Why is that? What is it that gets in the way of us having trust in the unfolding flow of our lives? Pondering such questions can lead us to understand how the natural flow of our Water is impeded.
Wood
The season of Spring is that of the Wood Element. It’s a time when Nature puts on a rapid growth spurt, shooting upwards, vigorous and unstoppable. The seeds that have been in hibernation all winter suddenly burst forth with the warmer weather and longer days. If our Wood Element is in balance, we can emulate Nature and we feel the rising sap within ourselves, giving us fuel to start new projects, to strike out in new directions, to implement our visions. A balanced Wood allows us to be clear and direct in our thoughts and actions. We can be assertive in our interactions with others. We move easily in the world as we express our unique selves. Wood supports our will to become who we truly are. The gifts of Wood include having appropriate boundaries, seeing clearly and acting decisively, being firm but flexible, having a goal but also having a plan B. Wood gives us with wise judgement, the ability to plan and strategize, to have vision and to put that vision into action.
When our Wood is out of balance, we become easily irritated, frustrated and angry; or we might collapse in the face of obstacles. We have trouble seeing the way forward, have a hard time making decisions and taking action. Our organs of the liver and gallbladder can suffer and our eyes or sight can give trouble. The tendons and ligaments of the body can be stiff or weak, and our flexibility suffers both in our body and our attitudes. We can become disoriented and hopeless, even depressed. Our functioning in the world gets stuck.
In treating the Wood Element, the practitioner holds points along the meridians of Gallbladder and Liver which are those associated with Wood. These meridians help us to have vision, to make plans and to act with wise judgement to carry out those plans.
We can support our Wood by getting to bed by 11 pm, the time at which the Wood meridians like to be horizontal. Since the tendons and ligaments are the province of Wood, it is supportive to stretch or do yoga before launching into activity. Body twists are very helpful in opening the qi in the Gall Bladder channel. This is especially true in Spring when the energy of the season invites us to be active. Spring is a good time to cleanse the liver with herbs such as coriander, dandelion and milk thistle. Foods that support the Wood are those with a sour taste, like lemons and vinegars; and those that are green in colour, especially dark leafy greens. Avoid alcohol, drugs and excess fats.
The emotion of Wood is anger. We can look at how we relate to anger and assertiveness. Can we express ourselves freely and take our space, or do we suppress our upward rising energies? Can we speak our minds or do we internalise our frustrations? Are we nice in order to keep the peace while becoming internally resentful? Understanding how we are with the range of emotions from irritability all the way through to rage, can show us how we constrict the natural expression of our Wood.
Fire
The season of Summer is when Fire comes into its Element! At this time of year, the growth in Nature has reached its crescendo. This is the time of greatest expansion, the height of heights when Nature is giving everything it’s got. If our Fire is in balance, we will respond with Joy to this expansiveness. Our hearts are full and open and we contact other humans with warmth and love. The boundaries of our heartfulness are entirely appropriate as we open to love but know when to protect our hearts. The gifts of Fire include love and compassion, enthusiasm and a sense of fun, sociability, intimacy and passion; also discrimination, the ability to sort out what is good for us and what is not.
When our Fire is out of balance, we can close our hearts, become cold and shut off; or we might have no boundaries as we gush our heart out inappropriately. We might feel joyless, humourless, heartless; or at the other extreme, become easily overexcited, even hysterical. Our organs of heart and small intestine may suffer as well as our blood circulation or our sexuality. Speech and tongue may be impaired. Our ability to digest food, and to sort out on a mental or emotional level can be affected. The way we relate in personal relationships, the way we love, is out of balance.
In treating the Fire Element, the practitioner holds points along any of the four Fire meridians: Heart, Small Intestine, Heart Protector and Triple Warmer. All of these meridians are concerned with how we relate to the world.
We can support our Fire by making sure we have some fun in our lives! Things such as being playful, joking, laughing, hop-skip-jumping, simply being ourselves in a spontaneous way. Spending time with babies helps put us in touch with these qualities. Summer offers many opportunities to be out and about socialising and it’s important we have some of this in our lives. Foods that support Fire are those of a bitter taste such as eggplant, celery tops, bitter greens; and foods that are red in colour like tomatoes, capsicums and beetroot.
The emotion of Fire is joy. What is meant here is not the quiet joy of a tranquil mind, but joy that is too much, too strong and which can verge on hyper-excitement or even hysteria. On the other hand, when joy is absent, there can be a state of flat blandness or even depression. Each of these extremes can indicate Fire out of balance. We might ask ourselves, can we be in a state of quiet joy that is not dependent on conditions? Do we throw ourselves into friendships and relationships that take us out of our heart? Or do we withdraw into ourselves to protect our heart? Questions like this can help us understand the health of our Fire.
Earth
Earth has its home in the Late Summer, the harvest time of the year when the golden light is upon Nature, which, to quote Keats, has filled “all fruit with ripeness to the core.” Mother Earth is at her fullest, most round, most pregnant. Nature is dripping with the fruits of her labours. If our Earth is in balance, we are open to receiving the bounty of the world as well as to giving it out. There is no impediment to this giving and receiving which are two sides of the same hand. We can nurture and be nurtured, understand and be understood. We are thoughtful, sympathetic, empathetic, grounded and centred in ourselves, acting and relating to others from that place.
When our Earth is out of balance, we begin to lose our ground and our centre. We spin round and round, repeating worn out patterns that don’t serve us, our thoughts spinning round and round in our heads. There is an imbalance in our giving and receiving. We may become very needy or we may deny our own needs in favour of the needs of others. We feel unsupported in the world, unstable. Our organs of stomach, spleen and pancreas may be out of order. Digestive problems are common, sluggishness, fatigue, oedema and overeating may occur. We may worry obsessively about our problems or about those close to us, or we may cut ourselves off from sympathy altogether and become uncaring. Our intention becomes clouded.
In treating the Earth Element, the practitioner holds points along the meridians of Stomach and Spleen/Pancreas which are the channels of Earth. They support our capacity to give and receive appropriately, to take care of others when necessary while taking care of ourselves.
We can support our Earth by making sure we have a balance between taking care of self and others. In nurturing ourselves, we can consider what it is that we really need. Rather than having that rich dessert or that new dress, what is that we need that nurtures our soul? We can support our Earth by making sure we are grounded and centred in ourselves, doing things that ground us in our bodies, especially our pelvis and legs. Take a walk, dance, dig in the garden. Singing is a very Earth oriented activity. Foods that support Earth are those with a sweet flavour including fruits (not sugar!) and sweet flavoured vegetables; and those yellow or orange in colour such as pumpkins, carrots.
The emotion of Earth is sympathy or worry. Worry can show up as obsessive mental rumination, thoughts going round and round while sympathy out of balance produces over-concern for others. We might ask ourselves: What do I need? What do I want? Can I ask for these things from others? How easy is it for me to receive and to give? Is there a balance between my giving and receiving? The way we answer these questions can give insight into the health of our Earth.
Metal
When Autumn makes its quiet entrance, the Metal Element begins to shine forth. It’s the time of year when Nature is letting go. The leaves are dropping, the temperatures are dropping, the end of the year is being tidied up in preparation for Winter hibernation. If Metal is in balance in us, its gifts are truly precious: the ability to let what may come and to let go of what is not serving us; the capacity to accept without attachment, to see value in ourselves and others, to respect and acknowledge, to revere. The Sanskrit greeting Namaste, which can be translated as “I respect that divinity within you that is also within me,” is a phrase that embodies these qualities of Metal.
When our Metal is out of balance these qualities begin to be lost to us, and we cannot let go and let go. We hang on to objects, ideas and emotions that do not serve us. We may become obsessed and compulsive. We may be stuck in grief, unable to move on after the loss of someone or something dear to us. Our lungs and large intestines begin to suffer . Busy with our nose to the grindstone, we may have lost contact with Spirit, or on the other hand, we may have our head in the clouds and be unable to function in our body. We lose our balance between Heaven and Earth.
In treating the Metal Element, the practitioner holds points along the meridians of Lung and Large Intestine. These are the meridians of letting come and letting go, of allowing and accepting.
We can support our Metal by breathing exercises that promote relaxed breathing. About 30% of our Qi comes from the air that we breathe, so it’s important to optimise this intake process. Having a healthy colon is very important to allow waste and toxins to be effectively removed. Eating some raw foods, minimising mucus producing foods, exercising the abdominal muscles are supportive. Also clearing our lives of things that are no longer serving us, including objects, ideas, behaviours and relationships. Foods that support Metal are white in colour such as cauliflower, potato; and pungent in flavour such as spices and aromatic herbs.
The emotion of Metal is grief or sorrow. When we lose a loved one, a precious object, a cherished ideal, it is natural to grieve and to feel the loss or absence. But when we are unable to let go and move on, the grief tightens and hardens us. We might look at those things in our lives that we once had but are now gone and that we are longing for to return. When we think about these things, what effects do we notice in our minds and bodies? The responses will help gauge the health of our Metal.
