Intro to Acupressure online course

Update: April 2018
 "Intro to Acupressure" online course is now complete!
Thanks to all of you for your encouragement along
the way. 
  This 3 part course will introduce you to Acupressure, 
its background, origins and its applications.
  At the completion of the course you will have a usable
understanding of Acupressure as well as a knowledge of 
some of the conditions that are appropriate for self health
treatment with Acupressure.
With an investment of $80.00 you will start your
Acupressure journey.  .....I just had an inspiration!
For visitors to this blog I will offer this intro course
for $20.00! (WOW!... that felt good!)
To receive the "Intro to Acupressure" online course
contact me at brucefayers@yahoo.com to arrange
payment and to give me the date you would like to
start this course.
  After successful completion of the intro course you
may even wish to continue your Acupressure learning
with the advanced courses.
Bruce

Chinese Herbarl Medicine: Lingzhi

Lingzhi, 靈芝 (Ganoderma lucidum mushroom, reishi)
Língzhī is the name for one form of the mushroom Ganoderma lucidum, and its close relative Ganoderma tsugae, which grows in the northern Eastern Hemlock forests. These two species of bracket fungus have a worldwide distribution in both tropical and temperate geographical regions, including North and South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia, growing as a parasite or saprotroph on a wide variety of trees.

Ganoderma lucidum enjoys special veneration in Asia, where it has been used in traditional Chinese medicine as a herbal medicine for more than 4,000 years, making it one of the oldest mushrooms known to have been used in medicine.

According to The Chinese Herbal Materia Medica (本草綱目), lingzhi may be classified into six categories according to their shapes and colors, each of which is believed to nourish a different part of the body.

1. Red – heart
2. Purple – joints
3. Green – liver
4. White – lungs and skin
5. Yellow – spleen
6. Black – kidneys and brain

Lingzhi may possess some anti-tumour, immunomodulatory and immunotherapeutic activities, supported by some studies on polysaccharides, terpenes, and other bioactive compounds isolated from fruiting bodies and mycelia of this fungus. Lingzhi has been found to be anti-inflammatory, antiviral, anti-parasitic, anti-fungal, antidiabetic, anti-hypotensive, and protective of the liver. It has also been found to inhibit platelet aggregation, and to lower blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar.

Because of these properties, lingzhi has been regarded as blood pressure stabilizer, antioxidant, analgesic, a kidney and nerve tonic. It has been used in bronchitis prevention and in cardiovascular treatment, and in the treatment of high triglycerides, high blood pressure, hepatitis, allergies, chemotherapy support, HIV support, and even for fatigue and altitude sickness.
(Source: Wikipedia)

Acupressure points have a high electrical conductivity at the surface of the skin. These points conduct and channel healing energy.  The Chinese call this healing energy Qi or Chi. The Japaneses call the healing energy Ki. The most potent healing energy work uses acupressure points. In Traditional Chinese Medicine there are 12 meridians that are the body's healing energy pathways. The meridian lines are where vital energy can become blocked. Acupressure can relieve tension, numbness or pain, and harmonize all functions of the body.

Sticks and Stones and Acupressure

Stones and arrows were used by early Chinese dynasties during battle. Wounded soldiers noticed that symptoms of disease and pain that had plagued them for years disappeared. Physicians began a meticulous study of the relationship between pressure and health which resulted in the healing art of acupressure.

What is Acupressure:



Acupressure was developed in Asia over 5,000 years ago. It uses the fingers to gradually apply pressure to key healing points. Acupressure was developed in Asia over 5,000 years ago. it uses the fingers to gradually apply pressure to key healing points. Acupuncture and acupressure use  the same pressure points and meridians to stimulate the body's natural self-curative abilities. Acupressure releases muscular tension and promotes better circulation. It is effective in pain relief and detoxifying the body. Please join me for the Acupressure Workshop. Click on the above Acupressure Workshop tab for details.

"Living with Pain" is this Your Only Option?

The American Chronic Pain Association estimates that 86 million Americans are "living with pain". Using the phase "living with pain" and not "suffering from pain" creates the impression that this is an acceptable "lifestyle". As an acupuncturist and practitioner of Traditional Chinese Medicine my approach is wellness not an acceptance of "un-wellness."
The following is an excerpt from a report by the American Pain Society:

How effective is the medical profession in meeting the need for pain relief?

Almost all chronic pain sufferers have gone to a doctor for relief of their pain at one time or another. Almost 4 of every 10 are not currently doing so, since they think either there is nothing more a doctor can do or in one way or another their pain is under control or they can deal with it themselves.

This is not the case with those having very severe pain; over 7 of every 10 are currently going to a doctor for pain relief. In addition, significant numbers of those with very severe pain are significantly more likely to require emergency room visits, hospitalization and even psychological counseling or therapy to treat their pain.

A significant proportion (over one-fourth) of all chronic pain sufferers wait for at least 6 months before going to a doctor for relief of their pain because they underestimate the seriousness of it and think they can tough it out.

Chronic pain sufferers are having difficulty in finding doctors who can effectively treat their pain, since almost one half have changed doctors since their pain began; almost a fourth have made at least 3 changes. The primary reasons for a change are the doctor not taking their pain seriously enough, the doctor’s unwillingness to treat it aggressively, the doctor’s lack of knowledge about pain and the fact they still had too much pain. This level of frustration is significantly higher among those with very severe pain where the majority have changed doctors at least once and almost of every 3 have done it 3 or more times. Their primary reason for changing was still having too much pain after treatment.

Doctors are not a major barrier when a patient asks for a medicine they saw or heard about; in the majority of instances the doctor prescribes it. Similarly, in the majority of instances when a sufferer has been referred to a program or clinic for relief, in the great majority of referrals their managed care or workman’s comp program permitted access.

Huangqin (Chinese Herbal Medicine)

Huangqin, 黃芩 (Scutellaria radix)
The medical functions of huang qin include: huang qin’s ingredient baicalin can promote secretion of bile. Alkaloids of huang qin possesses antihistamine effect; baicalein has anti-toxin effect, inhibits permeability of capillaries and anti acetylcholine and anti anaphylaxis effects, it also inhibits acute asthma attack and allergenic eczema; prevents atherosclerosis; ingredient wogonin has anti hepatitis B virus effects. In modern medicine, the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties of wogonin have been widely used in clinical treatment of inflammatory diseases, including atopic dermatitis, hyperlipemia, and atherosclerosis. It has been reported that wogonin has the potential for therapeutic use in the treatment of atherosclerosis and restenosis based upon its antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antithrombotic, and antiproliferative activities.
(Source: Dictionary of Chinese herbs; Molecular Pharmacology Vol. 60, Issue 3, 507-513, September 2001.)