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How Acupressure Works
The science of acupressure is based on a theory that is totally
different from allopathy (i.e. western medicine). The theory states
that the human body has fourteen "imaginary meridians"
that carry energy throughout the body. These meridians start at
the fingertips, connect to the brain, and then connect to the organ
associated with the specific meridian. The names of these meridians
specify the organ associated with them. For example, the lung meridian
is connected to the lungs via the nervous system. Theoretically,
a lung problem arises if there is an obstruction in the lung meridian
that slows down the flow of energy. If somehow the obstruction is
removed or dissolved, the energy flow becomes regular and the lungs
start functioning well. How is the obstruction removed? The answer
to this question defines the basic concept of acupressure.
Usually, an analogy of a water pipe makes this concept easier to
understand and visualize. A stone in a pipe that carries water lowers
the rate at which the water flows through the pipe. If the- pipe
is pinched right before the area where the stone is located and
the water is allowed to build up, the potential energy of the water
that is stopped from flowing rises. When the water that has high
potential energy is freed by releasing the pinch, water flows faster
than normal, pushing the obstruction alone, with it. The obstruction
is thus removed from the area and enables the water to resume its
flow. This is exactly the way acupressure works. The theory states
that obstruction in meridians cause the energy to flow slower which
results in a malfunction or even dysfunction in the organ that is
associated with the meridian. The pressure technique is used to
remove the obstruction so that energy can flow with regularity and
the organ can be made to resume its normal function.
One interesting theory of acupressure states that it is not necessarily
the organ that relates to the system the cause of the problem. It
is the "root cause" that is the main cause of the disease/malfunction
and if the root problem is cured, the external problem is cured
as well. This can be explained in an easier way by using, an example.
Suppose a person is suffering from asthma. An allopathic doctor
would prescribe a medicine or steroid that would give rest to the
lungs and relieve the symptoms because an allopathic thinks that
the cause for asthma problems is the lungs. The therapist on the
other hand, will try to find the root cause i.e. the reason why
the lungs are malfunctioning. An therapist would read the whole
body by reading energy pulses located on the arms to diagnose the
root cause and once the root cause is diagnosed, the doctor will
give points to cure that specific problem, not asthma. A root cause
could be anything like poor digestion, excessive heat, bad circulation,
depression, or bad hormones. A root cause could even be just the
organ that is giving the problem. So a person with asthma could
have weak lungs that are the root cause of the problem. There have
been cases where people with totally healthy lungs suffer from asthma
because of other problems like bad stomach, weak circulation, or
even bad hormones, and allopathic doctors give them steroids like
cortisone to "cure the weak lungs".
-Dishant Shah-
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