Definition of the week....

acu·pres·sure

noun \ˈa-kyə-ˌpre-shər, ˈa-kə-\

  Acupressure is an ancient healing art that uses the fingers to press key points on the surface of the skin to stimulate the body’s natural self-curative abilities. 

 When these points are pressed, they release muscular tension and promote the circulation of blood and the body’s life force (sometimes known as qi pronounced chi) to aid healing. Acupuncture and acupressure use the same points, but acupuncture employs needles, while acupressure uses the gentle, but firm pressure of hands and feet. 

  Acupressure, continues to be the most effective method for treatment of tension-related ailments by using the power and sensitivity of the human hand. Acupressure can be effective in helping relieve headaches, eye strain, sinus problems, neck pain, backaches, arthritis, muscle aches, tension due to stress, ulcer pain, menstrual cramps, lower backaches, constipation, and indigestion. 

  Acupressure can also be used to relieve anxiety and improve sleep. There are also great advantages to using acupressure as a way to balance the body and maintain good health. The healing touch of acupressure reduces tension, increases circulation, and enables the body to relax deeply. 

  By relieving stress, acupressure strengthens resistance to disease and promotes wellness. In acupressure, local symptoms are considered an expression of the condition of the body as a whole. A tension headache, for instance, may be rooted in the shoulder and neck area. Thus, acupressure focuses on relieving pain and discomfort, as well as responding to tension, before it develops into a disease—before the constrictions and imbalances can do further damage. 

  The origins of acupressure are as ancient as the instinctive impulse to hold your forehead or temples when you have a headache. Everyone at one time or another has used their hands spontaneously to hold tense or painful places on the body. More than five thousand years ago, the Chinese discovered that pressing certain points on the body relieved pain where it occurred and also benefited other parts of the body more remote from the pain and the pressure point. Gradually, they found other locations that not only alleviated pain, but also influenced the functioning of certain internal organs. (Definition, in part, from the book Acupressure’s Potent Points, by Michael Reed Gach, director of the Acupressure Institute, Bantam, 1990.) 

Definition credit - http://www.massagetherapy.com/glossary/

F.Y.I - What are trigger points?

What are Trigger points?

Trigger points are tiny knots that develop in a muscle when it is injured or overworked. Commonly a cause of most joint pain, they are known to cause headaches, neck and jaw pain, low back pain, tennis elbow and carpal tunnel syndrome.

Trigger Point Therapy can relieve muscular aches and pains in

association with these areas.

It can also assist with the redevelopment of muscles and/or restore motion to joints. Trigger points are described as hyper-irritable spots in skeletal muscle that are associated with palpable nodules in taut bands of muscle fibers. Trigger point researchers believe that palpable nodules are small contraction knots and a common cause of pain. Compression of a trigger point may elicit local tenderness, referred pain, or local twitch response. The local twitch response is not the same as a muscle spasm. This is because a muscle spasm refers to the entire muscle entirely contracting whereas the local twitch response also refers to the entire muscle but only involves a small twitch, no contraction.

If you have any questions regarding trigger points & trigger point therapy please ask one of our registered massage therapists!