Healing Depression Through The Essence Of Touch

A man once told me a quote that I lived by due to the sheer strength and masculinity of it, “I was born by myself, and I’ll die by myself”. It has taken me over 30 years of my natural born life to realize that the quote is actually sad, lonely, heartbreaking, and utterly depressing if you allow it to digest for a moment. After serving over 20 years of military service, countless deployments, dozens of countries visited, interactions with all sorts of cultures, more death than any man should ever witness, I’m shamed to say that I once stood proud and not only believed but lived every syllable of that quote. In the midst of all the catastrophes going on in the world today, a pandemic, police brutality, a corrupt government, poverty, unemployment, and I could go on for days. Actually, that is the root to every single problem if you take a moment to dissected it. What we need as a human race is the exact opposite. We as a human race thrive and survive from human touch. From the moment we are born our functionality and survival rate depends on the touch of the woman who birthed us and gave us life. Throughout our toddler, adolescent, and teenage years how we develop as a functional member of society depends on the values, beliefs, and discipline instilled upon us. But most importantly how much or how often we were touched and showed love and affection. Veterans take their own lives at an astonishing rate of 22 lives per day, solitary confinement inmates are twice  more likely to revisit jail or take their own lives, Alaskan suicide rates are up by 13%, children who experience bullying are two times more likely to commit suicide. I could continue to spray statistics at you, but my heart is to too heavy at the moment. What I will do is direct you to the common denominator in every case, feeling excluded, alone, a lack of interaction, and zero positive and encouraging touch. American culture has somehow taken what we truly need to survive and gave it a different name, and better yet represent a different tone. If I hug my co-worker we must be fooling around, If I smile too much at the checkout I must be flirting with the cashier, If I were to console someone of the opposite sex there’s a time constraint placed on the embracement. Well my fellow Americans, I am here to tell you that particular thought process is wrong as the quote I once lived by. When here are a few fun facts to support the opposite of what the majority believe. Massage/touch calms the mind, massage/touch eases aches and pains, massage/touch relieves depression, massage/touch increases blood flow and promotes relaxation. So how about we do away with all the vices that surround us in the world today and experience a different healthier type of euphoria. Visit your local massage therapist to begin your journey toward better body, soul, happiness, and heart mind. NAMASTE!!

Acupuncture & Massage for Anxiety

Acupuncture is amazing for anxiety. Combined with massage, we have students who start school with anxiety, and graduate calm and strong. Here's a link to some easy to understand info about how it works, and the experience of one of our students:

ARTICLE: WHY ACUPUNCTURE WORKS FOR ANXIETY RELIEF by Morah Hohman

Our Student's Reply: I was one of those students and I can't express strongly enough how much this school changed my life. I started the program diagnosed PTSD, GAD, and Panic disorder and was on a miriad of anxiety medications that did nothing to fix the problem, they just covered it up like a bandaid. This wonderful place of healing gave me a safe environment to rip those bandaids off and I finished the program medication free (talk to your doctor, never just stop taking medications without first doing so, for it can be harmful). I feel better now than I ever have before and I wasn't aware that was even a possibility for me! All I want is for others to experience the miraculous healing that I found here and discover the beauty of life outside of dibilitating anxiety. It worked for me, and it can work for you!! It's not just a school, for me it was an awakening. I am just so happy I made that first step and enrolled, regardless of the anxious fear trying to stop me- I found peace here. ~H.P.12/11/15

Bodywork Series: Water Element

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In learning the 5-elements, massage therapists have a wonderful opportunity to recognize signs and symptoms that an element is out of balance, and use a combination of massage techniques, acupressure, and energy work to assist re-balancing this element – all during a 1 hour massage.

Let’s look at the Water Element being out of balance and some things we might see in clinical experience.

Physically we may see:

Low back pain, knee pain, broken – brittle or weak bones like osteoporosis, or the person appears much older than their stated age.

There might be dark circles under the eyes or hair that is thinning.

They may use language that refers to feeling drained, exhausted, or overwhelmed – my energy level feels so low compared to what it used to be.

The person might feel cold and ask for a space heater or extra blanket.

Symptoms might include anxiety, any chronic illness that has been present for more than 1 year, cloudy or foggy thinking, some forms of infertility, hormone imbalances, feeling a lack or loss of purpose in life.  There can also be any physical issues with the fluids of the body – lymph, too much fluid like edema or too little showing as dryness, blood – which is about 83% water, saliva, tears, and urine.  There can also be any physical issues with the organs of the Kidneys or Bladder.

Using the actual words “in fear of”, “scared of or scared to”, “I’m afraid that…”, “I can’t do that”, “I would, BUT” and other things on this line.  It’s very interesting how our language and the words we spontaneously choose pick up our energetic health.

There can be various forms of subtle fear, such as: no self-confidence, staying in an unhealthy job or relationship, not following dreams or passions, an unusual fear of death – for the self or others.

Mentally a person might say they feel a lack of creativity such as writer’s block, an artist that can’t come up with an idea, or someone who doesn’t see any options to a situation.  Or there can be a lack of motivation to do things or complete projects that are started, leaving a pile of unfinished business.

So these are some of the basic and common things a massage therapist would likely come across.  And luckily, a massage that addresses the Water Element can have immediate benefit for some of these things.  Regular massage that continues to work with the Water Element can even have very deep and long lasting effects.

In modifying a massage to address an Element there are 3 main things to consider:

First - What specific techniques can be used?

Second - What meridians and acupoints can be stimulated?

Third - What can I bring into my own energy field to change the current vibration into a vibration that will carry a healing tone for this person?  (This is a fascinating aspect of bodywork.  Our science can show that during a healing session, the heart waves of the healer – massage therapist in this case – can be found in the recipient for a period of time after the healing session has ended.  This is profound information.  For more on this topic you can look into the HeartMath Institute which puts out incredible research in this area.)

To answer #1, What specific techniques can be used?  2 ideas I would consider are that water likes flow and fluidity.  We can make our massage strokes very graceful and flowing.  Next, round rubbing the lower back through the sheet, to warm that area which brings Qi and Blood to nourish the kidneys right where they are located.  An advanced Oriental medicine therapist may choose to do some Moxa if appropriate, or use an essential oil blend that addresses the specific symptoms.  A few of my favorite basic essential oils for the Water Element are Ginger, Fennel, and Juniper Berry – then Frankincense if anxiety is a symptom.

To answer #2: What meridians and acupoints can be stimulated?  On the front of the body we can very easily stimulate the Kidney meridian in the lower legs during effleurage strokes.  We can choose several strong acupoints to stimulate, such as Kidney 1 , Yong Quan and  KI-3 Tai Xi.

On the back of the body, we can stimulate the Bladder meridian in both the back and legs, and use the Kidney Shu points.

To answer #3: What can I bring into my own energy field to change the current vibration into a healing tone for this person?

For this, we need to look at the emotion of fear and how to embody the opposite of this.  Can we imagine someone we would call fearless?  What kind of characteristics does this person have?

They stand strong and tall, look you in the eye and smile, there’s a deep sense of confidence, they know that no matter what the situation they will act to do something – even if they don’t know exactly what that something is – they are creative and have a million options, they are at ease with life and allow life to have a spontaneous flow, they feel ALIVE – like they’re in the Zone.

So this aspect can take some practice – which is where meditation, QiGong, and Medical QiGong practices can really help a lot.  But we can still start somewhere, such as internally saying a mantra like “I am strong” “I am confident” “I have so much flow in my life”….. and then feel these things as we say them.  You might find that if you really get into a kind of groove while thinking these and doing the massage at the same time, you experience an energetic connection and strength that is powerful and healing.

How To Do an Energetic Reading for Oriental Bodywork

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This is the type of bodywork I teach in the Oriental medicine portion of our massage program. First we turn symptoms into an energetic picture. Then we decide how to balance the energy in the form of acupoints, meridians and Qi by using Qigong, massage, acupressure, and various tonifying or sedating techniques. We modify all of this into an incredible 1-hour healing massage – specially tailored to our individual client.
It is my goal to make sure that the clients I work with – and those that my students work with - feel incredibly nurtured, cared for, and supported by this type of bodywork. My students are wonderful souls that grow and spread this beautiful art – they learn so much and never cease to inspire me!


Example 1: Client presents with a headache, wants massage which usually helps it go away.

This is an example of my thought process:
Q: Where is the headache?
A: (points to left side of head, occipital area)
My note: Gall Bladder-20 (Feng Chi) is blocked.

Q: Does the pain radiate down your back or up into the head?
A: Up into the side of my head.
My note: Gall Bladder meridian is too full on that side. Excess Liver Qi rises up and affects the left side more strongly. I need to clear the Gall Bladder Meridian and open the Liver Shu Points on the back.


Q: How often do you get headaches like this?
A: Almost once a week. It’s been this way for probably 5 years – just work related stress, you know.
My note: Chronic Liver Qi stagnation from a frustrating job. I expect the Earth meridians (Stomach and Spleen) to be deficient, probably damp. Need to tonify Earth in the lower legs – will use the combination of Spleen-6 (San Yin Jiao) and Stomach 36 (Zu San Li).


This is enough information for me to start the massage. I’ll know more when I actually put my hands on the person and can feel what is going on.


Additional notes:
Lots of stagnation (knots) in the upper traps and levator scapulae – most noticeable energy blockage at Governing Vessel-14 (Da Zhui). This means to me that there is an obstruction of Yang energy. Sometimes in a female, this can mean that at some earlier point in life a man did something traumatic (physically, emotionally, or spiritually) to her. Forgiveness in some form is necessary – possibly forgiveness of the self first, and forgiveness of the spirit-being of the offender. Sometimes in a male, this can mean that there is a frustration and unfulfillment in the Yang energy – for example, feeling as if desired bold adventure that makes you feel alive is gone forever due to present circumstances. Some kind of outlet for bold yang is necessary – a martial arts class would be great. Of course, it could also be something totally different and very unique to the individual. (It is not my place to resolve the issues of forgiveness or unfulfillment that I have noted – I only note them as a reference point. It would be my intention to release the blocked energy and allow a natural flow of events to unfold from that – giving the client complete control over the experience and their own resolution or denial of the energy.)

As I am massaging the arms I feel an energetic tingling in my Lung and Large Intestine meridian. This is telling me that I need to address the Metal energy in the client. I add a Tui Na pain path using the acupoints: Large Intestine 11, 10, 9, and 4.

In the legs, as I suspected, the Spleen meridian feels deficient and empty. I hold Spleen-6 and Stomach-36 together while emitting Qi until I can feel an energetic pulse take form.

At the end of the massage, after opening the Liver Shu points and dispersing the accumulation at Da Zhui the headache is fully released, client leaves very happy.

Example 2: Client presents with anxiety attacks, receives regular massage because it helps.

In this case I will elaborate on the 2 main circumstances I noted and what they meant to me. Note that this is highly specific and individual circumstances may vary. This case study is for example only.

First, I always place my hands on a person’s abdomen to feel where in their body their breath goes – or doesn’t go. This is extremely valuable information and can influence an amazing number of health symptoms.

When I placed my hands on the client’s abdomen, their breathing dramatically changed. It went from being full and deep – very relaxed and almost asleep – to silent – superficial – completely still. This is a very alert and protective breath – fear related – has the feel of being intensely worried on a deep level. Hmmmm………Very interesting. When I release my hands and begin massaging their legs, their breath goes back to full and deep. The client seems completely unaware of what just happened.

On their back, the Spleen Shu Acupoints were stagnated to the size of golf balls. This is a huge blockage of Earth energy – energy of the Center.

When the Center is blocked, the kidneys and heart cannot communicate. On their own, the kidneys resonate with fear. When they communicate (are energetically connected) with the heart, everything is OK – the warmth and strength of the heart keeps the fear balanced. On the other side, the heart needs a strong anchor (kidneys) or it is so yang it floats away and you see things like heart palpitations and disturbed racing thought patterns. You get doom in the kidneys mixed with an out-of-control heart = anxiety.

The blockage of Earth is cutting off the communication between the heart and the kidneys. Whatever this is needs to be addressed first – then we’ll see if the line of communication realigns on its own or if it needs to be repaired. Both are do-able.

So what is it? Specifically I don’t know yet – but it will show itself when it’s ready to be resolved. On a more generic level I know that Earth has to do with how we feel about ourselves, our home, the people we live with, the geographical area where we live, our work, our relationships (on all levels), our relationship with the Earth – and especially the nutrition that Earth provides in the form of food, and even our relationship to the universe and our sense of purpose.

Further bodywork will involve a very nurturing touch, working to gently disperse the Earth stagnation, and ensuring that the heart and kidneys are communicating again. The details of how to do this are part of the “art” of healing bodywork and will vary from therapist to therapist. We might all use the paint of Oriental medicine, but we all paint with a slightly different style, and we can all create our own beautiful painting!

Cynthia McMullen, LMT, is a Master Massage Therapist at The Oriental Healing Arts Center, and is the Oriental Bodywork course instructor for our 800 Hour Massage Therapy Program.  She has been doing this type of energetic bodywork since 1999.

Case Study

(s) My client is a 55 year old female. She's in good shape and eats healthy. She's suffering from migraines and bouts of insomnia. She also claims to get very anxious at times. Her right rhomboid is sore as well as the right shoulder. She thinks she has frozen shoulder and tendonitis on that side. Her main goal is to relieve shoulder pain, stress relief, better sleep, and general relaxation.

(o) My client relaxes easily, partly due to her being comfortable with me and partly because she is looking forward to some quiet time. Her traps, neck, rhomboids and levetor scapulae are constantly tight and dense- these muscles include teres minor, supraspinatus, infraspinatus, and subscapularis. The erector spinae group of muscles down the back always seemed to have knots in them. This was more so on the low back. Biceps in the arms felt a bit more tense in the right arm. The IT band was problematic and tight. Rectus Femoris also tight with knots/ "speed" bumps. I could not do a deep clearing stroke on the legs. Throughout the massages I noticed the right shoulder gained more range of motion and flexibility. The IT band also let up over time. She was seemingly happier and more relaxed. She didnt slouch or slump her shoulders as much as she was before. She also said she felt more energized, pain reduction in the shoulder, and could sleep better at night. It took about 3 sessions to really notice a significant difference in how she felt.

(a) Throughout out time together I made sure to move very slow through the head/scalp massage to relax my client. I taught her 3 centered meditation for during the massages and to use outside of our sessions. On days that her anxiety level was high I would do a nice foot massage first and do some energy work to draw the energy down. When she experienced headaches I would work the pain path in the arms, including points LI 11,10,9, and 4. I also incorporated the S.I points 11 and 12 and L.I 16 all located around the shoulder to help with the shoulder pain. Energy work in the arms to draw the energy out through the fingertips and open up the pathway for the pain to travel out. Lung 1 and 2 were also included into the treatment plan, more towards the end. I used the LV/GB grasping down the legs to open up the meridians. This will help wood imbalance, manifested in the nails being ridged. The upper back got extra attention around the rhomboids and made sure to work S.I 10 on the scapula. Deeper pressure was often applied the erector spinae and focused more on the low back. When shoulder pain and headaches were at a high i would focus more on the arms, shoulders, neck, and back, and skip the legs completely besides compression. All these teqniques seemed to work for my client over time with pain relief and over all sense of well being.

(p) I plan to keep working with this person for as long as I can. I would like to assign and teach some Qi Gong movements to help her low back, which would include: Reaching for heaven and earth, accept the moon qi, and painting the world. Rowing on the lake would also be good for range of motion in the shoulders. I would also like to use the 9 points to revive the yang for depression issues and to restore energy. I would like to draw up a 5 element chart and map out imbalances to help her further. My client is very curious about chinese medicine, and would love to see some more results. I would also like to do a moxa/kidney treatment that we recently learned to help the low back and kidney qi. I will encourage her to use the meditation daily, especially before bed. I would like to practice Smiling Heart Qi Gong with her as well because its my favorite Qi Gong and opens the heart center

In conclusion I would say that I could see a significant different in body tension and some internal changes. Its amazing what a month and a half of consecutive massage can do. I am excited to learn more about Oriental Medicine and use it in the practice. I feel like the things i have learned here at OHAC are beneficial to my practice and make a tremendous difference. They can be life changing and are always positive. I cant wait to see what other positive changes I can make in my life and others.