Case Studies and Meridians

Everyone's body is different, and every body has different complaints, aches and pains. In our [massage therapy] class at the Oriental Healing Arts School of Massage we were able to take our personal complaints and were able to help treat them or subside the issue.

Over a period of time, we were taking massage, acupressure, tai chi and qi gong, as well as our own personal home care such as dieting, exercising, and essential oils to change the complaints that we had.

There were many different types of case studies that were covered, from fatigue to joint pain, previous bone injuries, tiredness, skin problems, and insomnia. All case studies were treated differently according to what acupressure points were right for that person, as well as different types of qi gong for every individual.

The five elements played a big role in defining what a person had a deficiency in or where stagnation was in the body. The five elements all compliment each other, and every organ is is linked to an element. 


What is the 5 element theory?The Five Element theory is based on the observation of the natural cycles and interrelationships in both our environment and within ourselves. The foundation of the theory rests in the correspondences of each element to a variety of phenomena.

Depending on the complaint that the individual had, we were given specific acupressure points to trigger in the one hour relaxation massage. All meridians were covered during the massage yet specific points helped subside the complaint the person had.

Some major meridians are the Bladder meridian, Spleen and Gallbladder meridians, Stomach, and Triple Burner meridians.  Qi gong exercises were also given to the person. In most cases the qi gong exercises that were given were moves that the person felt comfortable with. If your body feels like it needs that type of movement, in many cases it means it is effective. For example a type of Qi Gong for the water element is listed below. 


* Reaching for Heaven and Earth
* Pumping the kidney qi 
* Drawing the bow

Some of the individuals in the case studies were given different kinds of essential oils to use, as well as following a healthier diet that included foods that were beneficial to the complaint. When using multiple tools to help the issue you were able to tell the difference in a short period of time.


The result:
At the end of the treatment sessions you were able to tell dramatic differences right away. Problems that the individuals had were either gone or were mild. The change was fascinating because it not only made you feel better but also look at the issue differently.

Massage is such a great and effective way to help treat many problems someone may have, and with multiple types of massage you are able to subside many problems. 

Learning Oriental Medicine with Massage

I am a recent student of Alaska Institute of Oriental Medicine and this is a brief summary of my experience in learning massage with oriental medicine.  Just to give you an idea of our schedule for learning massage I will outline our class schedule for you.  

There are basically two halves of school, in the first half we learn anatomy and physiology in the mornings and massage in the afternoon until we have completed the basic massage table and chair patterns and completed anatomy and physiology.  The second half of school we spend our time on oriental medicine and applications to massage practice with some specific patterns to help correct biological and physiological problems.

Learning this material in this order lets us full grasp the massage techniques and then teaches us why were doing what were doing and how we can improve what we are doing for ourselves and the clients. 

When learning oriental medicine you start to see how different parts of the body are connected and can influence one another.  You also see how you mind, mood, food, environment and other things can influence your health and state of being.  

With this knowledge you can help people significantly more with basic massage just by understanding their pain better.  Someone may experience frequent pain in a specific area on their body or experience a loss of energy and not have any explanation as to why.  

With oriental medicine you understand that areas of the body are connected and can influence one another, the pain may be referred from blockage in another part of the body or the energy loss could be something so simple as breathing properly and aligning posture.

In class we also learn basic qigongs and their application to a healthier mind and body.  We can advise and teach these to others as well as use them ourselves for self maintenance which is another thing that oriental medicine has brought to our practice.  

Self maintenance is the most important part of massage practice in my opinion.  By learning proper body mechanics, qigong and tai chi we as massage therapists can maintain our own bodies so that we are able to practice massage effectively while keeping our own bodies healthy and safe from damage.

We are not by any means certified doctors in oriental medicine after learning this material but that's one of the great things about oriental medicine.  Even with a brief understanding you can still see a profound change in your understanding of healthy living and its application to massage.  Although if you are ambitious enough to further your study with oriental medicine there is plenty of room to grow and further your understanding.