What can Shiatsu Do?
Some people turn to shiatsu for help with a specific symptom or condition. Others choose to have treatment to help maintain good health, as a preventive measure, or simply to improve their general sense of wellbeing. Because shiatsu aims to treat the whole person rather than specific symptoms in isolation, it can be effective for a range of conditions.
Because we treat the person, not just the condition which they have, each patient’s treatment plan will be different. However, you can always ask your practitioner about other patients’ experiences, to give you an idea of what to expect. Many people return to shiatsu again and again because they find it so beneficial and relaxing.
The understanding of a symptom within Chinese medicine can be quite complex. The strength of Chinese medicine is its ability to find exactly where symptoms fit within a range of complex patterns and to identify the best treatment specifically for you.
The translation between the patterns of Chinese medicine and western named conditions is a fascinating one. For nearly every named condition you bring to your practitioner there is a complex weave of different syndromes and patterns within which it is understood. The symptoms are important, a bridge between what you experience and how the practitioner, be they eastern or western, makes sense of what you bring to them. Every symptom has meaning within the eastern tradition.
You can get more information on current scientific research into the effectiveness of shiatsu by visiting www.shiatsusociety.org or by speaking to a qualified practitioner.
The Shiatsu Society
The Shiatsu Society is the national regulatory body which maintains the standards set up to ensure that professional shiatsu therapists are fully qualified to practice and to teach.
Practitioners undergo a minimum of 3 years of training, followed by theoretical and practical assessment and certification by the Society before being accepted as a professional member of the register of the Shiatsu Society. The Society also trains and recognises fully qualified shiatsu teachers (T) and probationary teachers (t).
For more information about the Shiatsu Society, contact:
The Shiatsu Society (UK), 20-22 Wenlock Road
London
N1 7GU
Tel. 01788 547900
website: The Shiatsu Society (UK)
