3 Unique Pressure Points That Reduce Cancer Symptom

3 Unique Pressure Points That Reduce Cancer Symptom

Some people perform better under pressure.

It turns out that a little bit of pressure may help relieve certain cancer symptoms and treatment side effects.

Acupressure — a form of massage that reportedly originated in China before the Common Era — can alleviate nausea, fatigue, pain and anxiety, research shows.

It involves applying pressure to points called acupoints throughout the body to stimulate healing. It is a form of self-massage. Even though acupressure is less widely known than acupuncture in the U.S., acupressure predates acupuncture.

Before needles were invented, ancient cultures used sharp stones for acupuncture. Before sharp stones were used, people used fingers to apply pressure to acupoints.

Most studies on acupressure and acupuncture in cancer care indicate the therapy is helpful at palliating certain symptoms.

Costs and Cancer Centers That Offer Acupressure

One of the perks of acupressure is that it can be self-administered at any time, in any location. Acupuncture requires a licensed practitioner and the use of needles, making it an invasive procedure, albeit a minimally invasive one.

Acupressure is less commonly offered in cancer centers than acupuncture, but practitioners are found throughout the country and books on acupressure teach people how to effectively self-apply the therapy.

A number of cancer centers now offer acupuncture as a complementary treatment. For example, the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute has offered acupuncture since 2000 and is leading the way in standardizing protocols for oncology acupuncture.

The cost of acupressure is often lower than acupuncture, especially if you take the self-taught approach. An acupressure session with a trained practitioner can cost $50 to $95, while acupuncture sessions may cost $75 to $125. Once you learn acupressure points that work for you, it is easy and free to apply the therapy yourself.

Do It Yourself

Self-administering acupressure is easy and safe for people with cancer. You’ll want to use your fingers to apply steady, prolonged pressure for at least three minutes per acupoint. Applying pressure in a circular motion may enhance effectiveness for some people.

The degree of pressure you’ll apply will vary by acupoint. You want more pressure than light touch offers, yet not too much pressure to cause bruising or pain. Acupoints that reside around developed muscle tissue will require more pressure. Some points may feel more sensitive than others; apply less pressure to sore or sensitive points. You can apply pressure for as long as you want to control symptoms such as nausea, pain or anxiety.

Ideally, you’ll want to sit or lay in a comfortable position when performing acupressure. Take several relaxing, deep breaths before you begin. Place your focus on breathing and try to relax.

Acupoint for Reducing Nausea and Vomiting

Position your hand so that your palm is facing you. Relax your fingers.

Place the first three fingers of your opposite hand across your wrist, aligning your ring finger with the wrist crease (Figure 1). Next, place your thumb below and slightly under your index finger (Figure 2). The thumb should be centered on the wrist and you will feel two prominent tendons underneath. That is acupoint P6.

Apply firm pressure to the acupoint for at least three minutes.

Repeat on the opposite wrist.

Acupoint for Reducing Pain

Position your hand with your palm facing down. Gently spread your fingers.

Use your opposite thumb and middle finger to find the slight indentation between the base of your thumb and index finger (see figure). That is pressure point LI4.

Apply firm pressure to the acupoint for five minutes.

Repeat on the opposite hand.

Acupoint for Reducing Anxiety

Place your thumb or middle finger between your eyebrows at the root of your nose (see figure). That is acupoint Extra 1.

Apply gentle pressure to the acupoint for 10 minutes. Less time is fine if you don’t have 10 minutes to spare.

For added relaxation, focus on your breathing and consider visualizing yourself in a peaceful place, such as in a garden, by a stream or on a cloud.

Complication Management

Side effects and complications from acupressure are extremely rare. If someone presses too hard on the acupoint, bruising can occur. That may happen more easily for people undergoing chemotherapy.

While studies have proven the benefit of acupressure and acupuncture for cancer patients, there are no standardized protocols for how to use the therapy for specific symptoms.

Different practitioners may use different acupoints to treat the same symptom, which could be further studied to see which points work best for various symptoms. Acupressure could play a more prominent role in the future of integrative cancer care as promising research continues to surface.

For those of you interested in reading more about the research on acupoints and acupressure, here is a list of specific conditions and the studies done on how to relieve those symptoms:

Fatigue

A 2007 clinical trial found acupressure and acupuncture generally effective at relieving cancer-related fatigue (CRF) after chemotherapy, but acupuncture offered greater improvement. The group receiving acupuncture reported a 36 percent improvement in CRF, the acupressure group reported a 19 percent improvement and the placebo group reported a 0.6 percent improvement.

A 2014 Taiwanese trial reported that acupressure improved fatigue, sleep quality and functional status of people receiving chemotherapy for lung cancer. Application of essential oils to the acupoints particularly improved sleep quality.

Nausea and Vomiting

A 2007 study found acupressure reduced the amount of vomiting and the intensity of nausea over time for people who received chemotherapy. However, acupressure didn’t significantly help vomiting or nausea immediately following chemotherapy. In fact, it delayed the effect.

A 2007 British trial found that acupressure lowered the occurrence of nausea, dry heaving and vomiting and lessened the severity of the nausea and dry heaving following chemotherapy. Acupressure was applied to just one point on the wrist using a wristband such as the Sea-Band brand wristband available throughout the U.S. Participants who received acupressure had to wear the wristband for five days after chemotherapy began. The point, known as P6 or PC6, is located on the inside of the wrist, three fingers down from the wrist crease in the center.

A 2007 Italian study found that acupressure could help chemotherapy patients who were not responding to anti-nausea medication. Pressure was applied to the P6 point and 68 percent of participants had a reduction in vomiting.

A 2015 Turkish study found the P6 point effective at decreasing chemotherapy-induced nausea, vomiting and anxiety among breast cancer patients.

A 2015 review of acupressure studies reported self-administration effective at improving nausea and vomiting for cancer patients, reducing symptoms of respiratory disease, relieving fatigue and reducing sleep disturbances.

Pain

A 1996 study evaluated the effects of acupressure on post-operative pain and found it effective. The group that received real acupressure reported significantly lower pain scores than the placebo group.

A 2014 meta-analysis of auricular acupressure, which is acupressure applied to the ear, found it effective at managing different types of pain, including post-operative pain and low back pain. Auricular acupressure also reduced the need for pain medicine before and after surgery.

It is worth noting that acupressure may be less effective for cancer-related pain than acupuncture. A 2003 study of acupuncture applied to the ear showed a 36 percent reduction in pain among cancer patients who still had pain after taking pain medicine.

A 2007 German study found acupuncture helped relieve peripheral neuropathic pain, a type of nerve pain that can result from chemotherapy, in 76 percent of participants.

Anxiety

A 2005 Indian study found acupressure effective at reducing pre-operative anxiety, but the effects don’t last long after pressure is removed from the acupoint. Pressure was applied in a circular motion for 10 minutes to the Extra 1 point, which is located between the eyebrows at the root of the nose. Participants reported a significant reduction in anxiety, but their anxiety returned to baseline after 30 minutes. The results suggest that anxious patients can use this acupoint to temporarily reduce anxiety in medical settings and elsewhere.

Original article and pictures take www.corespirit.com site

3 Simple Keys To Real Qi gong

3 Simple Keys To Real Qi gong

Real Qigong is not complex. There are very few rules, if any. There are no chants to remember and no special level of knowledge or achievement needed.

Real Qigong involves the following three things:

Relaxation – of the mind, body and spirit. Let go of thoughts, worries, and concepts. Relax.

Breathing – Slow, comfortable breathes, long slow exhales, deep inhalations without forcing anything.

Movement – Simple, flowing movements with little to no effort. Muscles are not engaged. Mind is barely engaged, if at all.

Of the three points listed above, the third is actually the least important of the three, yet it’s often considered the most important because it can be observed outwardly.

In order to be still on the outside, you must first truly be still on the inside.

This means you should primarily focus on relaxing and breathing, and not place much importance on the movements. However, many people get caught up in trying to memorize the movements and to get them right.

Don’t fall into that trap. Learn to relax. Learn to breathe. Learn to pay attention to your body.

Pay attention when it’s not easy to relax. Where do you feel tension? Why can’t you relax? Is it physical? Is it mental or spiritual? Whatever it is, it’s ok. Don’t put any pressure on yourself to be any certain way – you are what you are at that moment – embrace it and become aware of it.

Once you become aware of the fact that you can’t relax, you can easily figure out why. Once you figure out why, you can make the physical or mental corrections to relax. Maybe you just need a big deep exhalation. How about a vocal sigh? That usually does wonders for me.

Physical issues keeping you from relaxing? Stretch a little. Sit or lay down if that feels better.

Whatever it takes, learn your own body, then learn to relax.

Original article and pictures take www.corespirit.com site

3 Reasons Everyone Should Try Cupping

3 Reasons Everyone Should Try Cupping

For many of us, the new year is a traditional time to set goals and enjoy an increased openness to new experiences. This willingness presents an opportunity to explore the benefits of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Better health is on everyone’s list for the new year and cupping is wonderful technique that can improve your health and provide numerous benefits.

One way to think about cupping is that it is the inverse of massage. Rather than applying pressure to muscles, the suction uses pressure to pull skin, tissue and muscles upward. I often combine cupping with acupuncture into one treatment, but it could also be used alone.

Cupping was developed thousands of years ago and though the techniques have modernized, the original philosophy remains the same.

Cupping involves placing glass, bamboo or plastic jars on the skin and creating a vacuum by suctioning out the air. The underlying tissue is raised, or sucked, partway into the cup. The purpose of cupping is to enhance circulation, help relieve pain, remove “heat” and pull out the toxins that linger in your body’s tissues.

You usually will feel a tight sensation in the area of the cup. Often, this sensation is relaxing and soothing. Depending on your comfort and your practitioner’s assessment of the problem, cups may be moved around or left in place. They may remain on your body briefly or for longer amounts of time. Each treatment is unique to you on that particular day. One very common area to be cupped is the back, although cups work well on other areas, too — particularly on fleshy sections of the body.

Cupping causes the skin to temporarily turn red, blue or purple, especially if there is an injury or energetic blockage under the area that was cupped. The skin discoloration can last anywhere from a few days to a couple of weeks, but is rarely painful. Once the marks have cleared, the procedure can be repeated until the condition or ailment is resolved.

There are a number of methods of cupping — the two most common here in the U.S. are “fixed cupping” and “moving cupping.”

Fixed Cupping:

The cups are placed on a selected area of your body and then left in place without being moved.

Moving Cupping:

As the name implies, in this method your practitioner applies massage oil or cream on your skin in selected places, puts the cups over the areas to be treated and then slides them around that region of the body — most commonly the back. The cups slide easily because the cream has lubricated your body.

You ought to consider exploring the benefits of cupping if you seek relief from stress, pain, allergies, fatigue, flu, colds, back pain, anxiety, muscle aches, red itchy skin conditions or fever.

Here are three reasons why cupping just might go mainstream this year:

1. Celebrity cupping enthusiasts are growing in numbers.

It was about 10 years ago when cupping first appeared in the tabloids. Actress Gwyneth Paltrow showed up on the red carpet with obvious round cupping marks on her back. She received a lot of press and later explained to Oprah, “It feels amazing and it’s very relaxing.”

Well, these days she is not alone among Hollywood stars who are devoted to this ancient healing technique. Last April, Jennifer Aniston arrived at the premiere of her movie, “Call Me Crazy” looking stunning in a strapless black dress which revealed cupping marks. She is known to be a long time fan of cupping and acupuncture.

Others stars who are outspoken proponents of cupping are Jessica Simpson, Lady Gaga and Victoria Beckham. They have spoken about using cupping for various physical complaints as well as for relaxation. Exes have picked up on the treatment too. Chris Martin (Paltrow’s “consciously uncoupled” partner) showed off his cupping circles while working out in London. Brad Pitt is also rumored to have tried cupping.

2. Athletes use cupping as a secret weapon.

Wang Qun, a Chinese swimmer proudly showed off her marks during the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. Always looking for methods to naturally improve health and performance, more athletes have turned to cupping. Tennis ace Andy Murray said he used cupping in conjunction with other treatments to relieve stiffness and to help address a back injury.

Mets baseball players have also adopted the treatment. In August The Wall Street Journal reported on the multitude of Mets players using cupping. The trend started for them after their teammate Daisuke Matsuzaka appeared in the locker room with cupping marks. The 33-year-old started cupping about two years ago and was quoted in WSJ saying, “As an athlete, I want to play as long as possible, in order to do that, I need to find ways to protect my body. I’m always looking for something that might be better.”

But cupping is not just for movie stars and athletes … cupping is highly beneficial for everyone.

3. Cupping provides relief for many health conditions.

Cupping has numerous benefits — it can help remove toxins from the body and stimulate the flow of fresh blood, lymph, and Qi to the affected area and throughout the body. It often works wonders for patients with the flu, colds, coughs, back and muscle pain, poor circulation, anxiety, red itchy skin conditions (though cups are not applied to inflamed areas), allergies, fevers, aches and myriad other pains.

Cupping is not exclusive to Traditional Chinese Medicine. Variations of this treatment were used by ancient Egyptians, North American Indians, early Greeks, and in other Asian and European countries. Cupping therapy was recommended by Hippocrates, the man whom many consider to be the “Father of Modern Medicine,” in his guide to clinical treatment.

It should be noted that cupping is not be used on patients who bleed easily and/or cannot stop bleeding, have skin ulcers, or edema. It is unwise to cup over large blood vessels as well. Pregnant women should be cupped with extreme caution and never on their abdomen or lower back.

To be cautious I generally practice a less intense treatment the first time, and then see how the patient reacts before implementing longer amounts of time and more suction.

Original article and pictures take www.corespirit.com site