Practitioners of the ancient Chinese art of acupuncture rely on the acupuncture points map to free trapped energy in the body and restore health.
You might have spotted this type of chart of the human body on the wall of your holistic doctor’s office or during a visit to a natural health store. It depicts numerous points on the body where the body’s energy, also known as qi, often accumulates. In fact, there are over 2,000 points that conduct energy throughout the body!
Because of their direct connection to the flow of energy in the body, the acupuncture pressure points depicted on the acupuncture points map help to regulate body function, mood, emotional and spiritual well-being. You might find it surprising that acupuncture has been used for over two millennia to help relieve headaches, skin conditions, digestive disorders, and asthma. And, that’s just the beginning. Acupuncture has been known to help with depression, phobias, addictions, low self-esteem, eating disorders, and other ailments caused by energy imbalances in the body.
The traditional acupuncture points chart shows fourteen main channels, also known as meridians, which exist in the body – one meridian for each of the twelve organs, one along the spine and another along the abdomen. Acupuncture pressure points are located along these meridians, and some points have more than one function. This means that an acupuncturist might use them to cure more than one type of illness.
For example, there is a commonly-used point on the acupuncture points chart, which is located on the back side of the hand between the thumb and first finger. Acupuncturists use it mainly to relieve pain and to treat constipation or other intestinal disorders. This point, however, is also used to treat illnesses which cause inflammation and fever. Because the large intestine meridian runs from the hand to the face, these symptoms often manifest in the throat and head.
Another point on the acupuncture points map is located at the base of the skull along the gallbladder meridian. This is a valuable point to know around cold and flu season, because it helps treat these annoying illnesses. It also helps relieve headaches, neck pain, and fever. Additionally, it may also lower blood pressure and relax tension in the region around the eyes. There are a multitude of points that may hold the key to better health for you.
How does an acupuncturist use these points on an acupuncture points map? He or she utilizes small needles and places them at the specific point on the patient’s body to help relieve illnesses caused by disrupted energy flow. By manipulating the flow of qi at these points, the two forms of energy in the body, yin and yang, are brought into proper alignment. It may require several visits to your acupuncturist to bring your body’s energy into harmony.
Encouraging the proper flow of life energy at specific acupuncture pressure points will help bring your body into physical and emotional harmony, in addition to proper diet, exercise, and healthy lifestyle choices. Visit a licensed acupuncturist who has studied the acupuncture points map in detail to ensure a beneficial session.
Acupressure’s Sweet Spot - How To Get A Rush Without The Sugar
Date: Saturday October 3, 2009Posted in: Alternative Medicine
Are you a sugar user? More and more people are resorting to high sugar drinks and snacks for a quick jolt of energy. But the trouble with using sugar for an energy boost, is that it sets up a roller-coaster effect that can soon become addictive and lead to health problems down the line. Recent research has revealed an acupressure point that boosts energy and alertness naturally and with no come down.
The Highs & Lows of using Sugar for Energy
Soon after a sugar fix you start buzzing with energy, but it’s a short lived boost that soon swings sharply the other way with an energy slump. If you address that slump by eating or drinking something else high in sugar, you’ll get that energy rush again, followed by another slump.
Using sugar for energy gives sporadic results at best, but there are health dangers too. Diabetes II is an ever increasing risk in a world where we’re rushing to get more done and fighting daily battles with stress and fatigue. Sugar increases insulin levels and raises blood triglycerides which increases the risk of developing late onset Diabetes.
Acupressure Energy Boost
Acupuncture and Acupressure share a network of vital energy points situated along meridian channels throughout the body. For thousands of years these points have been used to influence qi (chi), the body’s subtle energy force, for a wide variety of physical and emotional benefits.
The University of Michigan recently finished an intensive study that set out to prove that acupressure can provide an effective natural energy boost. Lead researcher, Dr Richard Harris, explains “it [acupressure] seems to stimulate the nerves that moderate attention and alertness”.
Tapping the Sweet Spot
Students in the trial experimented with massaging five acupressure points for three minutes each. The most effective and stimulating point was the Si Shen Chong point, known to acupuncturists as one of the extraordinary acupoints (HN1), and found right in the centre of the top of the head.
Participants in the trial found the most effective way to get a sugar-free energy boost, was to tap this point lightly with the fingertips for two or three minutes.
The point used in this trial is one of the extra energy points sometimes used in the EFT meridian points tapping sequence. The beauty of EFT (Emotional Freedom Techniques) is that it uses a series of potent acupuncture and acupressure points that not only give the body a natural energy boost, but can also be used to control addictive cravings for sugar and popular stimulants like caffeine.
EFT uses a set sequence of 12 acupuncture points known to give relief from a wide range of emotional and physical symptoms. As found in the University of Michigan study, results are easily and reliably achieved by tapping lightly on the acupuncture points with the fingertips.
