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Pressure point therapies use finger pressure on specific points--usually related to the oriental meridian points (see the glossary), but also other neurological release points--to reduce pain and treat various disease states. There are antecedents in Europe, Asia, and the United States. Adamus and A'tatis described a pressure system in 1582, and the sculptor Cellini (1500-71) wrote of using pressure points to relieve pain. In 1770 the Jesuit Amiat contributed to European understanding with an article on Chinese pressure point "massage." This article influenced the Swedish therapeutic massage pioneer Ling. In turn, Swedish therapeutic massage influenced traditional Japanese folk massage in the early 20th century, and this cross-fertilization became known as shiatsu. About 1913, Fitzgerald, an American, developed what came to be known as zone therapy. Fitzgerald had been influenced by Bressler in Europe. The use of pressure points has evolved under several systems, some of which are discussed below.
Reflexology. Fitzgerald's work with hand reflex points was developed and promoted by ~Ingram in the United States and Marquardt in Europe. Because in this system specific "zones" on the feet are related to specific organs, the system is often called zone therapy. There is a related system of hand zone therapy as well. The results reported for the process include relief of pain; release of kidney stones; and recovery from the effects of stroke, sinusitis, sciatica, and menstrual and other disorders (Marquardt, 1983).
Traditional Chinese massage. Traditional Chinese remedial massage methods were described in the texts of the Han period (202 B.C. to circa 220 A.D.). By the Tang Dynasty (618-907 A.D.), these systems were taught in special institutes. Both "tonification" (energizing) and "sedation" techniques are used to treat and relieve many medical conditions. Major techniques in use are
• ma, rubbing with palm or finger tips;
• pai, tapping with palm or finger tips;
~ • tao, strong pinching with thumb and fingertip;
• an, rapid and rhythmical pressing with thumb, palm, or back of the clenched hand;
• nie, twisting, with both thumbs and tips of the index fingers grasping and twisting the area being treated;
• ning, pinching and lifting in a stationary position;
• na, moving while performing ning; and
• tui, pushing, often with slight vibratory effect.
These techniques are usually used in combinations. Two prominent groupings of techniques are known as an-mo and tui-na.
~Widely varying illnesses and conditions are treated with traditional Chinese massage, including the common cold, sleeplessness, leg cramps, painful menses, whooping cough, diarrhea, abdominal pains, headache, asthma, rheumatic pains, stiff neck, colic, bed-wetting, nasal bleeding, lumbago, and throat pains.
Acupressure systems. Currently, four systems in which the fingers manipulate the oriental meridian system are in widespread use in the United States. In all these systems, pressure is applied to meridian points (acupuncture points on the meridians; also called acupoints) to stimulate or sedate them. Amounts of pressure and length of application vary according to the system, the ailment, and the intent. All of these systems--shiatsu, tsubo, jin shin jyutsu, and jin shin do--rely on traditional oriental medical theory (see the "Alternative Systems of Medical Practice" chapter), although their treatment methods vary considerably.
Shiatsu and tsubo rely largely on sequenced applications of pressure applied from one end of each meridian to the other. The patient reclines, usually lying on the back and then the front for approximately equal periods as the practitioner uses thumb pressure to stimulate the ~point through a combination of direct pressure and transference of qi (see the glossary) to the point from the practitioner's thumb. "Barefoot shiatsu" is a form that uses foot pressure to stimulate the meridian points. Sessions typically treat the meridians of the entire body in an attempt to bring relaxation, harmony, and balance to the patient. Shiatsu, which is traditional in Japan, has been used in the United States quite extensively for about 20 years. Therapy sessions have a strong focus on long-term health improvement. Procedures include specific treatments for a variety of functional disorders as well as postural, stress-related, and emotional problems. Conditions that have been improved include headache, asthma, bronchitis, diarrhea, depression, and circulatory problems (Namikoshi, 1969).
Jin shin jyutsu and jin shin do have developed sequences of meridian point pressure applications that are specific to the ailment being addressed. These systems are used more often than shiatsu and tsubo as alternative treatment approaches. Jin shin jyutsu, the "art of circulation awakening," was developed in Japan by Jiro Murai in the early 1900s and brought to the United States in the 1960s by Mary Iino Burmeister. It is the antecedent of jin shin do, which was developed in the United States by Iona Teeguarden in the 1980s. ~Sessions are primarily for treatment of specific problems. The approach is similar to that of acupuncture, as the meridian connections to the organs are understood and applied, but from somewhat different application perspectives. Pressure is applied to the meridian points, which are then held in specific patterns, to tonify or detonify (energize or enervate) the meridian qi. Conditions addressed include a wide range of organic dysfunctions (Teeguarden, 1987).