Ten years as a professional shiatsu practitioner
Shiatsu is traditional Japanese physiotherapy. I like to use this therapy as it addresses the interrelationship between our physical, mental and emotional habits. Although shiatsu can be extremely relaxing that is not always the primary aim. Sometimes the work is physically challenging, other times it is extremely light and gentle. I adapt my techniques according to the client.
Treatment room in Halesworth, Suffolk. Current cost £37/hour (children £20) Tel: 01986 873997
Testimonials:
“Regular shiatsu provides me with relief for the stresses and strains of everyday life. Afterwards, I feel totally unwound and relaxed.”
Stuart P (carpenter)
“Years after recovering from a slipped disc, any stress continued to go straight to the same weakness leaving me in agony and completely debilitated. Shiatsu has made a very real difference to my life – I feel like I have a new body – one which no longer lets me down.”
Lynne Ward (teacher)
“My wife of 30 years developed Motor Neuron Disease about four years ago. Even knowing MND was a terminal disease I still failed to predict what painand grief I would suffer following her death. I became haunted by memories of watching her die. I couldn’t sleep. Life without her seemed barely worth living. I floundered in search of remedy. My GP recommended Prozac. But nothing filled the void; nothing worked.
At this point, the philosophy as well as the practice of Cindy’s chi gung classes made me feel physically as well as psychologically more grounded and balanced. But I think it was only when Cindy offered me a free Shiatsu that the healing process really began. I remember driving home after this first session and realizing that for the first time I was feeling reasonably calm and normal after weeks and months of emotional turmoil.
I began having regular Shiatsu sessions and gradually, subtly, began to feel I could cope. (Cindy also taught me TFT, which has proved invaluable.) The grief persisted – probably always will – but the depressions and spells of weeping are now like passing clouds. Days and nights of being crushed by sadness and futility are few and far between.
I can’t say exactly how I know that these Shiatsu sessions have been so beneficial; I just know deep down that, along with chi gung, they have helped me more than anything else I have tried. It is extraordinary and even fascinating how this ancient art of physical therapy can relax and release stresses and emotions. And, unlike most remedies, these sessions are very enjoyable!
Peter Green (care worker)
Although primarily trained in Zen shiatsu techniques I include other modalities depending on the needs of the client. In particular I draw upon the highly compatible systems of TFT (thought field therapy), NLP (neurolinguistic programming) and chi gung healing.
TFT, similar to Emotional Freedom Technique, involves tapping acupoints while experiencing or remembering a particular emotional state. I have found this to be extremely effective for panic attacks, chronic anxiety, post traumatic stress, depression and addiction. If it didnt work, I wouldn’t use it.
Some clients have regular shiatsu as a preventive, others have sessions only for a short course of treatments to treat a specific ailment.
A FEW EXAMPLES
Short course of treatments for specific problems
In my practice, frozen shoulders usually take between 4 and 8 treatments to become pain free and mobile. An example of depression (lasting over three years) shifted to more manageable levels within 4 treatments. Alopecia can respond very quickly getting ‘baby hair’ regrowth after the first session. Menstrual problems can take a few cycles to settle down.
Regular preventive treatments
A labourer who relies on his back for work uses monthly shiatsu (even if he feels fine) to keep his back mobile because he recognizes that a tight back is an easily injured back and injury means loss of business. A social worker exposed to high stress levels uses regular shiatsu to release chronic tension held in her neck. This prevents headaches and dizzy spells which she experiences without the shiatsu.
Cindy Engel:
Graduate diploma and post-graduate diploma, The Shiatsu College, Norwich , Norfolk
[4 years training; 11 years practitioner]
Experienced Shiatsu workshop facilitator here in the UK and in Germany
Thought Field Therapy (TFT) practitioner level