The Healing Journey – Part 1

As we continue our journey on complementary and alternative healing modalities, we would like to discuss other healing systems, such as: Acupuncture, Acupressure, Shiatsu, Reiki, Quantum Touch (QT), Therapeutic Touch, Emotional FreedomTechnique (EFT), and Tapis Acupressure (TAT) and reflexology to name a few. The modalities that we mentioned are all referred to as energy healing techniques.

Right about now, you like us, should be asking…what are they talking about?

We are referring to the Universal Life Force Energy. This is the energy that is referred to in martial arts as Chi, Qi (China) and Ki (Japan & Korea). In cultures where yoga is used, it is called Prana. No matter what it is called, it is all the same energy; it is the breath of life. Think of it this way, if you were the creator and it was your desire to have your children, your creation, be close to you, you would devise a method that they use to come to you on a regular basis. We could say that it is food, but you could live without food for weeks and still survive. We could say that it is water, but you could be deprived of water for days, or even weeks, and still survive. However, if you cannot breathe you will expire in minutes. Therefore, it makes sense that to us it is the breathing that keeps us close to our creator. Don’t confuse this with oxygen; oxygen is what we need to keep our physical bodies alive. In the breaths that we take we are also drawing in the universal energy or life force.

The philosophy behind some of the modalities that we have mentioned in this article is that there are energy pathways in our bodies that we call meridians. These invisible pathways, or meridians, are how the life force energy gets distributed within our bodies. Yet, other modalities refer to two sided trumpet like structures, or Chakras, that distribute the life force energy throughout our bodies. The interesting thing is that no matter which alternative healing modality you choose to work with, they are all highly effective in the distribution of the life force energy and can be used in complementary ways. They are complementary to each other and extremely complementary to traditional medicine.

We believe that scientific breakthroughs in physics have helped to make many of these healing modalities more legitimate. If anything, science is proving through quantum physics that we are all connected and the universal connection is energy. It all goes back to Einstein’s equation E=mc2 in that all matter is made of energy. What quantum physics is saying is that everything is energy including the things that we are unaware of. It is easy for us to understand Einstein’s equation that basically states that all matter is energy. What is difficult to comprehend is that even the space between the matter is energy. For example, you have a table and four chairs and four people sitting in those chairs around that table. In the older view you would interpret Einstein’s work as each of those components separate, but what science is now understanding is that at a very, very microcosmic level there is no separation among the chairs, the table, the people, the air that surrounds them, the building they are in,
and it goes on and on.The biggest issue that science and traditional medicine has with these modalities is that they can’t measure them. What we are dealing with hereseems like the miraculous, but it is just as normal as all of the other things that we can measure.

We would like to elaborate further on the energy distribution that we have mentioned. The modalities that explain this distribution through pathways that go through your body called meridians. Each pathway starts at the feet and goes up to the head and is associated with major organs of the body. When this life force energy flow is stopped or retarded it creates a problem in the organs or that pathway because they are not easily getting energy; in essence what you have is a dis-ease. With acupuncture, needles are placed into various points of the body which will help to break up these blockages restore normal flow of energy to the body and therefore well being.

“When President Nixon went to China in 1972, James Reston, the New York Times political commentator covering the trip, had to undergo an emergency appendectomy. Following the surgery Reston reported his surprise at the pain relief he experienced from a few Acupuncture needles. His story attracted a great deal of attention in the American medical community, so much so that several doctors went to China to study the Eastern methods.

Since then, numerous film clips of treatments, including major surgery, using Acupuncture have appeared on our television screens. Research was undertaken to assess the reliability of pressure point therapy for pain relief and healing, and found it effective. Publication of this research in scientific journals has opened the door to widespread acceptance and appreciation for this knowledge.

Bill Moyers, in preparing his PBS series, Healing and the Mind, witnessed a brain tumor surgery in Beijing. Because of the use of Acupuncture, the patient needed only half the medication normally used for sedation. What’s more, the patient remained conscious during the entire three-hour operation and actually conversed with the doctor! (Using less anesthesia means less danger for the patient as well as a faster recovery time and fewer side effects.)

Acupuncture is practiced by more than three million doctors in Asia and is used in clinics and hospitals all around the world. Officially recognized by the World Health Organization as effective in treating 104 conditions including arthritis, back pain, tonsillitis, asthma, migraine headaches, and paralysis from stroke, it is being taught as a medical procedure in Russia and more than 10,000 doctors in the United States have adopted it as a tool. It has also been used extensively in treating addictions (including nicotine, alcohol, cocaine, and heroin) with great success.

Most important for you is that medical historians believe Acupuncture was derived from the simpler, finger-pressure techniques of Acupressure.” Acupressure is an ancient healing art that, when hands are applied to specific points on the body, facilitates the release of blocked energy and may help increase or decrease the energy level that is linked with various internal organs and nerve functions. Acupressure is considered to be very healing for the body, mind and spirit, and it can be performed on humans and animals alike.

With those modalities that feed the distribution of energy throughout the body is a system of chakras. The distribution would be as follows: Within the body there are seven major chakras and these chakras are also associated with various organ systems of the body.

“Volumes can be, and have been, written about the chakras. They are energy centres that lie along the axis of the spine as consciousness branching forth from the spinal column. The psychic senses reside within these whirling vortexes of energy.

The concept of the chakras, or ‘energy centres” in the body, pervades, in some form, many cultures around the world. However, no culture developed the idea more than Hindu, from Tantric philosophy and Yoga.

The chakras are not to be understood as real in the physical sense but as situated in the auric body. They are repositories of intuitive energies. In the Hindu religion they are usually represented as blossoming lotuses.”

The word chakra comes from an ancient language called Sanskrit and it means wheel. That is why they are known as wheels of light. These major chakras are located in the following places:

• The 1st chakra, which is known as the root chakra is located near the base of the spine and lower pubic area. It is associated with the color red, abundance and grounding.
• The 2nd chakra, which is known as the sacral chakra is located between the pubic bone and the belly button. It is associated with the color orange, sexual energy and abundance.
• The 3rd chakra, which is known as the solar plexus chakra is located around the solar plexus area. It is associated with the color yellow, intuition “your gut feeling”.
• The 4th chakra, which is known as the heart chakra is located in the heart area. It is associated with the color green, emotional levels.
• The 5th chakra, which is known as the throat chakra is located in the throat area. It is associated with the color blue, communication and inner identity.
• The 6th chakra, which is known as the third eye chakra is located on an area at the center of the forehead. It is associated with the color indigo, intuition, belief and reality.
• The 7th chakra, which is known as the crown chakra is located at the crown of the head where the three bones meet. It is associated with the colors purple or sometimes white, is our connection point with creation.

Imbalances or lack of energy flow through the chakra system causes the vibration and brightness of the color of the affected chakra to lessen and become dull, and since these chakras spin, the rate at which they spin becomes slower. Modalities that work with the chakras are yoga and Reiki, but are not limited to these systems. In our next article we will further elaborate on Reiki and other healing modalities.

In closing, we would like to leave you with the Reiki Principles, read them, follow them, and they will make your life better.

The Reiki Principles

• Just for today I will give thanks for my many blessings.
• Just for today I will not worry.
• Just for today I will not be angry.
• Just for today I will do my work honestly.
• Just for today I will be kind to my neighbor and every living thing.

(1) Jack Forem and Steve Shimer, L.A.C., Healing with Pressure Point Therapy (New York, NY: Penguin Putnam, Inc., 1999)
(2) VannaStibel, Theta Healing(Carlsbad, CA: Hay House, Inc., 2011)

Patricia Pedersen is a Natural Healer, Certified Clinical Hypnotist, Certified Acupressurist, Nutrition Counselor, Master Herbalist and a Doctor of Naturopathy. Patricia is a teacher, counselor, coach and a partner with you in your quest for health and wellness.

Robert Brienza is a Master Hypnotist, Mental Trainer, Certified Master NLP Instructor, Reiki Master Teacher and Certified Sports Enhancement Specialist. He has continued his course of study in Healing and Pain Management and is a Therapeutic Massage Therapist. Robert helps people to overcome fears, stop smoking, meet weight reduction goals, improve golf games and overcome addictions.

Patricia & Robert have been interviewed many times on NY Talk Radio, are presenters at Essex County College and travel extensively giving workshops on such subjects as Complementary Health, Stress Reduction, Pain Relief, Weight Reduction, Nutrition & Herbs, Past Life Regression, Sports Enhancement and Mental Training for Sales & Marketing.

Patricia & Robert are available for corporate speaking engagements and events for groups of 15 or more. To book a speaking engagement callWholistic Wellness Associates, LLC at (908) 206-1399.If you would like to communicate with us via email, our email address is…wholisticwellnessassociates@gmail.com

Our website is www.holisticwellnessnj.com. Although still under construction, it can be viewed by all!