Shiatsu
Defined by the Japanese Ministry of Health and Welfare - "Shiatsu therapy is a form of manipulation administered by the thumbs, fingers, and palms, without the use of any instrument, mechanical or otherwise, to apply pressure to the human skin, correct internal malfunctioning, promote and maintain health, and treat specific disease." Shiatsu is literally translated as "finger pressure."

The focus of Shiatsu is the circulation of Ki (Chinese Qi, Vedic Prana) as well as circulation of blood and lymph or soft tissue manipulation. Ki is loosely translated as "energy." It is the vital life force that moves, warms and protects us from outside influences on the human body. The ancient Chinese scientist/philosophers developed their entire medical science around this understanding of energy and matter. The origin of Shiatsu, shared with acupuncture, is traced back to the Yellow Emperor's Dynasty in Central China 3000 years ago. The treatment is described as a meditative dance between the practitioner and the receiver.

The treatment is pleasant and calming in Shiatsu. The therapist uses both hands simultaneously with continuous steady pressure in order to turn off sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight) and promote parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) function. Shiatsu involves much gentle stretching of joints and muscles. The treatment is done with patient fully clothed.

Tucson Acupuncture and Chinse Herbs have two shiatsu practitioners.

Raindrop Shiatsu
Essential oils are Jing-essence of plants. Jing-essence for humans is the substance that one is born with that declines with age. It contains the blueprint of who you are. So the essential oils of the plants reach the deeper level of human energetics affecting one's constitution and Shen-spirit. Essential oils applied to acupuncture points can produce more profound results than Shiatsu or acupuncture alone. In the view of western aromatherapy, essential oils increase the oxygen in the blood and cells. Chemical constituents such as sesquiterpenes are known to break blood-brain barriers.

Raindrop Shiatsu is a technique in which essential oils that resonate with the particular meridian system are dropped like raindrops along the spine. There are Shu-transporting points along the spine that stimulate and tonify Ki (Qi) in each organ system. From a western point of view, that is where the highest concentration of nerve receptors resides. The oils are highly antimicrobial and also dissolve the petrochemicals that clog the receptors.

While the oils are doing their job, Shiatsu is performed to enhance further relaxation. One can only heal oneself when "fight or flight" mode is turned off.