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Health and Healing First Thursday
The gay and lesbian community is challenged to find and improve ways of maintaining
our health and healing our hearts and our bodies. This column will offer insights and
advice by various writers with a range of viewpoints and expertise. To submit an article or
request a topic, contact Franklin Abbott in care of Southern Voice, P.O. Box 18215,
Atlanta, GA 30316.
The Art of Jin Shin Jyutsu
Tve tried everything I can think of. My
doctor says that surgery is the next step to
consider and I really don't want to do it" Those
were the words I heard as I listened to a woman
who was suffering from a hyperthyroid
condition. She had called several months ago at
which time I told her about Jin Shin Jyutsu. She
wasn't interested then, but now that the other
options weren't working, she was willing to give
it a try. Her doctor had agreed to give her one
more month before scheduling surgery, so we
began immediately. She saw me for several
sessions close together initially, gradually
spreading them further and further apart. At the
same time, I gave her "homework" to be doing
on the days she wasn't seeing me. By the time
her next doctor’s appointment arrived, she was
feeling great (although still a little nervous about
what the tests would show). She was able to
identify when her energy was becoming
imbalanced and, by using the simple positions I
had suggested, bring it back into a more
harmonious balance. Her doctor was not as
convinced, stating he still felt surgery was
imminent, but would wait for the blood work
before deciding the date. When my client called
for the results, she was told everything had come
back normal and surgery was
off! That was over 18 months
ago and she continues to be
doing well.
Jin Shin Jyutsu is an
ancient Japanese healing art
similar to acupressure. The
literal translation means "The
Art of the Compassionate
Spirit" or "The Art of God's
Magic." Utilizing gentle
contact with two or more
"safety energy locks” (points),
balance and harmony are restored throughout the
individual's entire being (body, mind, and spirit).
The art began over 5,000 years ago, before the
system of acupuncture was developed. In the
early 1900's Jiro Murai began translating the
ancient records of the art for use in today's
world. Over 30 years ago, the art was
introduced to the United States through one of
his Japanese-American students, Mary
Burmeister.
The effects of Jin Shin Jyutsu are subtle yet
profound. Thus, the first session is sometimes
disappointing as "nothing" happened. However,
if continued, the effects can last a lifetime.
Sessions of Jin Shin Jyutsu can produce
favorable results in the treatment of physical and
emotional pain. They can also strengthen
muscles and deepen spiritual awareness by
opening the flow of specific body energy
meridians. They allow a deepening of an
individual's process to encourage a stronger
physical, emotional, and spiritual integration
within the body. This, in turn, encourages an
awakening of the unique and innate power we
each hold inside ourselves.
Jin Shin Hyutsu can also be self-administered
and incorporated into self-care programs. It is
assumed that the more a person knows about
her/himself, the more that person has to offer
others. Thus, there is a strong focus on the self
help aspects both for the practitioner as well as
for the client. Everyone is encouraged to play an
active role in their own individual wellness
program.
In one case, I saw a client who had become
hospitalized and was in severe pain. The
abdominal cramping was extreme and his ability
to cope with the pain was diminishing. By
teaching several family members how to hold
his ankles for the pain and similar points for
calming his mind, he was able to not only
survive until the next pain pill, but to extend the
time before another pill was needed.
Another time, I was working with a client
that regularly received massage sessions from
me. Out of curiosity, she requested that we have
a Jin Shin Jyutsu session this time instead. The
following week she arrived for her regular
session saying, 'My chiropractor says to tell you
that she's not sure exactly what you did to me
last time, but whatever it was to please repeat
it!"
With clients who have emotional issues, I
have found Jin Shin Jyutsu to be extremely
rewarding. Because of the art's inherent
integrative yet harmonizing properties, it assists
with re-entry into an emotionally charged body
in a manner that is not overwhelming to the
client. An example of this is a chart of mine
who had been severely abused as a child. By
goitly and slowly opening the flow of energy
between her head and the rest of ha "feeling"
body, she was gradually able to access emotions
and memories that had previously been
unavailable to ha conscious mind. Using
simple "homework" suggestions, she was able
to integrate the experiences that came through
for her outside of our sessions. Ha
psychotherapist felt the
"homework" was so
effective that she began
suggesting it to several of
her own clients.
Throughout the past
seven years as a Jin Shin
Jyutsu practitiona, I have
found it to be an excellent
therapeutic tool in a variety
of cases. My experience
has included coordinating
treatment plans with a wide
range of health professionals in both medical
and psychological settings. Because the
sessions require no movement by the client, they
are an effective approach for clients who cannot
be moved or who must be worked with in a
specific position. Since the points used to
balance and harmonize the client are often in an
area otha than the area of complaint, it is useful
with conditions that cannot be touched. As the
client remains fully clothed and the touch is
gentle, it is a safe and non-invasive approach for
clients facing emotionally traumatic
expoiences.
In summary, Jin Shin Jyutsu is an art of
gentle finga pressure that encourages a
reduction of both physical and emotional pain
through an integration of body, mind, and spirit
It brings with it a time-honored history of
effectiveness through centuries of use.
-Elaine Mueller
Elaine Mueller is both a Jin Shin Jyutus
practitioner and a nurse massage therapist.
She began on-going training in the art of Jin
Shin Jyutsu with Master Mary Burmeister in
1982. Currently, Elaine is in private practice
withAnsley Therapy Associates.
A one-day workshop in basic acupressure,
based on the art of Jin Shin Jyutsu, will be
presented by Elaine on Saturday, June 24.
Emphasis will be on stress, the immune
system, sinus, headaches, backaches, and
more. This workshop is being sponsored by
the Georgia Association of Nurse Massage
Therapists. For more information, contact
Elaine at: Ansley Therapy Associates, 1904
Monroe Drive, Suite 120, Atlanta, GA 30324,
(404)874-8294.
Cont'd from Page 16
to come togetha." Ken Wilson who assists Helping Hands with special projects and Ken
Kimsey who is a development consultant to Helping Hands arranged the affair, and Kimsey
touted First Thursday as a "neutral ground networking opportunity (for AIDS activists)
without an agenda or minutes."
Starting July 6th there will be a networking activity on the first Thursday of every month.
According to Griffin, "a cross-section of every group in town involved in AIDS work"
attended, including: AID Atlanta, the American Red Cross, the AIDS Research
Consortium, Childkind, the Emory AIDS Training Network, the Gay Center PLUS Group,
the Georgia AIDS Legislative Coalition, Grady Hospital, Heartstrings, Jerusalem House,
Joining Hearts, the LAMP Project, Legal Aid, Metropolitan Atlanta Council of Gay and
Lesbian Organizations, Lifeboat, the NAMES Project, Northern Lights Alternatives, Open
Hand, Outreach, Project Prevail, the Shrine of the Immaculate Conception, the Unitarian
Universalist Church and the United Way.
- Dave Hayward
June 22 from 7-10 PM
at the
Civic Center Auditorium
Admission is FREE - Please Join Us
Hear from a Panel of Experts:
US 3
Review & Assessment of the 5th
International Conference on AIDS
held in Montreal on June 4-9.
Question & Answer Period to follow
presentations.
O' 3
Overview of Atlanta AIDS Research
Consortium, Inc. mission & studies.
Sponsored by the Atlanta AIDS Research
Consortium, Inc. with assistance from NAPWA