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Advice and Shintaikido Meridian Therapy First Aid

Kaiso's Advice Corner

Please e-mail your questions and I will answer them to the best of my ability.

Disclaimer: Any information from Kaiso Dave Bendigkeit or this website is not intended to be a medical solution to your problems, and should only be undertaken after consulting a qualified medical doctor. The information about Acupressure and Massage procedures and Herbal medicines found on this web site are not medical advice but rather general information of an educational nature. Therefore, it should not take the place of medical advice from medical professionals such as physicians or pharmacists for the treatment of particular medical problems.

Shintaikido Meridian Therapy

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Common Cold

Back Pain (Lower)

The Common Cold

There is, of course, no sure cure for the common cold. However, there are some actions that you can take to make your symptoms less annoying. As they say, colds either last 2 weeks or 14 days.

1. Do all of the usual things that you probably know about. These include placing a wet, hot washcloth over your mouth and breathing through it to break up the mucous in your lungs. Placing a wet, hot washcloth over your sinuses to get the mucous to begin moving. For sore throat, gargle salt water (yuck!).

2. Over the counter cold remedies are okay for reducing symptoms such as fever, congestion, and aches. It is important to understand that they don't prolong the cold unless you get into activities that stress the immune system, such as not sleeping enough and exercising too much. Take it easy. Be NICE to yourself!

3. Standard herbal teas such as Echinacea can be helpful. Garlic, cayenne, and cloves are also beneficial due to their stimulating and immune system activating properties.

4. Lymph moving massage, as practiced in Shintaikido Massage, is stimulating to the immune system. Regular western style massage can have the opposite effect by concentrating toxins in the soft tissues.

5. Acupressure points GV-16, GB-20, LU-1 & 6, along with BL-12 & 13, help to stimulate the immune response and and clear mucous from the lungs.

6. Acupressure points GB-1,2,3 &20, TH-23, SI-18, ST-2 & 3, along with LI-20, help to move the mucous out of the sinuses. You can find these points even without knowing them by gently pressing various spots on your face and feeling if the sinus pressure is changed.

7. Pressing the tongue strongly against the palate just behind the upper teeth will stimulate blood flow into the throat. Mentally focusing on the space between the third eye, if done properly, (don't cross your eyes, please!) will help the sinuses to drain.

8. BE NICE TO YOURSELF!!! Take a hot bath with some nice fragrance.

Lower Back Pain

Lower back pain can have many causes. The most common is strained muscles. Some other causes can be disk problems in the lumbar region, strained tendons, or fever due to Flu-like illnesses. If you have the Flu, follow your usual procedures like plenty of rest, fluids, and any medications recommended by your physician. In the case of disk problems, there are treatments in acupressure that can be applied. However, I'll not go into them here, since they require some rather involved diagnostic procedures. See your Physician first. In this entry, I'll deal with massage and meridian points that can help to alleviate the pain and physical stress of lower back problems caused by strained muscles.

1. Do all of the usual things that you probably know about like don't lift using your back. Use your legs. Fat stomachs add to lower back stress. I know this from personal experience! Wearing a back support for labor can be very helpful.

2. Over the counter pain remedies are okay for occasional symptoms. Anti-inflammatory drugs (even the over-the-counter kind) tend to shrink the inflamed tissue in joints (like between the vertebrae) and then the joint tissue can harden, making the problem much worse. Take it easy. Be NICE to yourself!

3. Daily massage of a fairly deep, ironing kind, as practiced in Shintaikido Meridian Therapy, can be very helpful in reducing the strain on muscles. Massage should be performed on the entire back and buttocks. DO NOT MASSAGE THE SPINE!!! Do not massage ripped muscle tissue. See you physician. Incidentally, the Consumer Health Digest (#01-19), reports a study which concludes that "massage beats acupuncture for back pain". You can read the article at http://www.ncahf.org/digest/01-19.html

4. Cold packs for 20 minutes if there is fever or swelling; Hot packs for 20 minutes if normal temperature and no swelling.

5. Acupressure points ST-41, ST-36, BL-57, ST-34, BL-22, 23, 25, 47, GB-29, BL-31 & 32, in that order, help to alleviate the swelling and pain.

6. Keeping moving and stretching can help as long as there is no ripped muscle tissue.

8. BE NICE TO YOURSELF!!! Take a soothing bath with some nice fragrance.

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