Chinese Qi Gong Tui-Na | Do You Know The Benefits
What is Chinese qi gong tui-na?
Chinese qi gong tui-na is one of the massage techniques. It involves using energy to massage, which is a form of Qigong practice. This means that Qigong practitioners use the energy within their bodies, applying it through fingers or palms, to affect the meridians, acupuncture points, or areas of illness in patients. This can change specific parts of the body or the overall physiological and pathological state of the body, thus playing a role in disease prevention, treatment, and overall health enhancement.
What are the Benefits of Chinese qi gong tui na?
Effects on the circulatory system
- Effects on White Blood Cells:
- Increases white blood cells and raises the proportion of lymphocytes while decreasing neutrophils.
- Improvement in Blood Circulation:
- Significantly enhances blood circulation and improves microcirculation.
- Relaxing muscles increases blood flow by more than 10 times compared to tense muscles.
- Raises temperature of deep muscle tissues.
- Massage improves indicators of circulation, transforming irregular blood flow into linear flow and changing blood color from dark red to bright red.
- Chinese qigong tui-na promotes blood circulation and removes blood stasis.
- Regulation of Heart Function:
- Regulates heart rate, rhythm, and function.
- Minimal impact on those with normal blood pressure, but significant regulatory effect on those with high or low blood pressure.
Effects on the respiratory system
- Effects on Respiratory Function:
- Chinese qigong tui-na strengthens the movement of the diaphragm.
- Improves ventilation function and increases effective lung ventilation.
- Decreases residual air volume and dead space in the lungs.
- Enhances lung function, significantly regulating ventilation, gas exchange, and lung capacity.
- Improvement in Symptoms:
- Helps improve symptoms such as shortness of breath.
Effects on the digestive system
- Chinese qigong tui-na applied to the abdomen or specific acupoints on the back can regulate the movement of the gastrointestinal tract.
- Enhances digestion of proteins and starches.
- Relieves gastrointestinal spasms.
- Reduces gallbladder tension.
- Promotes bile excretion.
- Inhibits gallbladder smooth muscle spasms.
- Alleviates biliary colic.
Effects on the nervous system
- Chinese qigong tui-na has a regulatory effect on the nervous system.
- Rhythmic and gentle techniques applied to the neck area can enhance brain electrical activity.
- Shows synchronization tendency in the brain cortex, providing sedative effects.
- Increases cerebral blood flow, leading to mental clarity, alertness, and fatigue relief.
- Reflexology on the Feet:
- Massaging reflex zones on the feet applies pressure to regulate internal organs through nerve reflexes.
- Achieves remarkable therapeutic effects through this principle.
Effects of Qigong Massage on the Musculoskeletal System:
Various injuries to joints, muscles, and tendons caused by external impact, excessive twisting, pulling, compression, falls, exhaustion, or prolonged activity, without fractures or open wounds, can be classified as soft tissue injuries, which Qigong massage uniquely addresses.
- Improves muscle metabolism: Qigong massage has a significant protective effect on muscle tissue. By influencing neural and humoral factors, it alters biochemical processes and enzyme system activity, improving the microenvironment and microcirculation of nerve roots and nerve fibers, thus enhancing local tissue metabolism and effectively alleviating muscle soreness.
- Promotes tissue repair: Qigong massage aids in repairing damaged tissue and has a beneficial effect on promoting blood circulation and removing blood stasis, accelerating venous return and aiding in the absorption of edema and hematoma, thus accelerating tissue repair.
- Separates adhesions: After soft tissue injury, scar tissue proliferation and adhesion between tissues occur, causing compression on nerves and blood vessels, leading to pain and movement disorders. Manipulative techniques can indirectly separate adhesions, while rubbing, kneading, tapping, and flicking can directly separate them.
- Correct misalignments: Misalignments of bones and tendons are pathological conditions that cause acute injuries. After manipulation, tendons and bones return to their proper positions, relieving tension, twisting, and compression on tissues, thereby alleviating pain. For example, through manipulation, lumbar disc herniation can be reduced, correcting the misalignment between nerve roots and protrusions, and establishing a new balance.
- Relieves muscle spasms: Qigong massage effectively relaxes muscles. Muscle spasms are a natural protective mechanism, but prolonged spasms can compress nerves and blood vessels, creating new sources of pain. Massage can directly inhibit spasms through muscle stretch reflexes and indirectly relieve spasms by eliminating sources of pain, accelerating the healing of soft tissue injuries.
- Promotes the decomposition and dilution of inflammatory mediators: After soft tissue injury, plasma and platelet decomposition products form many inflammatory mediators, which are decomposed and diluted, causing local inflammation to subside.
Effects of Chinese qi gong tui na on the Immune and Endocrine Systems:
- Action on Glands and Endocrine System:
- Chinese qigong tui-na affects the body’s endocrine system through nerve reflexes.
- Regulates the body through the neuroglandular-humoral-visceral organ pattern.
- Activates visceral functions and releases therapeutic factors.
- Enhances the body’s immune response and increases resistance to external stimuli.
- Foot Reflex Zone Massage:
- Regulates many glands in the body, including the pituitary, thyroid, thymus, and adrenal glands.
- Overall mobilizes the body’s ability to resist and treat diseases.
- Dynamic Balance and Vitality:
- Brings the body into a more dynamic balance, in line with traditional Chinese medicine theory of “harmonizing Yin and Yang, nurturing vitality.”
Effects of Qigong Massage on the Skin:
Since Chinese qi gong tui-na is a physical therapy, it always involves contact with the client’s skin. This eliminates dead surface epithelial cells, increases skin gloss and elasticity, promotes secretion of sweat and sebaceous glands, and improves the skin’s respiratory and excretory functions. Additionally, it increases the local tissue oxygen demand, enhances the elimination of nitrogen and carbon dioxide, promotes skin metabolism, and has cosmetic, beautifying, and skin-moisturizing effects.
Overall, from a Western medical perspective, it can:
1. Regulate the function of the nervous system;
2. Regulate fluid circulation, promote metabolism;
3. Promote blood circulation, regulate the endocrine system, enhance immunity;
4. Mobilize joints, alleviate stiffness;
5. Improve skin absorption, regulate body temperature.
From a traditional Chinese medicine perspective, it can:
1. Adjust the balance of Yin and Yang;
2. Regulate the meridian system;
3. Regulate the circulation of Qi and blood;
4. Regulate organ functions; 5. Adjust joint function.
Disclaimer:
Chinese qi gong tui-na (Qigong massage) can be utilized as a method for strengthening the body and promoting wellness. However, it should not be considered a substitute for medical treatment. In case of illness or pain, please seek medical advice and treatment from qualified healthcare professionals.