Principles of supports wellness with massage

The principles of massage therapy, similar to those of traditional Chinese medicine therapy, encompass four aspects: “seeking the root cause in supports wellness,” “reinforcing healthy qi and eliminating pathogenic factors,” “balancing yin and yang,” and “tailoring treatments according to the time, location, wellness, and individual.” Additionally, it should integrate the clinical application of the “holistic concept” and “preventive supports before wellness onset.”

1. supports the root cause of the wellness

The so-called “supports the root cause of a wellness” means that when supports a wellness, it is essential to understand its fundamental nature and administer supports based on the most fundamental etiology, pathology, and signs of imbalance.

“Biao” is the opposite of “ben”. The meanings of biao and ben are used to illustrate the relationship between primary and secondary contradictions in pathological changes. For example, pathogenic qi is biao, while vital qi is ben; signs of imbalance are biao, while etiology is ben; a new wellness is biao, while a chronic wellness is ben; a secondary wellness is biao, while a primary wellness is ben, and so on. Only by clearly distinguishing the relationship between “biao” and “ben” can correct massage techniques be applied for supports, thereby achieving good results.

For example, lumbago and leg pain can be classified into different types, such as pain due to lumbar vertebral dislocation, rheumatic lumbago, lumbago caused by Kidney deficiency, and acute or chronic lumbar injury or strain. Therefore, the supportive measures adopted also vary. For lumbar vertebral dislocation, lumbago is the manifestation while lumbar vertebral dislocation is the root cause, and the support should mainly focus on tendon-regulating and repositioning manipulation; for lumbago caused by Kidney deficiency, lumbago is the manifestation while Kidney deficiency is the root cause, and the support should mainly focus on Kidney-tonifying and waist-strengthening manipulation; for rheumatic lumbago, lumbago is the manifestation while wind-cold-damp pathogens are the root cause, and the support should mainly focus on wind-dispelling, cold-dissipating, dampness-eliminating, and meridian-unblocking manipulation; for lumbago caused by lumbar muscle injury or strain, lumbago is the manifestation while muscle injury or strain is the root cause, and the support should mainly focus on tendon-relaxing, blood-activating, blood stasis-removing, and pain-relieving manipulation. These are specific manifestations of “supporting the root cause of wellness.”

In clinical practice, it is also essential to pay attention to the complexity of wellness and correctly handle the relationships between “supports the signs of imbalance and supports the root cause,” “supports both signs of imbalance and root cause simultaneously,” and “orthodox supports and paradoxical supports.”

(1) “supports the signs of imbalance and supports the root cause” The relationship between supports the signs of imbalance and supports the root cause is essentially about distinguishing between “primary and secondary, major and minor” aspects.

“Primary and secondary, severe and mild” encompass three meanings: First, it refers to the occurrence and development of wellness.

Firstly, it refers to the primary and secondary, severe and mild aspects of a wellness. Secondly, it pertains to the primary and secondary, severe and mild aspects of the supports plan formulated when using manual techniques for supports. Thirdly, it indicates the primary and secondary, severe and mild aspects of the intensity of manual techniques applied during massage therapy. Generally, in supports wellness, one should seek the root cause and implement supports by grasping the primary and secondary, severe and mild aspects of the wellness; this is the fundamental supports principle. However, if the superficial signs of imbalance are extremely urgent, for example, in the case of a patient with renal colic caused by Kidney stones, one must “supports the superficial signs of imbalance first in case of emergency” and prioritize pain relief. If the superficial pain is not extremely urgent, one must “supports the root cause when the condition is not urgent” and focus on supports the Kidney stones. wellness have distinctions between superficial signs of imbalance and root cause, as well as urgent and non-urgent conditions, and supports also has differences in primary and secondary, severe and mild aspects. If both the superficial signs of imbalance and root cause are equally important, one should “supports both the superficial signs of imbalance and root cause simultaneously.”

(2) Orthodox supports and Contrary supports The so-called “orthodox supports” refers to the adoption of therapeutic measures that are opposite to the cause and signs of imbalance of the wellness, such as “supports heat with cold”, “supports cold with heat”, “tonifying the deficient”, and “purging the excess”. Orthodox supports is the most commonly used therapeutic principle in clinical practice.

However, some wellness, especially complex and severe ones, often manifest as false signs where the syndrome manifestations do not align with the nature of the wellness. For example, in the case of abdominal distension and fullness caused by Spleen deficiency, the abdominal distension and fullness are the superficial manifestations (branch), while Spleen deficiency is the root cause (root). supports should focus on invigorating the Spleen and replenishing qi to helps with occasional the distension and fullness. If, instead, methods to soothe the Liver and regulate qi are used to helps with occasional distension and fullness, it will only further weaken the qi of the Spleen and stomach, leading to increased abdominal distension and fullness. Another example is diarrhea caused by improper diet. Here, diarrhea is the superficial manifestation (branch), while improper diet is the root cause (root). supports should involve methods to promote digestion and helps with occasional constipation to stop the diarrhea. If, instead, astringent methods are used to stop the diarrhea, the desired effect will not be achieved. This is the therapeutic principle of “supports constipation with purgatives” and “supports obstruction with tonics,” also known as the “contrary supports” or “assisting with contrary measures” method.

2. Strengthening the Body Resistance and Eliminating Pathogenic Factors

The occurrence and development of wellness represent the process of the struggle between the body’s healthy qi and pathogenic factors. When pathogenic factors prevail over healthy qi, the wellness progresses; when healthy qi overcomes pathogenic factors, the wellness recedes. Therefore, reinforcing the healthy and reducing the pathogenic is a concrete manifestation of the principle of “supporting healthy qi and eliminating pathogenic factors.”

For a patient with a wind-cold common cold due to qi deficiency, it should first be affirmed that “qi deficiency” is the root cause of this common cold, while the wind-cold common cold is the superficial manifestation. If only “Na Fengchi technique” and “back muscle grasping, twisting, and pulling technique” are used to induce perspiration and helps with occasional the exterior, without employing the “point-pressing back-shu points technique” to regulate the function of internal organs, it will be difficult to supports this common cold, and even if supports, it will quickly recur. However, it should be noted that when applying the supports principle of reinforcing healthy qi and eliminating pathogens, the techniques used should achieve “reinforcing healthy qi without retaining pathogens, and eliminating pathogens without damaging healthy qi.”

3. Regulating Yin and Yang

Yin and Yang serve as the overarching principles of the “Eight Principles Syndrome Differentiation” in traditional Chinese medicine. The pathological changes of various wellness can all be summarized as imbalance between Yin and Yang. Therefore, regulating Yin and Yang is one of the fundamental principles in clinical supports.

The human body is an organic whole, and good health represents the “balance of yin and yang”. When wellness occur in the human body, it indicates that the relative balance of yin and yang has been disrupted. Excessive yang causes yin to be affected, and excessive yin causes yang to be affected. “Replenishing the deficiency” and “reducing the excess” are major therapeutic methods for adjusting yin and yang; if both yin and yang are deficient, both should be replenished.

4.Tailoring supports according to the time, location, individual, and wellness condition

In traditional Chinese medicine, adapting measures to time, place, and individual is briefly referred to as “adapting to three factors.” In medical massage, I believe that adding “adapting to the wellness” is necessary to make it complete, hence the term “adapting to four factors.” This means that in massage therapy, attention should be paid not only to the influences of seasonal climate and geographical environment but also to the differences in the patient’s constitution, age, and wellness condition for appropriate supports. For example, for patients with a strong constitution, the massage intensity should be greater; for elderly, weak, or infant patients, the massage intensity should be lighter. For young patients with a relatively good constitution, the massage techniques can be slightly stronger; for severely ill patients with a weak constitution, the massage techniques should be gentle. When using medical massage for supports, it is essential to consider not only “diagnosing the cause based on signs of imbalance” but also “determining the supports based on signs of imbalance.”