Ilchi Lee

According to Indie Cooper-Guzman, RN, “massage can be so helpful and calming to the mind, body and spirit…it can lower blood pressure, ease aches and pains and rejuvenate the mind, body and spirit.” She encourages anyone who suffers pain and/or stress to turn to human touch for help.

Acupressure, a hands-on approach to healing used in China for thousands of years, was found to be more effective in reducing low back pain than physical therapy was on 129 Taiwanese patients during a study in Taiwan.

According to Ilchi Lee, originator of the Brain Education System Training (BEST) and author of In Full Bloom: A Brain Education Guide for Successful Aging, “Human touch is one of the best methods of emotional healing. Sadly, touch is often discouraged socially in our culture.”

Below are three healing techniques that will be beneficial for your brain.

• Shoulder massage – squeeze the trapezoid muscles (muscle extending from your neck to your shoulders), release and repeat several times. Then work your hand down the sides of the shoulders. Last, use your thumb and palms to release tension around the shoulder blades.

• Hand massage – squeeze the hand, moving from the wrist to fingertips. Then work the center of the palm, pushing firmly with your thumbs. Last, gently pull and twist each finger, working down to the fingertips.

• Foot massage – squeeze the foot from the ankle to the toes. Next, flex the foot in both directions and rotate the ankle. Finish by pushing the thumbs directly into the area just below the ball of the foot and massage in a circular motion.