Don’t Underestimate the Power of Touch

Healing Through Touch

From a mother’s cradling embrace to the comforting lap of a father reading a bedtime story to his little child, a friend’s consoling hug, or a lover’s caress, touch has special power to send messages of union and communication. Silent but potent, a touch can comfort, greet, persuade, and inflame. Touching eases pain, lessens anxiety, softens the blow of life, generates hope and has the power to heal. 

Various studies and experiments show the simple act of reaching out and touching another person can result in physical benefits such as slowing the heart rate, dropping blood pressure, releasing stress, dispelling depression, and even speeding recovery from illness. 

The most popular of touch treatments is the massage. It takes about 60 minutes to bring you to total bliss, by freeing you of lower back pain, migraine headaches, soreness, and tight muscles, improving circulation, sleeping disorders, and increasing energy levels. Hippocrates wrote, “…rubbing can bind a joint that is too loose and loosen a joint that it too rigid.” He knew the power of the right touch.

Massage therapists are healers and they use their hands to fine-tune your body physically, mentally, and emotionally. These “touch experts” skillfully manipulate the soft tissues (skin, muscles, tendons, and ligaments) of the body for healing results. They work these tissues by using slow gliding strokes, kneading, pressing and rolling, tight circular movements, and drumming the body rhythmically. If you are new to massage, be prepared to receive your treatment naked. If this makes you feel uncomfortable, you’ll be able to cover the parts of your body that are not being touched, so that you are not completely exposed. Don’t postpone the joy of touch…find a massage table to climb up on and let the healing begin.

Therapeutic Touch or TT is an ancient, noninvasive method of laying on of hands. In TT, the practitioner alters the patient’s energy field through an energy transfer that transpires from the hands of the practitioner to the patient. This energy transfer is called prana, an Eastern Indian concept representing energy, vitality, and vigor. TT was initially developed for persons in the health professions; traditional medicine, as well as osteopathic, chiropractic, naturopathic, and homeopathic therapies. However, it is now being taught worldwide to anyone who is interested in learning the technique. An estimated 150,000 people around the world have been trained in TT.

Therapeutic touch treats the whole person; relaxes the mind, heals the body, and soothes the spirit. The principal behind it is that it does not stop at the skin; the human body extends an energy field, or aura, several inches to several feet from the body. When illness occurs, it creates a disturbance or blockage in the vital energy field. The TT practitioner uses their hands to sense the blockage or disturbance. In a series of gentle strokes, the healer removes the disturbance and rebalances the energy to restore health. The session generally lasts about 20-30 minutes. Although the name is therapeutic touch, there is generally no touching of the physical body, only the energetic body. It is usually performed on fully clothed patients who are either lying down on a flat surface or sitting up in a chair. Some of the major benefits of TT are relaxation, pain reduction of many ailments Among many uses, TT is used to treat Alzheimer, stroke and coma patients, thyroid imbalances, ulcers, premenstrual symptoms, and psychosomatic illnesses.

Touch is essential; we all crave the feeling of flesh on flesh. There is magic, connection, warmth and pleasure in touch. In a loving relationship, touching delivers so many intimate messages. It has been suggested that for optimum health an adult needs eight hugs a day and eight embraces that enfold you in someone’s arms, not just a slap on the back, quick grab or squeeze. How many hugs have you had today? On a personal level sensual massage is the form of touch most available to us all. Using liberal plain old garden-variety touch calms, reassures, encourages, grants forgiveness and can start a brand-new page in the history of your relationship. Don’t underestimate the power of touch. Hands were designed to do many different tasks. So, touch each other often. It’s one of the best ways is to convey love, compassion, affection, understanding and acceptance. So, what are you waiting on? Reach out and touch someone…it’s powerfully healthy and healing!

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This article was originally published in Flossin Magazine. This article is edited by Edna Waters. This article is optimized for web by Steven Christian (Artist | Author | Podcaster).