Bodywork (alternative medicine)

In alternative medicine, bodywork is any therapeutic or personal development technique that involves working with the human body in a form involving manipulative therapy, breath work, or energy medicine. Bodywork techniques also aim to assess or improve posture, promote awareness of the "bodymind connection" rather than the "mind-body connection", or to manipulate a so-called "energy field" surrounding the human body and affecting health.[1]

Forms

Some of the best known forms of non-touch bodywork methods include: reiki, yoga, pranayama, as well as other non-touch methods: breathwork respiration techniques, therapeutic touch, Bates method for sight training,[2] qigong, and t'ai chi.

The better known forms of manipulative bodywork include Alexander technique, applied kinesiology, Bowen technique, chiropractic, craniosacral therapy, Feldenkrais method, Hakomi, reflexology, Rolfing Structural Integration, shiatsu, Somatic Experiencing, and Trager Approach.

Massage

One form of bodywork is deep tissue massage therapy, and the terms massage and bodywork are often used interchangeably. While bodywork includes all forms of massage techniques, it also includes many other types of touch therapies. [3]

Statistics in the United States

According to a 2002 survey of adults in the United States by the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Medicine (NCCIH) and the National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS):[4]

See also

References

  1. Thackery, Ellen; Harris, Madeline (2003). Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Disorders (1st ed.). Gale. p. 153-7. ISBN 978-0787657680.
  2. "Bates Method". Seeing The Bates Method. Retrieved 6 February 2014.
  3. Cassar, Mario-Paul (2004). Handbook of Clinical Massage: A Complete Guide for Students and Practitioners (2nd ed.). Churchill Livingstone. p. 48-49. ISBN 978-0443073496.
  4. Barnes, Patricia M.; Eve Powell-Griner; Kim McFann; Richard L. Nahin (2004-05-27). "Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Adults: United States, 2002" (PDF). Advance Data from Vital and Health Statistics. 343. Retrieved 2010-05-21. Lay summary.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/4/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.