Chapter 5 - Meridian Disturbances
Various traditions around the world use the meridian system as part of their practise. These include-
- The Japanese practise shiatsu which is the art of applying pressure to the meridians and individual points in order to re-establish the energy flow along the meridians.
- The Chinese practise tai chi, a gentle form of martial art. It stretches the meridians and pumps energy through the "bubbling spring", which is the acupuncture point on the soles of your feet known as Kidney 1.
- The Indians practise yoga. The physical postures help to stimulate prana around your body through channels called nadia as well as stretching the meridians.
- Kinesiologists relate the acupuncture meridians to the various skeletal muscles and then use the muscle responses to detect and correct imbalances within the body.
- Masseurs stimulate all the meridians in the course of a full body massage. By finishing the massage to each area with a light stroking movement in the direction of flow of the meridian it will help to balance the energy more quickly. The urinary bladder meridian runs either side of the spine and contains acupuncture points to all of the organs. Therefore a back massage stimulates all the organs.
- Reflexologists work primarily on the reflexes on the feet, although many also work on the hands as well. When both are used during a treatment all of the meridian ends are stimulated, which adds even more to the basic treatment.
A simple way of stimulating your acupuncture meridians regularly is by applying pressure to the meridian ends on your fingers and toes. These can be found on the sides of the digits at the base of the nails where there is a small indentation. Simply squeezing either side of each digit will stimulate energy along the meridians.
If you want to bring even more energy into a particular meridian you can apply a small magnet to the point with a plaster. These can be bought quite cheaply from chemist or on line.
Even more emphasis can be gained by using the specific organ time.
Table of the meridian ends and their associated organs and times
| Digit | Position |
Time |
Organ |
| Thumb | lateral | 3 to 5 am | Lungs |
| Index finger | lateral | 5 to 7 am | Large Intestine |
| Middle finger | tip | 7 to 9 pm | Circulation |
| Ring finger | medial | 9 to 11 pm | Triple warmer |
| Little finger | lateral | 11 am to 1 pm | Heart |
| Little finger | medial | 1 to 3 pm | Small Intestine |
| Big toe | medial | 9 to 11 am | Spleen/Pancreas |
| Big toe | lateral | 1 to 3 am | Liver |
| Second toe | lateral | 7 to 9 am | Stomach |
| Third toe | medial | 7 to 9 am | Stomach |
| Forth toe | lateral | 11 pm to 1 am | Gall bladder |
| Fifth toe | lateral | 3 to 5 pm | Urinary bladder |
| Sole of foot | centre ball | 5 to 7 pm | Kidneys |
You can work on your fingers whenever you have a few minutes to spare - while sitting in a traffic jam or relaxing at home, and you can work on the toes each time you put your socks on or take them off. It does not take long and you will soon discover the benefits.
Reflexologists and masseurs can include the meridian ends during a treatment by applying pressure to either side of the finger and toe nails.
If you are a mum then play "this little piggy went to market" with your children's toes as you will be activating their meridians while playing a game.
In this instance the rhyme could go as follows
Digit |
Organ |
Why |
|
| This little piggy went to market | Big toe | Spleen/Liver | To buy food to store |
| This little piggy stayed at home | Second toe | Stomach | To eat |
| This little piggy had roast beef | Third toe | Stomach | Food for the stomach |
| This little piggy had none | Forth toe | Gall bladder | Emptying the liver |
| This little piggy went wee wee wee all the way home | Fifth toe | Urinary bladder | What more can be said! |
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