Shiatsu

Shiatsu is a form of Japanese bodywork that applies pressure to specific points and meridians on the body, working within the traditional Chinese medicine framework of energy pathways while also engaging directly with the musculoskeletal system and the nervous system’s response to touch. In a clinical context, shiatsu can be a powerful adjunct to psychological work: the body’s response to appropriate, boundaried touch, and the quality of attention that shiatsu brings to somatic experience, can access material that verbal therapy has not been able to reach.

Shiatsu at the practice is offered by a qualified practitioner in coordination with the therapeutic work. Sessions last approximately 60 minutes and take place in a private room. No specific preparation is required. The practitioner will discuss any relevant health considerations in an initial consultation before treatment begins.

Shiatsu and psychological wellbeing

The relationship between bodywork and psychological wellbeing is well-documented in the trauma literature. Touch that is safe, boundaried, and responsive to the individual’s nervous system can support the regulation of arousal states that verbal therapy alone cannot fully address. For clients with histories of trauma, where the body itself has been experienced as a site of danger, careful and appropriately paced bodywork can be part of the restoration of a more comfortable relationship with physical experience.