We are delighted to have received National Lottery funding for the third year running to be able to offer support to local women who wouldn’t normally be able to access Shiatsu or Qigong and have a long term health issue.

This year we are working in partnership with WildLight Shiatsu School to continue our “Well Women” project.

The Well Women project is open to applications from all women, focusing on those with low income, in financial hardship due to ill health or other circumstances and whose mental/physical health is requiring nurture and support.

The project aims to help women to feel supported in their health, increasing resilience and giving an opportunity for empowerment when it comes to sustaining long-term health. The women we work with have been able to adapt their relationship to their health, vitality and immunity enabling them to participate more fully in their lives.

“Receiving regular shiatsu treatment … is an essential and transformative source of support for me, living with secondary cancer and the effects of ongoing cancer treatment.”

What is Shiatsu?

Shiatsu is a form of bodywork which originated in Japan. It is given fully clothed on a soft futon on the floor. The basic idea behind Shiatsu is to help the body adjust itself by helping the Qi to function. Qi (sometimes spelled ‘Chi’ or ‘Ki’) is our life-force. Qi provides the energy for all our life processes. To help the body adjust itself in this way we use gentle pressure, stretches, holding, joint mobilizations and rocking. In this way Shiatsu is a little like massage. However, Shiatsu also works with the energetic condition of the body helping to re-energize weak areas, relax tension and bringing harmony to body and mind. This means that your body can transform physically, mentally, emotionally and energetically, helping you change patterns that make you feel ill, stiff or stuck. Eastern therapies, such as Shiatsu can so often help when Western medicine has not been able to and help in areas that people may not automatically associate them with. In Shiatsu we can work to help support all of the systems in the body, so the work can have an impact on digestive issues, breathing issues, regular and common illness, issues around pregnancy, fertility and menstruation as well as the things that might more immediately come to mind like muscular skeletal problems.

Benefits of Shiatsu

Independent research carried out at the university of Leeds finds that:

• 89% of Shiatsu receivers felt calmer and more relaxed.
• 86% said that Shiatsu was effective in treating stress and tension, structural and postural problems, low energy and fatigue.
• Up to 60% of Shiatsu receivers slept better.
• Shiatsu receiver’s symptoms were significantly reduced during the 6-month study.
• Shiatsu receivers had a reduced usage of conventional medicine.
• Overall, Shiatsu receivers adopted a more relaxed, healthier and balanced approach to life.

What is Qigong?

Qigong is gentle exercise which improves mental and physical health by integrating posture, movement, breathing technique, self-massage, sound, and focused intent. Qigong opens the flow of energy in meridians used in acupuncture and Chinese medicine. It enhances our ability to feel the Life Force (or Qi) underlying the physical world and to deepen our communication with it. Physically, slow gentle qigong movements warm tendons, ligaments, and muscles; tonify vital organs and connective tissue; and promote circulation of body fluids (blood, synovial, lymph). Thousands of studies have shown qigong effective in helping to heal life challenges ranging from high blood pressure and chronic illness to emotional frustration, mental stress, and spiritual crisis.

Our experience over many years has been that women come for Shiatsu with symptoms such as insomnia, depression, anxiety, PMT, menopausal/hormonal imbalance, MS, joint pain, exhaustion, fatigue and during/post cancer treatment. These symptoms are usually our bodies way of asking to be heard- if these symptoms are not addressed early on, then they can lead to more serious long-term health conditions. We want to share Shiatsu with people who might not ususally be able to access it, providing preventative treatment by supporting our clients in their condition. We know from our consultations and feedback that Shiatsu and Qigong can address the current prevailing feelings of anxiety, helplessness and isolation by bringing safe physical contact, connection and empowerment into women’s lives.

“The group was held with care, expertise and attention. I felt strengthened and grounded by the practice, and felt like I was being invited to explore the wisdom of my female body. These are practices I could easily integrate into my life, which is empowering.”

“I am working for NHS with Covid patients, and find this work very supportive and calming.”

“Invaluable for self care and righting my boat.