Glossary of Modalities

Acupuncture: In acupuncture, fine needles are inserted at specific energy meridians to stimulate, disperse and regulate the flow if chi o, or vital energy & restore a healthy energy balance in the body. Acupuncture is used to improve well-being & treat acute and chronic pain & degenerative conditions.

Aromatherapy: Uses essential oils from plants to treat emotional disorders such as stress, anxiety, fear, etc. Oils may be inhaled, diffused, massaged into the body with a carrier oil or placed in bath water . Aromatherapy is often used with massage therapy acupuncture, reflexology, mediation, chiropractic, etc.

Aura: An energy field which surrounds living beings. An aura is most often visible only to those born with the skill to see it or those who developed this ability, A visible aura contains various colors & tells about the spiritual & emotional persona of the plant, human, or creature surrounded by it. An aura may be felt, heard or sensed through other means.

Bodywork: Practitioners in this category offer a wide range of massage therapies, Swedish, deep tissue, craniosacral, shiastu, therapeutic touch, energy therapies such as Reiki, Integrated Energy Therapy, Jin Shin Jyustu, Magnified Healing, Felderkrals, Trager & dance movement techniques.

Chi: A Chinese term for the all encompassing universal life force that flows in & around our body. Also known as Qi, Ki, Prana and Mana in other beliefs.

Chinese Medicine: A system which uses both ancient & modern techniques, acupuncture, herbal medicine, massage & moxibustion, all of which are based on the Oriental principle of meridians or energy channels throughout the body/mind .

Chiropractic Care: Chiropractic care returns the body to balance through adjustments of the spine & joints, normalizing joint motion, reducing nerve interference, relieving stress & restoring normal body function. Chiropractors influence the body’s nervous system & natural defense mechanisms in order to alleviate pain & improve general health, It is effective in treating back problems, headaches, injuries and traumas.

Deep Tissue: A general term for a range of therapies that work to “unstuck” the body’s connective tissues & muscles. To encourage them to function properly again. Deep-tissue bodywork treats chronic , acute pain, low back & neck pain.

Detoxification: These cleansing programs are the natural response to our constant exposure to toxic chemicals & pollutants found in earth’s atmospheric water, food & soil. Detoxification therapy seeks to restore optimum health by eliminating or neutralizing toxins via the liver, the kidneys, the urine, the feces, exhalation & perspiration helping to rid the body of chemicals & pollutants & facilitating a return to health.

Energy Healing & Balancing: A healing technique that involves working in the body’s energy fields & meridians to promote mental, emotional, physical or spiritual healing.

Energy Psychology: is based on the understanding that traumatic memories & the emotions connected to these memories disrupt our subtle energy system. The energy system is an invisible vibrational matrix that surrounds us & is accessed through the acupuncture meridians, charkas & aura. Helps to restore balance & flow to these systems & resolve many psychological, emotional and physical problems.

Energy Work or Therapy: Practitioners of energy work find blockages or stagnations in the energy field in & around the body. Restore its proper circulation & balance, stimulating the body’s innate healing capacity. The practitioner uses subtle touch or holding on specific points to harmonize the flow of energy (chi) through the body & to enhance the body’s structural balance. Energy work is effective in promoting stress relief, relaxation & well-being on all levels. Types of energy work include acupuncture, Integrated Energy Therapy, Jin Shin Jyutsu, Magnified Healing, Polarity Therapy & Relki.

Enzyme Therapy: Enzyme therapy can be an important first step in restoring health & well-being by helping to remedy a wide variety of maladies thought to stem from nutritional problems. These enzyme supplements are believed to bolster the thousands of natural enzymes produced by the human body (and also obtained from foods) which not only fuel digestion but also aid hundreds of processes essential for life.

Facial Rejuvenation: Gentle massage of face, neck & upper chest helps to clear physical and energetic systems. Organic oils and hot herbal wraps are used in this very peaceful, pampering and healing modality.

Feng Shui: Feng shui is an ancient Chinese practice of configuring home or work environments to promote health, happiness & prosperity. Feng shui consultants may advise clients to make adjustments in their surroundings- from color selection to furniture placement- in order to promote a healthy flow of chi or vital energy.

Herbal Medicine: An ancient form of healing still widely used in much of the world herbalism uses natural plants or plant-based substances to treat a range of illnesses & to enhance the functioning of the body’s systems. Herbs are recommended by a range of holistic practitioners , ranging from holistic MD’s to acupuncturists, herbalists & naturopaths.

Holistic Education/Training: Any learning system which attempts to interrelate its disciplines into a cohesive whole.

Holistic Health: An integrative approach to health which focuses on the “whole self” ( the body, mind & spirit) utilizing traditional, natural or spiritual therapies. The practitioner may use any variety of natural healing suggestions to work with an individual toward greater health, wholeness, balance & integration. The approach to health recognizes the patient as a whole person, not just a disease or a collection of symptoms.

Homeopathy: Homeopathy is a medical system that uses small doses of natural remedies to stimulate a person’s immune & defense system. A homeopath will take a medical history (including physical & emotional symptoms) from a client, then tailor remedies to heal the symptoms. It is effective in treating chronic illnesses that fail to respond to conventional treatment.

Indian Head Massage (Shiro-Abhyanga) is part of the Ayurvedic Bodywork System from India. Indian Head Massage is a safe, simple yet effective therapy renowned for relieving symptoms of stress. There are many benefits including relief of tension in the upper body,headaches, tight scalps, hair loss, eyestrain, sinus, discomfort in arms and hands. IHM decreases the rate of respiration to give you a deep sense of relaxation. It also taps into the chakra and marma points to bring you back to balance. During your session, you are fully clothed and no special equipment is needed.

Integrated Energy Therapy: Integrated Energy Therapy uses angelic energy to work directly with cleaning & balancing your body’s energy meridians. Through specific hand positions & pull out techniques; IRT supports you in safely & gently releasing repeating patterns in your life, feeling of being stuck & allowing relaxation, peace to enter.

Integrative Imagery: This is a therapeutic imagery process that is taken to an even deeper level by eliciting and working with a person’s own images, both positive and negative. This process is best vacillated by a practitioner, guiding a person to bring to mind an image for something, then directly engaging with this image, often in dialogue.

Jin Shin Jyutsu: Jin Shin Jyutsu is the ancient art of harmonizing the life energy within the body. It is a gentle art, practiced by placing the fingertips on 26 designated safety energy locks, to harmonize & restore the energy flow. Jin Shin Jyutsu brings balance to the body’s energies, promotes optimal health & well-being & our own profound healing capacity.

Macrobiotics: An integrated approach to health through a harmonious way of eating, positive lifestyle & spirit of appreciation for nature.

Mandala: A design of lines, forms & colors, usually circular, used in meditation to focus attention to a single point. The artistic creation of a mandala may be used as a form of active meditation.

Massage Therapy: Many hands-on treatments of applied pressure to the skin, muscle or joints with the goal to release tension, pain or stored energy from the body. The many forms of massage include: deep tissue, manual lymph drainage, shiatsu, Swedish, therapeutic touch, craniosacral, prenatal, pregnancy, neuromuscular & myofascial.

Meditation: The practice of limiting the mind’s mental stimulas to pay attention to the inner silence within, instead of the outer chaos. Using the rhythm of one’s breath, a repeated sound or phrase as a focal point, you allow to mind, body & spirit to rest.

Mindfulness Meditation: A simple yet powerful process of meditation, using the breath & focused awareness to open the heart & help heal emotional wounds.

Moxabustion: Moxabustion is an adjunct to acupuncture characterized by the burning of moxas, preparations of dried leaves from the common mugwort or the wormwood tree at acupoints to stimulate chi.

NET (Neuro Emotional Techniques) Discovered by Scott Walker, DC. Emotional clearing can help clear unresolved emotions, creative blocks, depression, anxiety, correct negative belief systems & undesirable behavior. Sessions involve fast, simple techniques to obtain the : “what, when, why & who” about past trauma or emotional issues. It determines the active issues causing the problem & whether the issue was permanently resolved.

Natural Foods: Natural food refers to food or food products which are minimally processed & remain as close as possible to their whole, original state. Because they are less tampered with, natural foods are more nutritious than their refined counterparts.

Naturopathy: Naturopathic medicine treats health conditions by utilizing the body’s inherent ability to heal. Naturopaths aid the healing process by incorporating a variety of alternative methods based on the patient’s individual needs- nutrition, herbal medicine, homeopathic medicine & oriental medicine. Diet, lifestyle, work & personal history are all considered when drawing a proper regimen.

Nutritional Response Testing (NRT): A system of testing the body through applied kinesiology, which determines what nutrition needs each person may require. A nutritional program is personally designed & recommended for each person’s individual needs & requirements.

Nutrition Counseling: An extensive knowledge of the beneficial properties of food & food supplements in the improvement & functioning of the mind & body. When the body becomes out of balance, nutritional counseling may call for therapeutic doses of basic nutrients to address illnesses, deficiencies & disorders that may be caused by poor diet or environmental factors.

Organic Foods & Products: Organically grown food & products are grown without artificial fertilizers, chemicals or pesticides. Organic farmers use composted natural fertilizers & natural pest management to produce healthy crops. Natural fertilizer contains more minerals, so organically produced food & food products will have more nutrients.

Pain Management: An overall regime for dealing with chronic or acute pain, which can include physical therapy, exercise, meditation & visualization.

Pilates: The Pilates method is a conditioning program developed by Joseph Pilates . It consists of a series of movements designed to stretch & strengthen the muscles, improving movement, coordination & balance.

Qi Qong or (Qi Gong): A simple regimen of breathing techniques, mindful concentration & slow movement exercises which use our vital energy known in Chinese as “Qi” ( also spelled “Chi”). The aim is to stimulate & balance the flow of qi through meridians (energy pathways) throughout the body.

Reflexology: Developed by William Fitzgerald, reflexology is a science & healing therapy that deals with the principle that there are reflex areas in the feet that correspond to all organs, glands & parts of the body. These reflexes provide a mini map of the acupuncture system of body meridians on the feet. Reflexology uses deep compression massage techniques to detect & release blocked energy and restore balance & harmony to the body.

Relkl: Relkl is the practice of transmitting healing energy through the hands, based on ancient healing techniques. Relkl utilizes specific hand positions on or above the body that correspond to the major organs & energy centers within body, Relaxing , gentle form of energy therapy.

Shiatsu Massage: Shiastu is the most widely known form of acupressure. It has been used in Japan for many years to treat pain & illness & to maintain health. Practitioners apply rhythmic finger pressure at specific points on the body to stimulate chi or vital energy.

Sound Healing: Energy healing using sound waves that are absorbed by the body. Every part of our body absorbs and emits sound. When a harmonious sound is projected into your body, correct harmonic patterns are restored bringing them into resonance with the harmonious sound while stimulating the sympathetic vibration into the molecules and cells of the body.

Spinal Decompression: A non-surgical, drug-free breakthrough treatment that according to the American Journal of Pain Management, provides an 86% success rate for patients suffering from herniated inter vertebral discs, and over 90 % success reported in cases of sciatica, stenosis, deterioration and arthrosis.

Swedish Massage: A form of massage therapy focusing on the musculature system using a variety of techniques such as pressure, wringing, vibration & flushing to release tensions from the body & enhance relaxation & energy flow.

Tai Chi: Tai Chi is a series of meditative & self healing movements based on Chinese teachings over 6,000 years old. Tai Chi is generally practiced as a spiritual, physical exercise & martial art form for focus, self awareness, health & relaxation. It’s slow, rhythmic movements are effective in returning the skeletal structure, muscles & organs to their natural alignment.

Vibrational Healing: Vibrational Healing uses a variety of modalities to promote healing by balancing the client’s energy field. They include homeopathy, flower essences, acupuncture & energy therapies; Relkl, Polarity Therapy, Jin Shin Jyustu.

Wellness Counseling : A general term for any practice which considers the client’s lifestyle, incorporating the needs of the body, mind & spirit in suggesting a preventive health regime.

Women’s Spirituality: A gathering of women for the purpose of exploring & studying women’s issues & traditions from a spiritual perspective. Groups may study philosophy & rituals from many ancient traditions, study feminine spirituality & Goddess energy.

Yoga: Yoga means “union” & aims at the realization of the unity of our whole being . Yoga is taught as a sequence of poses & breathing exercises. Yoga postures exercise the spine & stimulate the lymphatic system, helping to remove toxins from the body. The physical postures, breathing exercises & meditation practices of yoga have been proven to reduce stress, lower blood pressure, regulate heart rate & even retard the aging process.

Zero Balancing: Zero Balancing is a hands on bodywork system designed to align your energy body with your physical structure through the use of touch. A simple effective and powerful technique that focuses on the whole person, its benefits include feelings of well being, stress & tension relief and pain reduction.