How complementary therapists can help older people

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Complementary Therapies for Older People in Care by Sharon Tay

In this extract from Complementary Therapies for Older People in Care, Sharon Tay gives practical advice on how therapists can adapt treatments to suit older people with age-related medical conditions, such as Arthritis, Parkinson’s Disease and Cardiovascular Disease.

Click here to read the extract.

Sharon demonstrates how the role of a beauty and natural therapist is valuable in providing care and attention to frail and elderly people who can no longer cater for their own needs. Simple treatments such as an application of make-up, a session of reflexology or a manicure can greatly restore dignity and confidence to help these clients face the challenges in their physical and mental well-being that ageing brings.

Sharon Tay is a beauty therapist and natural therapist who has worked in the industry for eighteen years. She specialises in health and beauty care for women of all age groups, particularly with older women residing in both nursing homes and private residences. Complementary Therapies for Older People in Care is available to purchase from the Singing Dragon website.

Singing Dragon Bodywork Catalogue 2013

Click on the box below to browse through our online Bodywork catalogue. Including titles on massage, reflexology, shiatsu, cranio-sacral therapy, yoga, and aromatherapy, this is an indispensable resource for anyone who cares for the human body.

All the titles, author names, and covers are interactive; just click on them to be taken to the book or author page on the Singing Dragon website.

Singing Dragon’s US e-catalog is now online

We are happy to present Singing Dragon’s US catalog in an easy-to-use electronic format. This is a convenient way to explore Singing Dragon’s growing list of books on Qigong, Chinese Medicine, Bodywork, Martial Arts, Yoga and Alternative Health, complete with links back to our website for ordering or more information.

To browse this catalog, click the image below. It will enlarge automatically to allow for easy reading.

Although this catalog contains US pricing information, you can still use it if you reside outside the USA. All the links embedded in the catalog lead back to the Singing Dragon website where we process orders from around the world.

If you would prefer to receive a paper copy of this catalog…

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Early therapeutic uses of light and colour – extract from Colour Healing Manual

Wills_Colour-Healing_978-1-84819-165-5_colourjpg-web

Taken from Pauline Wills’ Colour Healing Manual, in this extract the author discusses how colour, light and healing have traditionally been linked across a range of ancient civilizations – and what these can mean for today’s uses of colour therapy.

Click here to read the extract

Pauline Wills is a qualified yoga instructor, reflexologist and colour practitioner and pioneered the integration of colour with reflexology. Her first introduction to the healing power of colour was through yoga and then through the Maitreya School of Colour Healing. She is the co-founder of The Oracle School of Colour in London, where she teaches and practises colour therapy and reflexology. She has written numerous books on complementary therapies.

© 2013 Singing Dragon blog. All Rights Reserved

How facial exercises and massage promote both health and beauty – Interview with Leena Kiviluoma

Leena KiviluomaHow did you first become involved in facial muscle care? What drew you working towards working with the face?

As a physiotherapist I aim to help my clients to improve and maintain their overall health and well-being. The musculoskeletal system does not end at the neck, and so I felt it was important to enhance my knowledge of facial anatomy and physiology, and develop my skills to also treat the facial area.

I hope that Vital Face will help people with jaw problems or anxiety about their ageing face, both telling about the reasons behind their problems and concerns and giving advice on how to deal with them.

We use our faces every day in expression and interaction. What can we tell about a person through their face?

Facial expressions show us emotions. Basic emotions activate different facial muscles, producing different facial expressions. We process people’s facial expressions quickly and instinctively, and facial expressions are contagious. When viewing a person with a genuine smile, seeing genuine enjoyment evokes a similar response in the observer’s facial muscle activity, and, consequently, a similar emotional experience.

Interestingly, even though people can fake facial expressions and try to not to show negative emotions such as anger, you may be able to see a tiny involuntarily microexpression appear in their face for a very brief moment, revealing their true emotions.

With the help of Vital Face people will develop an improved awareness of their own faces and ability to release facial tensions. A relaxed face with an enhanced awareness of facial expressions helps to give a positive impression to whoever you are communicating with.

How does facial massage affect overall health and vitality? What health benefits have you noticed with your clients?

MimiLift Facial MuscleCare and Therapy contain massage and stretching techniques which relieve tension from the face, head, neck and shoulders. This reduces tension headaches, stiffness of the lower jaw, neck-shoulder pain, and helps people who suffer from teeth grinding. Relaxation of the face, head, neck and shoulders also relieves stress, relaxes the whole body, and helps with sleeping. All of these can greatly improve overall vitality.

My clients have, for example, reported instant relief of headache and facial tightness, improved mobility and relaxedness of the lower jaw, improved voice production and the improved ability to notice and avoid harmful oro-facial habits such as holding extra tension in the jaw.

Kiviluoma_Vital-Face-Faci_978-1-84819-166-2_colourjpg-webHave you noticed facial massage changing the way your clients look?

Generally, after a one-hour MimiLift Facial MuscleTherapy treatment clients look relaxed and well rested. What has surprised my clients most has been the visible reduction in facial lines and creases. In particular, lines between the eyebrows and across the forehead were considerably diminished.

Facial massage can be done on oneself or by a therapist. MimiLift Facial MuscleCare presented in Vital Face and MimiLift Facial MuscleTherapy feature the same kind of treatments with the same kind of results. The only difference is that the latter is the treatment performed by the therapist.

How do you hope this book will help professionals working with the clients?

Vital Face explores the facial structure and function and how the facial musculoskeletal system affects health and appearance. We have tried to make the book easy and enjoyable to read, with rich illustrations and practical tips, so that it is easy to acquire information and brush up one’s knowledge of the facial area.

The book also presents a wide variety of specific, medically-based self-care exercises and techniques, and explains their scientific basis and effects. These will be very useful as they help professionals in the field of health and beauty to select individual home programmes for their clients.

Vital Face is useful especially for professionals such as physiotherapists, massage therapists, dental hygienists, speech therapists, singing teachers and beauty therapists.

Can MimiLift facial rejuvenation be used alongside other therapies?

MimiLift facial rejuvenation is perfect for licensed beauty professionals to use alongside other non-invasive therapies such as electrotherapy, or for anyone to use alongside home treatments and products.

Leena Kiviluoma is a physiotherapist working as a teacher and consultant in the fitness, beauty, health and rehabilitation industries. Her clients have included the Finnish National Opera, the Finnish National Theatre, The Parliament of Finland and many other companies, and she has contributed to numerous articles on fitness and beauty in magazines and newspapers. She began to develop her medical-based, facial muscle care technique and therapy in 1990 and her two books on the subject have been translated into many languages. She lives in Helsinki, Finland.

© 2013 Singing Dragon blog. All Rights Reserved

Vital Healing & Celestial Healing – Now available together

Vital Healing & Celestial HealingOffering a panoramic overview of the healing traditions of Asia, these two books by Dr. Marc Micozzi and a distinguished group of contributors are now available together in paperback as a set:

Vital Healing: Energy, Mind and Spirit in Traditional Medicines of India, Tibet and the Middle East – Middle Asia
by Marc S. Micozzi, MD, PhD
with Donald McCown and Mones Abu-Asab, PhD (Unani), Hakima Amri, PhD (Unani), Kevin Ergil, MA, MS, LAc (Tibet), Howard Hall, PsyD, PhD (Sufi), Hari Sharma, MD (Maharishi Ayurveda), Kenneth G. Zysk, Dphil, PhD (Ayurveda & Siddha)

Celestial Healing: Energy, Mind and Spirit in Traditional Medicines of China, and East and Southeast Asia
by Marc S. Micozzi, MD, PhD
with Kevin Ergil, MA, MS, LAc (Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture, Qi, and Qi Gong), Laurel S. Gabler, BA, MSc (Thai Medicine) and Kerry Palanjian, BA, MBA (Shiatsu)

Customers who order the set will receive a savings of over 20% versus ordering the books separately.

To order for both books together, click here.

Called “a valuable basis for comparison of Eastern medical practices,” by Foreword Reviews, this set will be of interest to practitioners of all Middle Eastern and Asian medical traditions, complementary and alternative health practitioners, and anyone with an interest in Middle Eastern and Asian approaches to health and well-being.

A quick exercise that will work wonders on your jaw

Vital-face---p84---imageCombination exercise to strengthen buccinator and risorius muscles

Place a cork or something of a similar suitable size between your teeth to keep your lower jaw down. Hold the position and simultaneously pull the corners of mouth straight sideways.
Repeat 10 times. Close your mouth and rest for a few seconds. Place the cork again and repeat another 10 times.

IMPACT ON APPEARANCE: Tones the lower cheek.
IMPACT ON HEALTH: Relaxes and lengthens jaw-closing chewing muscles.

Vital Face by Leena Kiviluoma has a whole programme of facial exercises and massage for health and beauty (some with corks and some without!) find out more here.


Vital Face
Facial Exercises and Massage for Health and Beauty

Leena Kiviluoma

This is a fully-illustrated guide to stretching and massage techniques to relax the facial, neck and shoulder muscles. The exercises address health issues such as teeth clenching and grinding, pain in the face, jaw, head or neck, and can improve the effects of Bell’s Palsy. They also help reduce facial lines and leave the skin healthy and glowing.

Click here to buy the book


 PRECAUTIONS:
– Perform all the stretches slowly and gently
– Concentrate on the stretch
– Stretch the chewing muscles carefully to a point of mild discomfort and hold the stretch for a while. The discomfort should begin to fade during the stretch, when the stretch gradually relieves tension and loosens your chewing muscles.
– Keep the muscles you are stretching relaxed. Breathing deliberately during the stretching helps you relax and control the stretches. Enjoy the relaxing feeling of stretches.
– If a stretch feels too uncomfortable and tenses your muscles, decrease the force or the range of movement or both.
– The feeling of the stretch should not be painful. It should not produce pain in the muscles or in the joints. Distinguish the feeling of a healthy muscle stretch from the sensation of pain.
– Hold each stretch for the recommended time and repeat each stretch the recommended number of times. You can increase the duration of a stretch as well as the number of repetitions if you like and as long as it feels comfortable.
– Application of moist heat or cold is sometimes a helpful relaxing procedure before the stretching of the chewing muscles.
Caution: Never perform sudden and forceful movements during stretching or try to force your jaw beyond its physiological limits. Those with a history of a jaw dislocation must be careful not to perform jaw movements that are too wide.

Japanese Holistic Face Massage – More than a facial, by Rosemary Patten

Patten, RosemaryThe face reflects who we are, reflects our personality, state of health and our spiritual balance. We pick up a lot of information about a person just by looking at their face. To the ancient Japanese and Chinese, a beautiful face was the ultimate prize as it was a reflection of optimum health and of course with good health comes a long life. Longevity achieved through preventing ill health was, and still is, the aim of traditional Chinese medicine.

Japanese face massage became popular in the Far East during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, especially among the Geisha, for its health-giving benefits and its ability to reflect inner calm on their porcelain-like faces. Not much was known of this unique massage in the West until after the Second World War but today it is practised all over the world.

Many facial routines focus on cleansing and may include a basic massage designed to relax the recipient. The Japanese face massage is much more than a massage or facial. From the very beginning of the routine, the recipient experiences a glorious sense of release within the first two movements as the flowing but firm touch sets the scene for an experience of peaceful tranquillity and healing. There is a feeling of liberation as the neck and shoulders are massaged, lifting tension and allowing calm to descend. These opening movements pave the way for the deep healing experience you get from the Japanese face massage.

Unlike basic facial routines, the techniques in Japanese face massage focus deeper to achieve more than a cleanse, tone and moisturise. Acupressure points around the face and head are gently manipulated and the meridians are traced to access the body’s bio-energetic flow to bring balance.

Patten_Japanese-Holist_978-1-84819-122-8_colourjpg-webThe massage pushes oxygenated blood and nutrients to penetrate the deep layers of the skin to nourish and renew cells. The gentle flowing effleurage movements are not only relaxing but also encourage the release of cellular matter and the removal of de-oxygenated blood via the lymphatic system. The effect is instantly visible as circulation to the face is improved, bringing a lustre to the skin which manifests as an inner glow of calm and vitality. Fine lines are diminished and the contours of the face become more defined, especially noticeable around the eye area.

All bio-energy pathways or meridians either start or finish in the face. As the acupressure points are accessed there is a deep sense of comfort and nurturing. Additionally, the sequence of the movements and the tracing of the pathways or meridians encourages Ki (universal life force energy) to flow where it is most needed. Ki energy is responsible for correctly functioning bodily fluids and the smooth running of body organs such as the kidneys and the liver.

There has been a myriad of research on the effects of stimulating the acupressure points over the past fifty years as Western scientists slowly realise what Eastern medicine has known for over 4,000 years. Acupressure points on the face react instantly to touch, releasing endorphins and bypassing the central nervous system due to the close proximity to the brain. There is a prevailing sense of well-being when the hormones are stimulated. The autonomic nervous system is calmed and peace descends as healing on all levels takes place. The Japanese face massage is truly holistic as it not only improves the appearance of the face but also helps the body function better. A truly wonderful combination of benefits that leaves the recipient feeling mentally and emotionally revived.

 

Rosemary Patten is a naturally gifted holistic therapist with over 23 years’ experience in helping people feel better. She began her professional career within the NHS, in hospital settings, where her extensive contact with those in rehabilitation gave her an invaluable grounding in understanding the nature of disease. A master Reiki practitioner, aromatherapist, reflexologist, qualified beautician and in many other holistic therapies, Rosemary founded Rose Health and Well Being Natural Health Centre, which has now evolved into Equinox Rose. This is a combined holistic services consultancy delivering various natural therapy workshops, consultations on business development for therapists and a clinic specialising in energetic healing. Japanese Holistic Face Massage is among the range of therapies Rosemary uses to help her many clients make a breakthrough physically or emotionally. Rosemary believes passionately in a holistic approach to diagnosing root causes of illness, especially the impact of stagnant energetic flow within and around the body. She lives in Kent, UK.


© 2013 Singing Dragon blog. All Rights Reserved

 

Relieve tension headaches with these facial massage techniques – extract from Vital Face by Leena Kiviluoma

Kiviluoma_Vital-Face-Faci_978-1-84819-166-2_colourjpg-webTaken from Vital Face, this selection of quick and easy exercises designed for the forehead will enable you to remove stiffness, eliminate tension headaches, and smooth out facial lines.

Click here to read the extract.

Feel the difference? Read the book for more exercises to relax and rejuvenate the whole face, head and neck.

‘Leena Kiviluoma has done trailblazing work in developing her ingenious, easy-to-use facial muscle care technique. I use her book when I teach anatomy, physiology and skin care to trainee beauty care professionals. With the help of this book clients of beauty therapists can also practice effective self-applied beauty routines at home which will help to maintain a youthful appearance.’

 -Anna-Liisa Halsas-Lehto, Master of Health Science, Vocational Teacher, Beauty Therapist

‘I tried this programme developed by Leena Kiviluoma. Both the relaxedness and the capacity of my jaw increased noticeably.’

-Fitness and Health Magazine, Finnish edition

Leena Kiviluoma is a physiotherapist working as a teacher and consultant in the fitness, beauty, health and rehabilitation industries. Her clients have included the Finnish National Opera, the Finnish National Theatre, The Parliament of Finland and many other companies, and she has contributed to numerous articles on fitness and beauty in magazines and newspapers. She began to develop her medical-based, facial muscle care technique and therapy in 1990 and her two books on the subject have been translated into many languages. She lives in Helsinki, Finland.

© 2013 Singing Dragon blog. All Rights Reserved

Singing Dragon Complete Catalogue – Spring/Summer 2013

Featuring all of our titles, including books on Chinese medicine, qigong, martial arts and complementary therapies, the Singing Dragon catalogue has something for everyone. Feel free to browse, share and email the catalogue to anyone you think might be interested. Click on the catalogue to view full-screen. You can find out more information and order the books by clicking on the titles.

If you would like any physical copies of the catalogue please send an email to post@intl.singingdragon.com