Barbra Esher, AOBTA CI. Dipl. ABT & Ac. (NCCAOM), LAc

Barbra Esher is the senior instructor and curriculum coordinator for the professional program in shiatsu and Asian bodywork at the Baltimore School of Massage. She is the past president of the American Organization for Bodywork Therapies of Asia (AOBTA), and an AOBTA-certified instructor. This series of articles is based on information from her forthcoming textbook, Shiatsu and Chinese Medicine.

Previous Articles

Rebirthing AOBTA: A Retrospective of Three Years as President
June 2002 (Vol. 03, Issue 06)
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Health & Wellness / Lifestyle
Cultivating the Empowered Patient: Help Them Commit to Their Own Process
Cultivating the Empowered Patient: Help Them Commit to Their Own Process

The most important relationship I seek to nurture in the treatment room is the one a patient has with their own body. We live in a culture that teaches us to override pain, defer to outside authority, and push through discomfort. Patients often arrive hoping I can “fix” them, but the truth is, we can’t do the work for them. We can offer guidance, insight and support, but healing requires their full participation.

Aiden Jakob Seraphim, DACM, LAc
Healthcare / Public Health
From Needle to Knife
From Needle to Knife

Chinese medical theory details each meridian’s functions and associations, which can be extrapolated for metaphorical significance. For example, the Large Intestine (LI) meridian expels physical and emotional waste, supporting systemic purification and renewal. Its anatomical trajectory, which traverses the index finger, upper extremity, shoulder, neck, and terminates at the contralateral nasolabial groove, also serves as a narrative metaphor, eloquently illustrating my journey from acupuncturist to colon and rectal surgeon.

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Vanessa Hortian, DO, MS, LAc, CHSE
Chronic / Acute Conditions
Transformational Work With Anxiety (Pt. 1): Panic Attack
Transformational Work With Anxiety

When we are in the grips of an anxious pattern, it dominates our brain and nervous system, and we lose our normal body-mind regulation. In this and subsequent articles, I present effective mindfulness-based method* via case study, that we can add to our acupuncture treatments to help clients consciously stop the dysregulating cascade of events and bring “distressed parts” into coherent body-mind-spirit integration.

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Kamala Quale, MSOM, LAc