The Main Central

– guest blogger, Jeannette Northern

I wanted to share more about my personal story with Jin Shin Jyutsu and give you more tools for self-care and healing this week.

My Story:

For many years, I struggled with chronic pain. In my searching to feel better, I practiced a particular form of chi gung and tai chi for 4 plus years when I became curious about the combination of energy(chi or qi) and the power of touch. This curiosity led me to my practice and study of Jin Shin Jyutsu along with the added benefit of a gradual relief from my pain.

I had the great pleasure of giving a session to my 16 year-old niece today. She was recently in the hospital for a serious bout of the e coli bacteria. Thankfully, she’s home and feeling much better. She was curious and willing to receive a session of Jin Shin Jyutsu from me to see how it would make her feel. Her two younger sisters were interested too, so afterwards I shared the self-help techniques of holding fingers with them. My 12 year-old niece giggled as I showed them how to hold their thumbs. “We are supposed to hold our own fingers?” she chuckled.

“That’s the magic of this whole thing! We learn that we can help ourselves!” I said.

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In my last post, I wrote about the value in holding fingers, but there’s a myriad of ways that we can use our hands to facilitate our daily health and well-being. Here’s a self-help routine to re-energize yourself daily. You’ll find it easier to do if you are lying down or reclining comfortably. There’s no rule about how long to hold each location but see if you can maintain the position for about 2-3 minutes. Stay longer if you like. You’ll want to pay attention to the feeling of a pulsation beneath your fingers.

The Main Central Vertical Harmonizing Energy:

1. Place your right hand/fingers on the top of your head and maintain this position during the routine.
2. Place your left hand/fingers on the center of your forehead.
3. Move your left hand/fingers to the tip of your nose.
4. Move your left hand/fingers on the top of your sternum where the collar bones come together.
5. Move your left hand/fingers about 1/3 of the way down the sternum.
6. Move your left hand/fingers to the base of the sternum.
7. Move your left hand/fingers just slightly above the navel (umbilicus).
8. Move your left hand/fingers to the top of the pubic bone.
9. Take your right hand/fingers from the top of your head and place them on your tailbone (coccyx).

The Main Central helps to improve memory, release tension, revitalize hormone functions and more. It helps us adapt to our surroundings and situations, assists with breathing, digestion and proper circulation.

Try it out, but if this routine seems too complicated for you, know that you can keep on holding yours fingers. My teacher, Mary Burmeister, said that Jin Shin Jyutsu isn’t “simply complicated,” but “complicatedly simple.” The beauty of Jin Shin Jyutsu self-help is that it’s simple. Use what feels comfortable but keep on practicing and you’ll begin to see the benefits. And by the way, my niece reported feeling deeply relaxed from her session. She now also knows how to use her fingers to help herself.