Abdominal massage, as a unique therapy of traditional Chinese medicine, acts on human abdomen by rubbing, pressing, pushing and holding, thus achieving the purpose of diagnosis and treatment and health care. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that the abdomen of human body is "the palace of five internal organs, the source of Yin and Yang, qi and blood", just like the "container" of human viscera, including spleen, stomach, liver, gallbladder, kidney, bladder, small intestine and large intestine. In addition, there are seven important meridians passing through the abdomen, including the stomach meridian of Foot Yangming, the spleen meridian of Foot Taiyin, the kidney meridian of Foot Shaoyin, the gallbladder meridian of Foot Shaoyang, the liver meridian of Foot Jueyin and Ren meridian, and the only transverse meridian of the human body, that is, the belt pulse. It is precisely because the abdomen is the place where important organs live, and there are many meridians running through it, which makes the abdomen become the hub of qi and blood rise and fall, so chronic diseases can be treated by rubbing the abdomen as an auxiliary treatment.
In addition, Chinese medicine also believes that "the back is yang and the abdomen is yin", so the abdomen is vulnerable to cold pathogens. If the abdominal meridians are blocked or the cold catches a cold, it will affect the function of the viscera. At this time, it can also be improved by rubbing the abdomen.
Ascending clear and descending turbid, eliminating constipation.
Rubbing the abdomen can also promote gastrointestinal peristalsis and eliminate constipation. Spleen and stomach are the hinge of human qi movement, and qi movement can be normal only if it is clear and turbid. When you wake up in the morning, you can push your stomach clockwise from your heart to your lower abdomen or around your navel with your fingers, palms and fists in bed. When someone pushes, you will burp and fart, which means that the clear air rises and the turbid air falls, and the effect is the best. Some people will have a gurgling sound in their stomachs, and it still hurts when pushing. This is "turbid gas wrapped in water". Because turbid water is deposited in the abdomen for many days, if this wet turbidity is not discharged early, it will cause headache and dizziness along the meridian, which will lead to dermatitis and eczema, phlegm due to liver fire, diarrhea due to spleen deficiency, and endless legacy. It must be removed as soon as possible. By finding the blocking point or pain point, use the point rubbing method, or press the heel with it as the center, and slowly push it away, which requires moderate attention, not too much, so as not to hurt the internal organs.
Modern medicine has also proved that rubbing the abdomen can increase the blood flow of abdominal muscles and intestinal smooth muscles, increase the tension of muscles in the inner wall of gastrointestinal tract and the function of lymphatic system, and promote the active secretion function of gastrointestinal organs, thus improving the digestion, absorption and excretion functions and achieving the purpose of preventing and eliminating constipation.
Of course, it is worth noting that different massage directions have different effects. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that excess syndrome should be massaged clockwise and deficiency syndrome should be massaged counterclockwise. For example, when the tongue coating is yellow and thick, accompanied by symptoms such as bad breath and constipation, it is empirical and should be massaged clockwise. Western medicine anatomy believes that constipation should be massaged clockwise, because the starting point of the large intestine is located in the right lower abdomen of our body and the ending point is located in the left lower abdomen. If you want to push the feces in the large intestine outward, you have to push it clockwise, from the beginning to the exit, but rubbing it up and down and left and right will not have any effect. In addition, if severe and long-term intractable constipation, it is necessary to improve diet, strengthen exercise, and even supplement with appropriate laxative drugs for systematic intervention.
Spleen health helps to lose weight.
At the same time, insisting on massaging the abdomen also helps to lose weight. According to the meridian theory of traditional Chinese medicine, the abdomen is the gathering place of many yin meridians, and yin belongs to cold, and cold is coagulation. Cold condensation accumulates tangible substances such as fat, and fat accumulates in the abdomen, which interferes with the operation of meridians and qi and blood. In addition, the abdomen belongs to the spleen, and many people's obesity is caused by spleen losing health, accumulation of cold and dampness, and stagnation of qi and blood. By massaging the abdomen, you can dredge the meridians, regulate the qi and blood of viscera and decompose excess fat.
According to the theory of western medicine, regular abdominal rubbing can stimulate peripheral nerves, promote the patency of abdominal wall capillaries and consume abdominal fat. Generally, you can massage the navel as the center, or push it from top to bottom. During the massage, the intensity is moderate, and pay attention to whether there is any abnormality in the abdomen. Massage along the meridians is appropriate. If you are unfamiliar with the meridians, you can follow the direction of the meridians, or fold your hands and massage with your palms.
Soothes the mood and is good for sleep.
Rubbing the abdomen is also conducive to maintaining mental pleasure and promoting sleep. "Stomach disharmony leads to anxiety", and patients with stomach diseases are often accompanied by sleep disorders such as poor sleep quality and difficulty in falling asleep. If you are deeply troubled by insomnia, you can rub your hands on your abdomen every night before going to bed, and gently rub your abdomen clockwise and counterclockwise, with slight heat as the best strength. Rubbing the stomach can calm the liver and reduce fire, soothe the liver and relieve depression, so that people can calm down and have blood circulation. Massage the abdomen before going to bed every day can relieve and relax the spirit, so as to better enter the sleep state. In addition, rubbing the abdomen often can effectively prevent gastric acid secretion and prevent the occurrence of diseases such as gastric ulcer and chronic hepatitis. You can rub your abdomen 1 time every morning, noon and after dinner for 5 minutes, which plays an auxiliary role in treating diseases such as ulcers.
Although massaging the abdomen has many benefits, there are still some places to pay attention to.
First of all, emphasize that the movements should be gentle and slow when rubbing the abdomen, keep breathing smoothly and avoid holding your breath. At the same time, the bladder should be emptied before rubbing, which should not be carried out under the conditions of overeating or hunger, extreme fatigue and mental tension. And keep your body and mind stable.
Secondly, pay attention to the prohibition of rubbing the abdomen during pregnancy. If it is a woman's menstrual period, you can generally rub it gently, but you should pay special attention not to catch cold.
Three, abdominal malignant tumor or gastrointestinal perforation, visceral bleeding, peritonitis and other patients with acute abdomen, it is absolutely forbidden to rub the stomach. When rubbing, abdominal fever, hunger, or accompanied by bowel sounds, exhaust and other phenomena are normal reactions, so don't worry too much, you can still continue.
Huangdi Neijing says: "Massage the abdomen to keep healthy", and Sun Simiao also said: "Massage the abdomen frequently to get rid of all diseases". Persistence is the key to rubbing the abdomen for health care. Sticking to scientific abdomen rubbing can regulate the upper and lower body, regulate yin and yang, remove the old and promote the new, enrich the viscera, drive out external evils, remove internal diseases and strengthen the body and prolong life. The operation method of abdominal massage is simple and easy, and it is one of the best methods of self-care.