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maozada

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MAOZADA (The Handshake) : A hands massage manual

Massage: Emily Graphism: Dayana Lucas Oficina Arara

(pdf and poster soon)

Our Hands

Our hands are tools; they transform thought into action, shape our reality, connect us to the world and the beautiful beings that are part of it.

An extension of our hearts, they can bring the ones we love closer, and keep at a distance those we distrust.

Their sophisticated anatomy enables both the use of brute force and the most delicate of gestures.

They feed us, defend us, but also hold onto a lot of stress.

As the bark of the tree, the skin of our hands holds the traces of the many stories that make up our lives.

Since all body parts tend to reflect a greater whole, a hand massage will have positive effects on the general state of being.

Here are some suggestions and tips on how to provide nice hand massages to friends: after all, this is one of the easiest massages to give on the go!

Getting ready for massage

Setting

Find the appropriate space and time for your massage. Ask not to be disturbed. Make sure neither of you will have to rush anywhere afterwards. Switch off your mobile phones and laptops; take off your jewelry. Both of you should then wash your hands; ideally you should have short, clean nails. You can quickly warm up your hands before you start! Your emotional state is just as important as your physical surroundings. Receiver and Giver, please take a moment to notice how you are feeling before starting. Are you having a good day? Are you nervous? Tired? Upset about something, and pretending not to be? Acknowledging your own emotions before receiving or giving a massage will help you find the right, comfortable place to be with yourself and the other. You will be aware of your limits and, most importantly, you will be able to avoid mistaking your emotions for your friend's and vice versa; this will contribute to a successful, pleasant experience for you both.

Good posture

Find a comfortable position. There are different setups you can choose from:

The "Beauty Salon"

Sit in front of each other across a table. This option requires the least intimate contact giver and receiver (hence more timid persons can feel more comfortable), and is perfect for casual chit-chat. For more comfort, you can use a rolled towel as a wrist rest for the receiver.

The "Tea House"

Sit on floor cushions, facing each other without being perfectly level, so that your opposed shoulders, rather than your faces, are aligned; this way, you won't have to twist your back during the massage. Your opposed knees fall between each others' legs. For the receiver's comfort, and to spare them the temptation to hold their arm and hand up in the air during the massage, you can place a large cushion under their armpit and under their forearm. If you are going to be using oils later, do not forget to protect your cushions and clothes with a towel.

The "Flying Carpet"

The receiver is lying down. The giver sits by their side, facing the opposite direction (that is, facing the hand they will be working on). This position is very relaxing for the receiver, since their muscles can rest; however, you may have to help them keep their arm and hands relaxed throughout the massage. This can be achieved with the appropriate use of props (cushions, rolled towels) and by using your − firm yet delicate − grip to support their articulation whenever you wish to move them. Indeed, movement is initiated at the joints (shoulders, elbows, wrists). If you keep your friend's articulations “safe”, the receiver will “follow” your massage rather than resist it, which will be more relaxing for them and more enjoyable for you. When lying down on their back, some people immediately feel pain in their lumbar region, and eventually everyone will feel some discomfort after a while. To prevent or alleviate the pain, place big enough cushions or rolled towels under both the receiver's knees, or suggest that they bend them (the sole of their feet stays flat on the floor). The idea here is to minimize the lumbar curve of the spine, thereby releasing undesired tensions.

A Snake-like Spine

You want to find and keep a good sitting posture. The most important thing to take care of is your spine. Look at the natural curves of the spine in an anatomy book; this “S” is what we want to protect. Often, due to a lack of flexibility and poor habits, we slouch and slump, hence we lose our vitality and tire more quickly. To restore the S shape of your spine, respect the following: Whether on a chair or on the floor, sit on you sitting bones (called the Ischium, the lower back part of your big hip bone). Make sure you knees are at a lower level than that of your hips; this will slightly tilt your pelvis and impart the right curve to your lumbar region. The curve should be subtle, so don't exaggerate! If while sitting on the floor, for example in a lotus position, you have difficulty keeping your knees lower than your hips, place a cushion under your bottom, and only just sit at its edge. This will help you keep a comfortable curvature in the lower spine. This way of sitting is also know as “zafu sitting”.

Once you've got the basics right, the rest of your spine will follow. Ultimately, you should always think of your posture as something dynamic, like a cobra doing an hypnotic dance. You may be focussed, but you should never be completely still. Remember that both of you are “allowed” to move, adjust, change posture during the session, whenever a given position becomes uncomfortable.

Precautions and Contraindications

Before the session, take a moment together to consider possible precautions (where you should exert caution) and contraindications (where you should not massage). You can consult the list in the annex to this document. Ask your friend a few very basic questions, starting from more general questions like “HOW DO YOU FEEL TODAY?”, “Do you feel any pain?” to then move to more specific ones, focussing in on the hand and arm. Regarding possible illnesses, be as little intrusive as possible. Inviting your friend to read the list of contraindications can be a good alternative to direct questioning, and will be more considerate with regards to their privacy. Also, use your common sense: What do you see? Are there any bruises, cuts, signs of a rash on their hands and arms? Does the skin look fragile? Are there any signs that might point to your friend having a fever? You might have to avoid a particular spot on your friend's hand or arm, or keep a very light pressure throughout the whole sequence (even if otherwise indicated in this manual!), or to avoid any massage altogether for now. In any case, do not improvise yourself a therapist, and always make sure the dialogue is open between you two, so that your friend will feel comfortable providing your with feedback as you proceed. Always keep feeling, and adjust your movements in real time in response to the “information” you pick up; this way, the massage will be adapted to your friend's needs and condition.

Special precautions and contraindications for a hand massage

  • Pregnancy. Keep a light touch (nothing that would startle the person), do not increase pressure, and especially avoid Chinese acupressure point HEGU (LI 4, located between the thumb and index) which is traditionally used in Chinese medicine to induce labor.
  • Acute carpal tunnel syndrome. If untrained, you can massage very gently if and when the pain is not severe. In case of acute pain, you'd better refer your friend to someone qualified.
  • Contagious parasitic skin infections (such as scabies, in which case you could maybe notice signs of rash between the fingers). This is an absolute no-go. If your friend has a dermatological condition which is not contagious (many aren't) they will probably know, and tell you it is not contagious.
  • Open wounds, sores.
  • Fractures, recent surgery or injuries to the hand or arm.

Intentions: What do you wish to get out of this massage ?

Once you are both ready, start by holding hands. Connect, acknowledge and enjoy each other's presence. As massage therapist Ann Catlin puts it in her article Connecting and expressing a language of the human heart:

“Center yourself and take a cleansing breath to focus your attention and intention. Take a moment to establish trust with the [other] and gain permission to provide the massage. Sit facing the person, to the side. Be sure that you can reach the shoulder area without strain. (…) Begin with focused touch; simply hold the person’s hand. Place your attention on their hand and think about all the ways their hands have served their life. Notice the lines, the elegance, the strength or the fragility, whatever is there. Linger here a moment, simply enjoying the connection.”

Ask your friend what they wish to get out of this massage. Invite them to express their wish (it could be to ease pain, relax, stop worrying, feel loved, etc). Defining an intention together, even a simple one (actually, the simpler the better), sets the massage on a good path, and helps you bond and build trust. It can also be an opportunity for your friend to express something important, an emotion, a state of mind, in the comfort of your presence. Whatever comes, welcome it. You don't need to have an opinion, nor do you have to have something reassuring to say. Having a nice moment together, welcoming your friends words and feelings is all that matters.

And you, do you know what you want to achieve with this massage? Again, the simpler and humbler the goal, the better (for example, I want to help my friend relax). Don't, for example, insist on wanting to be some sort of “savior”.

What if your friend wishes for something that seems completely out of reach, like, “I want peace in this world”? Well, aren't you about to experience a moment of peace, in this world, together?

Trust your hearts, and share the experience.

MAOZADA : A suggested sequence for hand massage

The sequence presented here is a simple suggestion. There is no need to be orthodox about it. As a general tip, remember it is nicer, and it makes more sense, to start a massage with soft, superficial, all encompassing warm-up movements, then go into deeper, more precise, more localised techniques, then back to superficial movements before the end. Other than that, movements can come in whichever order you prefer. They can be (re)mixed, including with movements you'll make up as you go; it's a matter of going with the flow. For that, ground yourself in feeling, in the actual sensations, and dance the little dance of freestyle.

It can be nice to have an opening part without oils, because the sensations and pace are quite different. It is a good way to get to know your grounds, and good preparation for further work. Later, when essential oils are added, you can repeat all that you did in the opening part, this time appreciating the difference in feelings, and playing with the new velocity and rhythm imparted by the oils.

Looking up a bit of anatomy of the hand before you start can help a great deal, but it could also confuse you and make you feel more stressed; so just do as you feel like. You can always come back to the books later, and find it is actually easier for you to learn after practice.

In the meantime, your friend's hand is here under your eyes and under the pad of your fingers, to guide you; moreover, you happen to have hands too, so you should know what they feel, and your friend is not a dummy and can give you feedback on how you progress; trust that you can already do very well as an amateur. You'll be surprised!

ENJOY!

Part 1, without oils

As preparatory work for part 2 with oils, or as a stand-alone massage.

  1. HOLD HANDS (THE HANDSHAKE)
  2. OPEN DORSUM OF HAND & WRIST
  3. OPEN PALM & WRIST
  4. “COUNT MONEY” ON THE PHALANGES
  5. PULL & ROTATE FINGER
  6. STRETCH FINGER
  7. ROTATE WRIST

Part 2, with oils

  1. EFFLEURAGE HAND & FOREARM
  2. CIRCLE WRIST JOINT
  3. THUMB SLIDE (into muscle bellies of the forearm)
  4. THE “BOA CONSTRICTOR”
  5. THUMB SLIDE (between metacarpal bones and across the tendons of dorsum of hand)
  6. SLIDE and CATWALK palmar aponeurosis
  7. DRAIN “VALLEY” caution: according to Chinese Medicine, not for pregnant women!
  8. SWING ARM
  9. CLOSURE: HOLD HANDS

More Resources

Videos

Basic oriental techniques (as found in thai or japanese massage) for opening of palms and wrists. Key moves ! The person receiving massage is lying dow on a futon on the floor. No oils needed.

Nice tutorial for basic hand and forearm massage with oils or cream, sitting face to face at a table (beauty salon set up). Easy, lovely moves, smoothly executed and described. Good standards for care (clear instructions for set up, remarks on hygiene and health precautions). Observe how she warmly secures the person's hand in hers when she needs to turn it.

Anatomy

Acupuncture

maozada.1450793960.txt.gz · Last modified: 2015/12/22 15:19 by emily