The Energy First Aid Book: The Manual for Everyday Balance

Some people buy a book and let it gather dust on the shelf.

The book I want to talk about is my manual entitled "Energy Balancing Care Guide."

One long-time client owns five copies of the manual.

One rests by the bed. One sits on the desk. One stays by the recliner. One travels everywhere in luggage. And one copy — just in case — is the spare.

I call it my manual. My clients call it something else: their energy first aid book.

They've taken the workshops that teach them how to use the manual. Then, they can use it to literally be in touch with their bodies.

This client has been with me since my class Health at Your Fingertips®, back when we studied this material together. He's taken additional workshops since, mostly for review. For the most part, that review brings the acknowledgment that "I know my body." And the realization that "I know the manual so well that I can use it on my own." That, by the way, is how all who have a copy and make use of it feel about studying self-help acupressure.

When this particular client receives a Jin Shin Jyutsu/acupressure session, it's all about reminding the energetic body how to be in flow, so he can easily do what he wants and his body won't go into reaction mode. After that, his daily self-help practice helps his body consistently assimilate the messages we instill in it during the sessions.

That's how deeply he knows his body.

Once, while traveling in Italy, something came up that made him think he'd have to go to the ER. He texted me: What should I do? This is what's happening.

I suggested what he could do and which energy balance points to hold. His body "corrected the imbalance," and he didn't have to go to the ER. He didn't have to see a doctor. He corrected it himself. And if he had needed to receive medical care, his body would've been in a place to more readily accept it and the changes.

Different lives. Different challenges. Same manual.

The teacher who keeps a copy in the classroom drawer.

Not for emergencies. For the everyday kind of chaos. The moment before a test. The transition after recess. The afternoon when everyone's energy is ricocheting off the walls, and nobody can sit still. This teacher doesn't make a big deal out of it. She and others just show the animated video, lead the class through the Daily Clean Your House Flow®, and watch what happens.

The Daily Clean Your House Flow® is a simple, daily practice that helps clear energy and restore balance. Anyone can do it. No special training required.

If that teacher, and others, notice that there is more that an individual student needs, or more that the whole class needs, they pull out the manual and get the guidance on what will make the difference for whatever the students are experiencing.

Playground monitors have noticed. Classrooms that do this daily? The kids get along better. There's more ease out there. More camaraderie. Something shifts that the adults can't quite name but everyone can feel.

The client who just wants to move easier.

She had been on what was going to be a very fun hiking and boating trip. She fell and injured her ankle. The fun changed to figuring out how to get back home and then recover. The injury slowed her down, leaving her unable to do what she loved with ease and comfort, and to feel confident about saying yes to what she wanted to do.

She was done with "slowing down." Her goal was simple: gain back flexibility and agility so she could exercise, hike, and play pickleball again.

She uses the manual to address the specific areas of her body that need extra attention. And just as important, she uses it to prepare her body BEFORE she exercises, hikes, or heads to the pickleball court. When energy is in flow ahead of time, the body doesn't go into reaction mode. It just gets to do what she loves doing.

Three different people. Three different copies of the same manual.

One by the bed. One in the luggage. One in a classroom drawer.

Your body came with a manual. Most of us are much closer to reading it than we think.

The energy first aid book isn't about fixing yourself. It's about knowing yourself well enough — finally — to listen.

I have so many stories about clients who have taken their self-care to heart. They have learned the 26 Jin Shin Jyutsu energy balance points – the location of each one, and the benefits each has to offer when it's in a state of balance. (No more holding onto the tension and stuck energy!)

What would it look like if you started reading your own manual today?