Alternative Manual Therapy and Spiritual Massage Healing

(Mainstream Massage & Physical Therapy Alternatives)

Applicable Definitions

"Alternative": Existing outside traditional or established institutions or systems; Espousing or reflecting values that are different from those of the establishment or mainstream. ("Alternative" is opposite in meaning from "Establishment", "Mainstream" and "Customary". Alternative therapies are not regulated by the government.)

"Church" vs. "Sate": As per the U.S. Supreme Court, "Church" refers collectively to all religious, spiritual and god-concepts, worship and religious practices; whereas "State" refers collectively to all government systems, institutions and authorities. (God's law vs. man's law) "Church" and "State" are two distinctly different paradigms.

"Manual Therapy": A collective term that encompasses all therapies performed manually (with the hands, and without the aid of tools.) Massage Therapy, Spiritual Massage Healing, Physical Therapy and Chiropractic are all examples of Manual Therapies.

"Healing Crisis": A phenomenon that occurs when the body is triggered to heal or detoxify itself rapidly. Symptoms of a Healing Crisis may include muscle soreness, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, skin eruptions and more. These are normal reactions to a healing condition. (Increased water intake following treatments may decrease the symptoms of a Healing Crisis by helping to flush toxins more quickly from the body.)

"Holistic": A practice of medicine that focuses on the whole patient, and addresses the social, emotional, and spiritual needs of a patient as well as their physical treatment.

"Spiritual Massage Healing": Spiritual Massage Healing is a spiritual form of healing consisting of annointing with oil and movements derived from the laying on of hands. It is the practice of one's spirituality, faith and conscience.

"Therapist": One who facilitates the healing process for another.

Background information

Early/Traditional Massage Therapy in the U.S. was intended to be an alternative to the over-regulated practice of Western Medicine. It was an almost entirely intuitive process and it was truly holistic in nature. There were no schools - methods and techniques were developed by intuition and passed down through affiliation and practice. Therapists would evaluate the body for imbalances using their hands and/or intuition, then determine (again with intuition or through client feedback) what type of touch the body needed in order to rebalance itself. Each therapist developed their own unique style and techniques. The practice of Massage Therapy was regulated only by supply-and-demand, meaning that therapists who provided the most effective treatments thrived, while less gifted individuals would eventually find work in other fields. It was regarded as a completely safe and harmless practice, and there was no need for strict regulation or government control. The free market system ensured that it was affordable and readily available.

"Many gifted individuals are offering exciting and effective methods of therapy in the healing arts, psychology and other licensed professions. Occupational laws, however, often hinder rather than encourage these much-needed innovations. In fact, the trend at this time is to pass more laws for licensing professions. Whether intended or not, their effect is to reduce innovation and to protect often costly, outdated and toxic methods of treating mental and physical ailments."
~ Dr. Lawrence Wilson, Legal Guidelines For Unlicensed Practitioners

However, as the practice of Massage Therapy became more mainstream in the Western world, government authorities began regulating its practice. Massage schools wishing to offer their students federal financial aid were required to teach specific uniform techniques, and "trained" massage therapists began to disregard their own intuition and rely only on the training they had received and the regulations they are now required to adhere to. This standardized form of Massage Therapy scarcely resembles traditional treatments. As a result of these regulated standards, Massage Therapy is no longer an alternative to the over-regulated practice of Western Medicine – it is now part of it.

Advocates of massage regulation led the public to believe that it was for their benefit - to protect them against "quackery" and physical harm. But it was really about control and taxation, as massage (even in its alternative form) is still much safer than most other regulated health practices. American consumers have been conditioned to believe that, without government regulation, they are at a greater risk of being harmed, when the exact opposite is often true. Did you know that a licensed medical doctor is not allowed to recommend alternative therapies (such as acupuncture, aromatherapy and bioactive frequency) that are not regulated and controlled (and taxed) by the F.D.A. and the American Medical Association? Did you know that medical doctors are now the third leading cause of preventable death in America? Every year in America, medical licenses are revoked when well-meaning doctors attempt to do what is best for the individual patient, rather than what is dictated by medical regulatory agencies. Likewise, licensed Massage Therapists in the U.S. are required to put their own creative intelligence and intuition aside to comply with regulations.

"The ability to do healing is a gift from the Creator, and a way of loving others. It is an ancient and natural human vocation. Current laws do not acknowledge this fact. Instead, they place innumerable restrictions upon who can heal or educate another, and how it may be done, even if no harm comes to another."
~ Dr. Lawrence Wilson, Legal Guidelines For Unlicensed Practitioners

Since every disease and condition are experienced differently by each afflicted individual, and each person responds to the same treatments in different ways, over-regulated therapies are becoming less and less effective. More and more, people are turning back to unregulated alternatives to relieve themselves of their ailments. From this demand, Alternative Manual Therapy was born.

Alternative Manual Therapy Today

Like Massage Therapy of the past, today's Alternative Manual Therapy is an intuitive process, and is holistic in nature, addressing mental/emotional and energetic/spiritual imbalances as an integral part of each physical ailment. Therefore, each treatment or method may be completely different from another. Generally, the therapist uses slow and deliberate movements with the hands to evaluate individual muscle fibers for imbalance and to feel for electrical impulses or signals put off by the subtle energy body. Muscle testing may also be used to determine which muscles, organs or systems are imbalanced. The client will experience deep relaxation during this process, and will often fall asleep. Once an imbalance is discovered, the therapist will use various tools and techniques in attempt to restore balance to the area. Muscle tension release, emotional release, decreased pain, euphoria, healing crisis and a general sense of wellbeing are commonly reported experiences during and after treatments. It exists within the nearly-forgotten Free Market.

Legal Considerations

The practice of Alternative Manual Therapy without government regulation, as with various other alternative therapies (such as applied kinesiology, aromatherapy, Reiki and other forms of energy and healing work), is supported by the 9th and 10th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution and by various Supreme Court rulings supporting the right of U.S. Citizens to contract freely with one another, and the right to choose how we care for our own bodies. Also, ordained ministers working in a spiritual capacity can perform spiritual and physical healings (such as the "laying on of hands") and are exempt from medical practice acts in every state, as supported by the 1st Amendment to the U.S. Constitution with regard to Religious Freedom.

Spiritual Massage Healing & Legal Considerations

A separate article was written to cover details about the legal implications of Spiritual Massage Healing. Click here to read the full article.

F.A.Q.

Q: What is Alternative Manual Therapy?
A: At Transformations Wellness Holistic Spa, Alternative Manual Therapy is an alternative healing system using intuitively guided touch to assist the body in healing itself. It offers many of the same benefits and is even more effective than mainstream massage therapy in relieving pain, muscle tension and even emotional baggage. Since Alternative Manual Therapy is an unregulated alternative practice, other definitions may apply with different practitioners.

Drugs and Surgical Medicine are powerless to heal ailments of the mind & spirit

Q: What is Spiritual Massage Healing?
A: Spiritual Massage Healing is a religious ceremony. It is a form of divinely inspired and divinely guided religious healing. It consists of silent prayer, compassion, anointing with oil and movements derived from the laying on of hands. It is the practice of one's religious faith and conscience. Spiritual Massage Healing is also alternative, so other practitioners may describe it differently.

Q: Will it hurt?
A: While some mild discomfort may be experienced, at times, it is otherwise completely painless. It is just as enjoyable as traditional mainstream massage therapy.

Q: How does Alternative Manual Therapy compare to mainstream massage therapy?
A: There may be many similarities between Alternative Manual Therapy and mainstream massage, such as: 1) The client lies on a treatment table while the therapist manipulates soft tissues. 2) The client may experience relief of pain, stress and muscle tension. 3) The treatment is very relaxing and enjoyable. 4) Benefits include: alleviation of pain (including muscular pain, joint pain, arthritis pain, labor pain, headaches, migraines, etc.), enhanced immunity, increased blood and lymph circulation, improves performance and efficiency, clears mental fog, relieves depression and anxiety, increases range of motion and flexibility, facilitates tissue regeneration after injury, reduces inflammation, relaxes tense muscles, and much more.

Q: How does Alternative Manual Therapy differ from mainstream massage therapy?
A: Since Alternative Manual Therapy exists within the Free Market System, styles and techniques may vary greatly. Treatments may resemble Massage Therapy, Reflexology, Acupressure, Cranial Sacral Therapy, Thai Yoga Bodywork, Yumeiho, energy work, or any other hands-on healing modality as customized to your needs by your individual therapist. It is an intuitive process that is customized by your therapist to meet your individual needs. The treatment for a particular imbalance might take place on a different part of the body than where the discomfort is experienced by the client. Most importantly, the treatment is regulated and dictated by your body and your body’s needs, rather than by government regulations.

Q: How does Spiritual Massage Healing compare and differ from mainstream massage therapy?
A: The differences between these two modalities have more to do with licensing than with the treatment itself. However, Spiritual Massage Healing practitioners are free to express their healing talents in ways that licensed Massage Therapists are not, due to laws and regulations imposed on Massage Therapy. Please read Legal Considerations for Spiritual Massage Healing for more details.

"... I am persuaded that licensure has reduced both the quantity and quality of medical practice... it has forced the public to pay more for less satisfactory service, and it has retarded technological development..."
~ Milton Friedman, Nobel prize-winning economist

Q: Will I need to undress?
A: As with mainstream Massage Therapy, Alternative Manual Therapy and Spiritual Massage Healing can be performed with the client fully clothed. However, fabric or jewelry anywhere on the body will have an impact on the treatment - it could prevent the therapist/minister from effectively identifying an area of imbalance within a muscle, and it changes the way the therapist/minister can glide with hands across the body. Metal (such as jewelry or under-wire bras) in contact with the body redirects energy and changes the rhythms of the subtle energy body. Direct skin-to-skin contact is ideal. If you choose to undress, remove as much clothing as you are comfortable removing, and be assured that private body parts (whether partially covered or not) will remain covered by a sheet at all times. All jewelry should be removed.

Q: Massage didn't help my pain. Will Alternative Manual Therapy or Spiritual Massage Healing get rid of it?
A: Regardless of whether you seek alternative or conventional medicine, the fact remains that there is no such thing as an external cure for any condition - period. Therapies such as Alternative Manual Therapy, Spiritual Massage Healing, Massage Therapy, Physical Therapy, chiropractic, acupuncture and even conventional medicine can only create the circumstances for healing to take place - the responsibility for your healing resides within you and nowhere else. We will attempt to help you understand how negative thoughts, emotions, attitudes and rigid belief systems affect your health. We will offer you some of the tools you'll need to help yourself heal. We cannot ethically or logically make any claims as to the expected outcome of your treatment. However, with that being said...

Your satisfaction is guaranteed, so you have nothing to lose except your pain!

"Let us allow physicians, hospitals and schools to spring up where they're needed, abolish the restrictive licensure laws, and simply invoke the laws against fraud to insure honesty among all providers of health care... That will make health care affordable for everyone..."
~ Ron Paul, MD, a practicing obstetrician and a Congressman from Texas

Please also read "Legal Considerations for Spiritual Massage Healing" for more information about the spiritual and religious implications of Alternative Healing.

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