How to love your..LIVER

Liver superior (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Amatsu is a treatment that views the body as a whole, so maybe it’s strange that I’ve chosen to start a series that looks at individual parts of the body! It’s partly to indulge my love of writing and research, but it’s also so that I can share some of my (and my favourite practitioner’s) knowledge with you. On the whole, we know so little about our bodies and I believe that the wiser we are, the more we can help ourselves to live full, healthy and happy lives!

This time we focus on the LIVER

The liver is the largest abdominal organ and has many functions. We all know that one of the primary functions of the liver is to detoxify substances such as alcohol and drugs, but it does so much more! It produces, processes and stores many vital chemicals such as bile, vitamins A, D, E, K and B12. It is a real powerhouse, producing heat for the body and is the only abdominal organ that regenerates if part of it is removed but is also commonly referred to as the most over-worked organ in the body! So how do we look after it better?

I spoke to my lovely friend and nutritional therapist, Gemma Davis about some of the ways in which we can support the liver. She said:

As well as the obvious of cutting down on alcohol, you can help to protect the liver from damage and support its complex detox mechanisms by feeding it plenty of…

• high sulphur foods such as garlic, onions, legumes and eggs
• foods from the cabbage family, including broccoli, Brussel sprouts, cabbage
•  beetroot, artichoke and carrots
• herbs such as turmeric, liquorice and cinnamon

Nutritional supplements which may also assist include:

• Vitamin C, which protects the liver from damage and helps the detoxification systems
•  the herb Milk Thistle, which promotes cell regeneration in the liver and increases the detoxifying compound glutathione
• a good quality multi-vitamin to cover all bases and help deal with the barrage of different toxins we subject ourselves to each day.

So next time you are in the supermarket, you can fill your trolley with some of these goodies, knowing that you are giving your liver a boost!

Organs should have the ability to slide and glide over one another as we move, but sometimes perhaps due to injury, infection or virus, they become cramped or ‘stuck’. In Amatsu, we never actually adjust organs, just create space around them so they can move again. A cramped liver may lead to poor digestion, bad breath, headaches and stiff necks, pain around the right shoulder blade and perhaps difficulty in taking deep breaths. Sometimes, whiplash that doesn’t ease with treatment can be due to a straining of the ligaments that hold the liver in place.  According to Chinese Medicine (and a belief we work with in Amatsu) the emotion associated with the liver is anger, so if you feel angry a lot, it may be a sign that you need to take extra care of your liver.

Jean-Pierre Barral, an osteopath who specialises in work with the organs, suggests that we can also help to support our liver through taking steam baths, to encourage sweating and toxin elimination and by attempting to relax more and avoid allowing ourselves to become too stressed (easier said than done, I know, but something we should all be working on!)

So, try some of these things and know that it = happy liver! Good luck!

If you would like to have more help with your nutrition I can highly recommend Gemma Davis. Email Gemma on gemma@gemmadavisnutrition.com for more information.

How many Amatsu sessions will I need?

Deep and superficial layers of posterior leg muscles (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

One of the questions I get asked most frequently by my new clients is ‘How many sessions will I need?’ It’s only natural to ask this and I know I would do the same thing. Of course, we want to know how much time, money and commitment we have to put in so that we can feel OK again. We want to get on with our life.  It’s quite something, a real leap of faith when we are presented with an inconclusive answer.

It’s one of the hardest parts of my job – explaining that, particularly with an old injury or persistent pain that has been around for a while, it may take quite a considerable amount of time to rectify and that I can’t say exactly how long that might be. It’s much harder to swallow than a painkiller. (See my previous post ‘ A Note on Pain’ for more on this)

Over my years of studying and practicing Amatsu, I have been lucky enough to be presented with a different view of the body and health – a more holistic and considered view that has given me a huge respect for our amazing bodies. I’ve started to look at my own body with more compassion, as something to be cherished and nurtured as opposed to a vehicle that carries me around or something that ‘let’s me down’. As I’ve started to do this, I’ve been able to understand, even more, the need for patience in recovery.

If you’ve had a problem for some months or years, your body gradually changes shape. It might sound strange, but imagine for a moment that you have twisted your ankle. You will hobble and limp for at least days if not weeks. You will get stiffness in the muscles of your lower leg, so you will favour the other leg more. You will lean away from the pain when walking and might hitch your shoulder up to help you to lift your ‘bad’ leg. You might need to start carrying your shopping in one hand instead of two..I could go on.. The point is that you might have twisted your ankle, but your whole body gets involved in the problem. Over time, these new compensations crystallise into underdeveloped muscles in some places and overdeveloped in others. Your body changes shape gradually and that new shape, that imbalanced shape, might start to cause you pain in other places. Going back to balance is also gradual and unfortunately, there is no fast-track to true health. Your muscles need to relax out of the spasm that’s held them taut, the bones that they have been holding out of position need to slide back, your pelvis needs to regain stability and with it your spine. It takes time.

If we think about it, we already that these body shape changes take time. Look at how long it takes to build up big biceps in the gym or to drop those extra pounds we put on at Christmas. One week of weight training won’t make too much difference and unless we stick to a healthier diet, those extra curves will still be there! So it’s not really too much of a leap of faith to realise that a long lasting, true approach to health will also take time.

And so I am grateful to all of my clients who trust that I have their very best interests at heart, that I never take their pain and how it affects their life lightly, that I read and I research, ask questions and puzzle over their issues so that I can take the very best and very quickest, but also most sustainable route to making them feel good again. Thank you to you all.