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1 Acupressure Posts April 18-25, 2014 by Susan Tenney, CMT Come join the fun at facebook.com/elemental.acu

2 Copyright Notice The information in this publication is only to be used for helping you, as an Elemental Acupressure student, learn acupressure. Because much of this information is not my personal creation but theory handed down over centuries, I believe in sharing this information. However please respect the time, effort and personal creativity that have gone into creating this manual by observing the following conditions. You have permission to photocopy pages from this manual for your personal use only, as long as all pages copied are copied in their entirety including the contact information at the bottom of the page. If you want to use anything from the manual, including any diagrams, for your clients or students, WRITTEN PERMISSION IS REQUIRED. For any other reproduction or transmission of this manual in any form or by any means, including recording or by any other storage and retrieval system, WRITTEN PERMISSION IS REQUIRED. I greatly appreciate your understanding in these matters. For you and all the animals you touch, I wish you great health and vitality, Susan

3 April 18, 2014: Riley Part 1 Oh NO! Riley had a hard day. He loves to chase squirrels but this time it got him into trouble. He somehow managed to scramble the fence and break the middle phalange of his third digit, the equivalent of your longest finger. OUCH! As you can see, the despondent pup will not be running around on that paw for a bit. He has a full cast. Please note that when I make the suggestions below, I assume that they are being used along with proper veterinary care!! In the first days, you need to reduce pain and inflammation. You may have drugs to help with this, and the points will be a wonderful adjunct to the meds. The primary points for this include LI 4 and LI 11. LI 4 lies in the web between the dew claw and the leg of your dog. There is a little web of skin there and so you can gently pinch the skin between your fingers to stimulate the point. If your dog does not have his dew claw, then approximate the location by stroking along the inside of the forepaw where the dew claw usually lies. (See the photos below) LI 11 lies on the outside surface of the forelimb at the level of the elbow crease. Gently bend the front leg at the elbow joint. LI 11 lies in the crease of the elbow about 1/3 the distance from the front line of the leg to the point of the elbow. If your dog has a broken bone, you can do these two points very often, even 4 times per day. But realize that the points may be reactive! Unlike an everyday situation, the points will fill up quickly so doing them very often keeps them clear and open, hence the frequent application of gentle pressure to the points. Keep this up for the first week. As the pain and swelling goes down, you can reduce the frequency to 1 2 times per day. You can also use a bit of Rescue Remedy (the human drops or the pet drops with glycerin). Put the drops on the points, on the top of the dog s head or drop it right into the dog s mouth. Also I would VERY much recommend supplementing the points with an application of homeopathic arnica. Dogs do well with the human pills just use 3 6 of the tiny ones put into your hand. Dogs usually lap them up eagerly. Stay tuned for more info for Riley.

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5 April 18: TECHNIQUE CLARIFICATION Remember the dog with the broken paw bone? When I posted the points for him his person asked: When working on LI 11 do I pinch the skin or press on the point? My response: Start by stroking the area with a flat hand stroke slow and smooth in the region of the point. Note that if you are on the leg like with LI 4 it may feel more right to curl your hand around the limb. Now to activate the point, simply take your fingertips (1 or more depending on the size of the body part) and slowly and gently press into the point. Rest quietly for seconds, increasing the pressure a bit if it feels right. Then slowly release your pressure, gradually, like a gentle exhale. Finish by repeating the flat hand stroke. Rest for a moment, then move to the next point if it feels right for both you and the dog. Repeat on the other side of the body if he allows. I realize that you will not be able to work where the cast is. NO PROBLEM. The meridians run on both sides of the body so by working on one side you still heal the injury site! Nifty stuff, that! April 19: GB 20 for humans Remember how we looked at GB 20 this week on DOGS? [See later pages for this archive post] Do GB 20 for yourself too. This page is talking about headaches, but just this morning I used it with a family member who has a the first signs of a cold. This point REALLY boosts the immune system, clears the head and stops that achy stiff neck you might get at the start of an illness. Just reach back on yourself and use your thumbs to press up into the base of your skull at the location showed. It is a great point for so many uses!! The following image is from the Acupressure Institute:

6 April 19: HT 1 for dogs video link Need a cozy snuggle after a long week? HT 1 is just the ticket. The video here is for a dog (it is of course our mascot, Jewel) but it works just as well with horses (I'll post that next). Many folks that see this video say it is as relaxing to them as it is for their dogs! EXACTLY what we are aiming for! April 19: HT 1 for horses Well, you can't snuggle up on the couch to do HT 1 with your horse like you can with your dog. But this terrific point is still a great way to finish off that long weekend ride in the forest! Here is an old NOTE with all of the details. acupressure/note my favorite relaxation pointhorse/ April 19: Doing acupressure with young active dogs A student asks about working with a young dog, aged 13 months. The dog is nice but very active. She wants to know: can I work with a young dog? Of course!! If is always fine to work with a dog of any age. There are some considerations, however. When working with puppies, make your sessions very short and full of fun. It is more to teach handling than anything. As the dog begins to reach maturity, they may still be very high energy. You can use acupressure, but you will still need to adjust your session to meet his special needs. TIPS: 1: Keep the sessions short start with just 5 minutes. If he is happy you can always go longer next time. 2: If the dog is done, YOU are done. Again, keep it short and follow the dog's lead. 3: Experiment with favorite relaxation points like GB 20 or HT 1 to help him learn how to relax. 4: Let him learn that you respect his need to move! This will set up a good feeling between you and make future sessions easier. Final good thing? Learning to stay calm during acupressure will help him stay calmer and easier to handle during trips to the vet too. Your vet will thank you!! And a happy vet makes for a happy dog and caretaker!

7 April 21: What to do when the animal resists acupressure A student asks: In this video (link included below) the dog moves his head as if he was annoyed by the touch. Should we continue? Are there any risks to ignoring the dog and compelling them to participate? My answer: Yes, there is no argument from me on reading this dog's resistance. He is definitely distracted and less than calm. This practitioner is quite competent and often shares lovely information in her other videos, but this was not her finest moment. Trust me, I know these moments well from all of the Elemental Acupressure class filming. In those moments when you are trying to do a demo and create content you are there for YOURSELF not the animal. Most of the time the animals benefit anyway so we all have lots of videos of happy massage and acupressure receivers. But these types of less comfortable images are very common they are just usually left out of the final products and presentations. Here is why this is helpful to see. You are looking at the first signs of discomfort. This dog isn't comfy but he isn't miserable either. He is distracted by the actions around him maybe with the cameraman, the strong lights, it is hard to say. In any case he is telling the practitioner "No thank you" quite clearly. She is choosing to go forward anyway, talking to us about how it is OK to get the dog accustomed to it. Hmmm, here's the thing. If I see an animal do this kind of response, I will often push through but AFTER I take a break. I suspect this master practitioner would do the same if she was on her own with no camera pressure. I usually take some time off to breathe, soothe, maybe do a favorite point, before I go forward and see if the animal can continue. It wouldn't make for dynamic video, the best sessions are truly BORING to watch, but you would probably see a much happier dog. I'll bet she usually does that. But instead she has shared this awkward moment with us. That is valuable. We get to see the TRUTH of bodywork lots of tough moments to work with. I would just choose a different pace with a lot more breaks for the dog. If you remember to keep the dog's good at heart, you will usually make the right choice for pacing and techniques. How do YOU deal with animal resistance?

8 April 20: Point Location: LI 4 Today I will be sharing an alternate location for LI 4. This is one of the VERY best points for healing pain, especially in the front half of your animal's body. But on dogs there has been a LONG running argument about its location. How about you? Do you use LI 4 for your small animal? If so which location do you use? (dew claw or between the second and third toe) and what are your results? This is the dew claw location that is currently on our charts. LI 4 Point Location Part 2, the ALTERNATE location for LI 4 Riley, our broken paw friend, is not responding well to the usual location of LI 4. The point is on the web of the dew claw and Riley is sensitive there, perhaps because of an earlier injury. So I am going to suggest that Riley s person use the ALTERNATE LI 4 location. Don t know about this yet? You should! LI 4 is one of the very strongest points on the body. It lies on the web of skin between your thumb and forefinger and is used for almost everything pain to skin issues to digestive distress you name it and you can probably use LI 4 for it. However on the dogs, it lies on the same location the web between the dew claw and the leg and this doesn t work for everyone. For some dogs like Riley, the location is sensitive. For others, it is more because the dew claw is no longer present and the energy feels like it is no longer there either, kind of like a river that has changed its course. If this applies to you, then try the alternate location. Many vets choose this location. I go back and forth basically I use what works best but I tend to start with the dew claw location. Maybe just out of habit. Hard to say. The alternate location lies in the space between the 2nd and 3rd metacarpal bones. This would be on the back of your hand, between the second and third fingers. For the dog (or cat or guinea pig), it lies between the wrist (carpal joint) and the paw joint (the metacarpophalangeal joint time to learn some

9 anatomy!!). The metacarpal bones extend down from the wrist, lying next to each other just like the bones in your hand that move down from your wrist to your first knuckles. To find the point, slide over the first slender bone on the inside surface of the metacarpus and rest between this bone and the next. Be sure that you are half way between the carpal and paw joints. Be aware that this can be a very small place, especially for small dogs like a toy poodle. You can also slide down the web, gently of course, to open the energy of the entire meridian pathway. This alternate location is just another camp s idea of where this point lies. There is a real split. For me I don t care which is right for the books. I only care what works for that particular animal. So if it works well for Riley, it works well for me. Give this a try tonight on your dog or other small animal. Tell me which location your animal likes better! And I hope to hear from Riley in the next day or two too! I ll let you know how he likes it and how he is feeling. PS: there will be more points coming for him too! April 20 : The Wood Element for Horses Dynamic! Assertive! Action Loving! Sounds like you have a WOOD ELEMENT horse! Today I posted another author's piece on the Fire Element but to be honest, I am more focused on the WOOD Element in Spring time. Here is an old NOTE that deals with this topic. April 24, 2014 : My favorite shared article of the week In my healing work with people, I have found that the single most powerful thing I can do for a session is to start a session by listening carefully and then commenting honestly on what the client is doing WELL with their animal. It opens people up and allows an intimacy that cannot be faked or forced. It allows HEALING to happen. It is more important than what points I use or what technique I use. This writer understands this. A powerful piece. positivity/52197

10 April 24: Using ST 2 for headshaking in horses Does your horse have headshaking? There are so many theories and so many approaches to healing this challenging condition. Here is one point that one of our students finds both super reactive with her headshaking horse and helpful too. Give it a try. There are two photos so you can see ST 2 "naked" and with helpful marks. Tips: See the bulging vein beneath the eye on our photo model? Your horse might not have it so visible when you go to look for it. Gently pull your horse's head a bit lower than usual so that the blood runs down into the vein and it will pop out. And when pressing on this point be GENTLE. It can be super sensitive for headshaking horses so we want to keep the pressure comfortable! April 25, 2014 : Sale is on the way! We LOVE working with all of you in our courses. Guess it is time for another sale! I will be announcing the sale this weekend more online goodness coming your way. Be sure to check in, even if Facebook doesn't send you notice of our posts in your feeds!

11 Acupressure for Acute Canine Seizures Guidelines and Points April 17, 2014 at 3:16pm Seizures in dogs are a very scary thing. This is NOT something to take lightly and NEVER something to do without veterinary notification, especially if this is the first you have seen your dog have a seizure. While this may be scary, it IS something you can do something about. Here are some tips: 1: CALL your trusted vet first of all. They can give you advice that is specific to your dog s individual needs. After a few seizures, you may actually be able to handle it more or less on your own but ALWAYS keep your vet informed of your dog s situation. 2: CONSULT with your vet about using acupressure. Ideally your vet would be trained in veterinary acupuncture so he or she would know and understand this practice from experience. 3: USE acupressure BETWEEN seizures. The benefits build up over time so regular use can really reduce the frequency and duration of the seizures (together with proper veterinary care, of course!) 4: DURING a seizure, be very careful before you use the points. Some animals move uncontrollably and doing the points at that time may not be safe for you or the dog. Also some animals will really resist the points at this time RESPECT THAT!

12 5: If your dog seems to enjoy the points during a seizure or in a break between seizures, you can try to do the points but keep it very light and gentle. Again, at the first sign of resistance, stop and wait for a better time. 6: In the best of situations, you will be able to use the points regularly (1 5x per week) so that the dog is accustomed to the points. This will reduce the response time and improve the results. 7: Please know that there are many, many point approaches that can be tailored to the dog s individual needs. Consult with your veterinary acupuncturist or with us to find a custom solution for your dog s needs. 8: Press the points below very gently for seconds on each side of the body ONLY as the dog allows. 9: The points to start with include: GB 20: directly behind the dog s ears. See here: &type=3&theater Liv 3: Yao Bai Hui: see photo in this post

13 April 16 GB 20 has been getting some attention lately with our students with dogs. This point lies behind the ears and in my experience is a real doggie favorite a calming point even. Recently, though, several students have been saying that their dogs have STRONG responses at GB 20. This is why acupressure never gets old for me. Clearly these dogs are not the norm, but there have been enough of you sharing this recently that it bears a comment. First of all, GB 20 is a sort of Brain Drain point. If there is tension of thoughts or energy in the head, stimulation of the point allows the backed up energy to flow down and out, giving significant relief to many animals. At this time of year, Spring, this point may be particularly active because it is a strong Wood point and this is the Wood time of year (read more by clicking the link in the comment below). Also, if a dog has issues about being touched on the top of head, as many do, they may resist this point until they realize how good it feels. And finally, if your dog has any chiropractic issues in the neck, again, this point may be reactive. So, if your dog reacts strongly, do you continue? YES! But first you may want to try other points like HT 1 which is very relaxing (see the watch videos tab at the top of the page for a HT 1 video) or Liv 3 which balances the Wood energy (read more by clicking the link in the comments below). Once the dog is more relaxed, then go ahead and work the GB 20 point. Over time your dog should learn to love this point. Try this point the next time you are with your dog and let us know how it goes!!

14 April 13 : GV 4 and YBH for horses Here is the horse photo to show you GV 4 and YBH. The locations are exactly the same anatomically as they are on the dog but finding YBH on the horse is slightly different. You can palpate the spine back from GV 4, just like with the dog, but the point will lie only 1 hand's width back on a full sized horse. On the dog it is proportionally farther back also about a hand width on a full sized dog. In both species, look for a slight dip, on horses the point is a bit spongy. April 13 : Using GV 4 and YBH for dogs Yesterday I posted a new point photo. How could I think of not telling you how to USE those points. Sorry guys! Here are some tips for using the two points in yesterday's photo! These two points are part of our upcoming Aging Dog kit for a reason. Both points are powerful tools for nourishing the energy of your animal at the deepest levels. For animals with high energy, they will calm and align their energy levels. For weaker, older or ill animals, these points support and sustain. Yao Bai Hui (YBH) and Governing Vessel 4 (GV 4) are easy to find points they lie on your animal s back,

15 right on the midline. GV 4 lies directly up from the back corner of the rib cage. YBH lies in the lumbosacral space behind GV 4 and behind the point of hip. The photo shows its location best. To find GV 4, gently palpate the back edge of the rib cage to find the back corner. Then make a straight line up to the midline to find the point. To find YBH on dogs, palpate back to near where the photo shows and look for a dip or opening in the spine. I ll post a horse photo soon. Not sure where the points lie? No problem! Just place a flat hand over the back in the general region and feel for where it feels right. You can t go wrong and if you find the point, watch the magic begin. Most animals LOVE these points. These points are well loved and well tolerated by most animals. The only ones that shouldn t receive point work here are pregnant animals ask your acu vet first.

16 April 8 : Doing acupressure when the animal responds strongly Are you doing acupressure and seeing a strong response? Read on! A student writes: On the 3rd meeting with the Mare she had no more reactions to the Liv 3 point. A question: in the introductory course, you say that there is a strong reaction on the LU 9 then it may be a Metal animal. What do you exactly by strong response? A sense of well being or rather a sensitivity reaction? First of all, it is lovely that the mare s response to a point has reduced. This means that the energy at the point has become harmonized. This is exactly our goal. So, great work!! You are doing this just right! Secondly, this tells you that the first level of imbalance is beginning to leave and you may begin to see a deeper level of issues with the horse. This is like peeling back the layers of an onion and it is exactly what we want. It sounds like the horse may be now responding to LU 9. A strong response can be a strong good response. This would mean deep relaxation, deep breathing, closed eyes, a lowered head It would mean that you found her special spot! A strong negative response is also a good indication you have found something good to work with! You may see a tense body, biting, kicking, resistance, moving away. This means that the point needs work even if it isn t the horse s favorite. Do the work and then finish with a point that she DOES like. You always want to end on a positive point if you can.

17 More on Headshaking: Does your horse have a history of headshaking? If so, read on! A student writes: My pony recently received acupuncture on ST 2 [Susan s note: see more on this point using the links below]. The point was very reactive so I asked if I should follow up with acupressure on this point. This pony is shaking his head recently but is not a real headshaker. Besides all the chiro work he is also receiving acupressure on the points you sent to me. The GB 20 works really well for him, Liv 3 and Ki 3 he liked a lot too. Her question: He reacted strongly to ST 2, and the left needle even stuck at the point! He reacts more to the left point then the right one, but both very strong! Should I just go on for some days to see if he gets better in reaction? He will have another treatment in 4 weeks again with the chiro. My reply: When there is a point that is so reactive, it is excellent to work it regularly even daily. The energy is in a pattern of disharmony at the point and you need to "retrain" the energy pattern to find balance. Of course is it good to do the other points too that will help the larger issue. But the most important is ST 2. Do it on both sides and 3 7 times per week. Also note a couple of things: The points that you mentioned above (GB 20 and Liv 3) help the Wood Element that is quite active now as Spring approaches in Europe. The Wood Element governs the shaking and jerky movements of headshaking (you can learn more about this in the Introduction to the Five Elements class which is the second course in the sequence.) So ST 2 will relax the Wood response and the GB 20 and Liv 3 will soothe the Wood. This is a really good and broad approach for both symptomatic and deeper constitutional healing. I hope that this helps. Please let me know if you need further information on this point and situation. Note that the links will take you to text regarding ST 2 s function as a dental point but it is also a great headshaking point. acupressure/note dental issues horse st 2 july / dental issues horse ST 2 : July 31, 2012 (2 photos) This photo highlights the location of the angular vein as it extends from the eye area. Note that ST 2 lies in the crook of the vein. dental issues horse ST 2 : July 31, 2012 (2 photos) This photo highlights the location of the angular vein as it extends from the eye area. Note that ST 2 lies in the crook of the vein.

18 March 28: Can my horse eat while I do acupressure? Today a student asked if it was OK for her horse to eat while she did acupressure. Here is my answer: Eating is not "perfect" but in real life it is absolutely fine. Many horses simply will NOT stay still or calm and sometimes eating is the best way to get them "in the mood." It only means that some of their focus and energy is going to the digestive system instead of focusing only on the point work. As long as he stays more or less calm, it is really, really fine. No worries. The only exception is giving grain or allowing voracious grazing. If the horse is bolting down food, it is not calming and the body is actually in stress. Try sticking to a carrot or two or a bit of hay instead. But as always, if eating allows you to do the points, it is always better than no points at all. March 27: Acupressure success story Here is a great success story from a person new to acupressure. Liz Randall is the co owner of a topnotch doggie day care in San Marcos, California. She also trains dogs for agility. Her dogs are high energy, a common occurrence for hard working and/or competitive dogs. Liz watched the video of me doing HT 1 on our demo dog ( and decided to give it a try. Here were her results. Sounds like a great start! Liz of writes: "I tried the "armpit" pressure point on two of my dogs that you showed on your videos. One of them is notoriously squirrely when it comes to handling. I chose a time when he was already fairly relaxed, so that helped, but he did let me put my hand under his shoulder and hold it there and he remained relaxed. Sounds silly, but that was kind of a big deal! I am going to keep practicing when he is in a calm state, hoping eventually I can transition that to when he is in a more "normal" energy state and see if I can bring him down a notch. He is a FABULOUS agility dog, but he is always ON. Any ways I can get him to choose to settle in some capacity are good." A couple of days later she wrote even more: I am continuing to try to sneak in the HT1 when I can. I would LOVE to be able to get him to settle before we run. He LOVES agility and gets so amped. Our biggest problem is staying connected in the ring, so I think this could be huge. I will stick with it and let you know! Excited! You can visit Liz and see more about her work at: or go straight to her gorgeous page here: Tell us your fave acupoints for high energy dogs!