STRETCHING back to ancient times, people have long recognized the power of massage, that kneading muscle can treat aches and ailments. And long practice over thousands of years has seen Chinese massage therapy shape into a comprehensive subject that includes much more than just the well-known foot massage.

Two main types of traditional Chinese massage exist: tui na which focuses on pushing, stretching and kneading the muscle; and zhi ya which is characterized by pinching and pressing at acupressure points. Both are based on principles of traditional Chinese medicine.

Though in some Western countries tui na is viewed as simply a massage style, in China is it seen as more than that. A truly good traditional massage should be combined with qi - the vital life force in the body - and qi gong, techniques to improve qi, to correct and treat everything from musculoskeletal conditions to stomach and headaches.

In addition, cupping, acupuncture and bone setting are also part of Chinese massage.

You can find masseurs in large TCM hospitals or at blind people massage salons on street corners. No matter where they work, word of mouth recommendations are their best advertisement.

Shanghai Daily has found four masseurs widely praised by Hangzhou locals, and introduces them in today and tomorrow's Hangzhou Special.

The bone-setting doctor

A young man, his neck twisted to the left, is helped by two people into the consulting room of Guang Xing Tang TCM Clinic. He had been focusing on a computer for hours, turning his head and shoulders left to see the screen. Afterward, he discovered that he could not move his neck at all.

But after 10 minutes of kneading the muscles and manipulating neck vertebrae, Dr An Shouwei restored full mobility to the relieved patient.

An then tells of a middle-aged man suffering from lumbar disc herniation - slipped discs - who had been urged by doctors to undergo surgery. Reluctant to do so, he turned to An, who undertook a three-month bone-setting massage program. At the end, the patient was healed and does not require surgery.

The bone-setter says he has numerous other examples of how his techniques have helped patients. At only 31 years old, An's fame brings people flocking to Guang Xing Tang TCM clinic.

The doctor practices tui na and bone-setting. He is especially renowned for healing cervical spondylosis, abnormal wear on neck bone cartilage and lumbar spondylosis, bony overgrowths on the vertebrae, both of which can benefit from bone-setting therapy.

"I enjoy helping relieve people from pain," An says simply.

Bone-setting is a traditional therapy in Chinese massage, and a bone-setter is required to have acute touch, sophisticated techniques, precise judgment, knowledge of medicine and human body, plus sufficient physical strength.

Patients not only go for bone-setting treatment for aching bones, but tightness in the chest, painful ribs caused by inflamed muscle and other conditions linked to bone disorders.

Through touching and pressing, a bone-setter can diagnose the patient's bone condition - such as if one vertebra is bulging - and then attempts to put it right, using light force to click everything back into place.

"It is a combination of brain and manual work; bone-setters should be bold enough to apply force and also cautious enough to make sure every step cures not hurts," An says.

He adds that his secret of being a good doctor is to keep learning and thinking, not only from books but patients, and recognize that while some conditions can be treated in minutes, others require a long course of treatment.

An strongly suggests that people take plenty exercise to keep fit and avoid trips to a bone-setter.

"Mostly, bad bone conditions derive from a lack of exercise, with weak muscles failing to support the bones well," he explains.

"Also, I think doing sports sounds better than seeing doctors," adds An.



Address: 2 Shuangyanjing Lane

Tel: (0571) 8788-1600



'Energy channels cleaner'

Blind people's massage businesses are numerous in China, but in Kang Ning Blind People Massage Store, 56-year-old masseur Chen Zhiming offers tui na different from ordinary muscle kneading. Instead, the therapist specializes in correcting jing luo, the main and collateral energy channels, according to TCM.

The most distinctive characteristic is that it's not the customer telling Chen, "I want a one-hour massage." Instead, Chen tells them how many hours they need, massaging until he feels the channel is cleared.

He does not simply knead a customer's muscles from their neck to their feet. Instead, he first lightly touches the customer's fingertips and legs to check which channels are blocked, and then "dredges" the channel with kneading and vibrating, coupled with muscle massage.

In traditional Chinese medicine there are about 400 acupuncture points and 12 channels connecting most of the points, with each channel corresponding to each organ, nourishing it and extending to an extremity. Chen unblocks part of the channel to ensure qi goes through the body smoothly and therefore ensure blood circulates unobstructed and that organs can function properly.

"Being aware of the condition of channels is vital to knowing the customer's fundamental health problem," explains Chen.

He cites examples of people complaining of bad breath discovering that the reason is because their stomach channel is blocked; some people suffering from constipation find it's caused by the heart channel being obstructed.

Chen puts this into practice treating a woman during the Shanghai Daily reporter's visit. She is complaining of shoulder and neck pain, but Chen diagnoses that her bigger problem is blocked spleen and stomach channels. The lack of qi in the spleen channel leads to stomach weakness. The woman feels pain when points on the channels are pressed.

So, rather than kneading her stiff neck and shoulder, for hours he has massaging her stomach and legs, where the two channels go, until the woman does not feel much pain.

Only then does he begin tui na on her shoulders and neck, which are already more soft and relaxed before he even starts. "It works if I only massage the shoulder and neck, but it works better if I firstly solve the large problem, which is blocked qi circulation," he explains.



Address: West Liushuiyuan Community, 47 Chaohui Rd

Tel: (0571) 8752-0189