Tui na massage takes its name from two Chinese words that mean “lift and press.” It requires the controlled use of very deep but constantly moving pressure, repeated hundreds of times. The practitioner pushes hard with the ball of the thumb, then rubs lightly around the area being treated. A therapist using this form of massage might spend as much time on one of the patient’s joints or limbs as a Western therapist would spend massaging the entire body. Tui na is used to treat a wide variety of conditions that would require a team of physiotherapists, chiropractors, and physicians specializing in sports medicine to treat in the West. One Chinese medical book lists over 140 conditions that can be treated with Tui na, including disorders of the internal organs as well as sprains, pulled muscles, arthritis, and sciatica , a pain in the lower back and back of the thighs.
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