Feeling the pulse and checking the tongue are diagnostic tools used in ancient Chinese medical systems. The information gathered from these methods is used to create a picture of the client's 'condition' as understood through Chinese medicine. There are a variety of other ways to tune into a person's state of health, including facial diagnosis, muscle testing, signs exhibited by a person's voice, breathing, complexion, posture, hara diagnosis, palpation, and, of course, asking.

As my style and training is more aligned with the Zen school of shiatsu,  I tend to rely on palpation and responsiveness of the meridians through stretching for my information.  Neither method is superior to another.. I have just found that I am more receptive to the information I gather through actually working on the person, but I do, at times, incorportate a variety of means to develop a picture of the receiver.

Last updated on June 14, 2008 by Gina Loree' Marks