Polarity and Traditional Chinese Medicine

“Energy based body work.”

This is the most concise explanation I have yet.

We follow points along the body as described by Dr. Stone to access points of energy stagnation or resistance and we rock, hold, and give attention to that spot until there is a change in presence.

I have had polarity sessions and I have had acupuncture sessions. I am also a highly sensitive person and have a phobia of needles. So yes, I have some biases. A polarity session is a lot like an acupuncture session. Instead of needles, we use our hands to access the same and similar spots that TCM accesses.

Where they differ lies in their training. Polarity can be done by anyone, just like reiki, it is intention based and doesn’t pose much risk. Acupuncture however, does come with risk, and also a lot of reward. Beyond their huge difference in education level, polarity only allows for one to two spots to be accessed at a time, where acupunture can access many points, giving you faster, more tangible results quickly.

Polarity is a way of life, just like TCM, many of their teachings over lap but there is no denying that TCM pracitioners are held to a higher standard of practice because their education is so vast and integrative. Polarity theories can be learned quite quickly and integrated into daily life, to envoke your body’s own natural healing processes.

I love seeing my acupuncturist, I recommend her to anyone looking for someone to hold a space for some really powerful work. I would continue to see her if my nervous system allowed it. It’s important to know your limits, and my body needed a break and that’s okay.

What I learned was more confirmation and confidence.

I realized how much I already knew. My practitioner would access a point and the next point would already be buzzing within my body. I could call it out before she could place the next point. This kind of introspective information was too much for my nervous system to handle so intensely because I have dysautonomia, so this work is too activating to me.

But something about that buzzing feeling felt so familiar and it clicked immediately, this is what polarity feels like to me. I am pulled to spots.

The buzzing is like how a good baseline feels, feeling the bass in your body from loud speakers, it’s like the most comfortable temperature with the most beautiful sunset with your best friends, having fun, sipping your favorite drink on the first day of camp, it’s excitement, a rush. It feels like rhythm, your favorite song on repeat, driving down a smooth road in your dream car. It feels right.

This is the feeling I get accessing polarity points. There is an ebb and flow and an unwinding.

Your spine is an intenna and how your body processes the information it’s given ripples out through your body. These points also often coincide with fascial tension patterns. Go figure.

What I am saying is, acupuncture might be absolutely perfect for some while others may need to take a less intense approach. It’s okay, it’s not weak of you, it takes a lot of strength to try something scary and learn that it’s too much. It takes a lot of self compassion to step back and decide you need gentler work.

I like to learn as much as I can about TCM but I am no official pracitioner, mostly I like to learn about all the connections and how interconnected polarity and TCM are.