I’ve invited my colleague and co-author of our Hand Wisdom Book, Julie Sonack, MS OT/L to share her wisdom about to heal yourself through our hands. Look for resources to dig deeper at the end of the article.
HERE”S JULIE ………Have you ever felt hand pain or had a hand injury? How about Carpal Tunnel, tendonitis, a sprain, a burn, a crushed bone, or some undiagnosed pain in a particular area of your hand?
You may know HOW you got them, but do you know WHY?
Your hands might just be sending you an important message!
THE THEORY – How you can heal yourself through your hands
Working as a Hand Therapist for 16 years has taught me one thing – our hands are very importan
t to us and even a minor injury will stop us dead in our tracks. Remember the last time you got a paper cut? Didn’t you immediately stop what you were doing and without concern about how you looked, stick your finger in your mouth? (possibly while muttering some obscenities under your breath, or out loud, after carefully scanning your immediate environment for little ears or judgmental glares.)
Well, what if I told you that your paper cut might be giving you valuable insight about your life! This is a theory I’ve been exploring for more than 5 years. I grow more confident each day that our hands, indeed, are sending us messages all the time.
This theory is based on the premise that our bodies want to stay healthy and in balance, and that dis-ease or painful symptoms are not our true nature. Taking this even further, if you’re into metaphysical mumbo-jumbo (meant in the most respectful way as I am a believer), what we hold as thoughts in our mind eventually manifest in our bodies. Unprocessed and repressed emotions can store in our tissues and eventually show up as dis-ease with specific symptoms.
This is being substantiated more and more in the field of neuroscience where the discovery of neuropeptides released in response to our expression of different emotions, have a direct effect on the health of our cells. In this world of science, stressful events and thoughts lead to cell decay and happy optimistic thoughts lead to cell health – well duh! The trick is to change the neural patterning of our negative thinking to more positive thinking.
But when we have a symptom or issue how do we know which thoughts or stressors created it so we can change them? Well, your amazing hands may have the answer!
HAND ANALYSIS – one part of the story – your story!
I imagine that you’ve heard about the systems of Reflexology and Acupuncture. I would venture a guess, though, that you have not heard about the system of Hand Analysis supports healing. This idea that our hands hold valuable information about our lives and personalities goes back to caveman days but data was not collected in a systematic way until the 1800’s. I think it was too much information to chisel out on a stone!
Starting in the 19th Century, this time information on the shape of the hand, the length and shape of the fingers and the quality and pathways of the lines of the hand was put together in a usable way. Add to that in the 20th Century, fingerprint analysis, used by the police as one way to identify “perps”, has developed into a rigorous science both in forensics and in metaphysics. Since these are formed in utero in your 4th month and are unique to you, applied research has show that your fingerprints are valuable in unearthing who you are as an individual. You can never really hide!
These systems encompass the field of Hand Analysis and I believe hold a virtual treasure trove of information that can be a useful way to know if you are on or off your life path. This information is one half of our premise that your hands can guide you when you experience dis-ease or an injury.
Now let’s get back to that paper cut. Most of the time paper cuts occur on our finger tips! In Hand Analysis our fingertips are about our thinking. A cut certainly gets your attention quickly and often requires immediate attention so the message of your paper cut is….WAIT FOR IT… that your thinking is going down a BAD path and requires an immediate adjustment! AMAZING! And you can gain even more insight depending on which finger you cut. Let’s say you cut the tip of your right thumb. This is about using your will power to achieve results and your right thumb is generally more related to career. So maybe you’ve been wrestling with doing something just to get it done and neglecting the will power and focus required to stay on your path. (NO, NOT YOU!). Or maybe you cut the tip of your left pinky finger. You might just need to apologize to your significant other for those harsh words said in the heat of the moment the other night. BUMMER- YOUR BODY KNOWS ALL!
Go ahead and check out the broader picture on Hand Analysis – Frequently Asked Questions.
RESEARCH – we continue to apply our theories
I said that Hand Analysis was one part of the story. The second part is taken from Hand/Occupational Therapy and its body of knowledge in anatomy and the nature of certain hand issues and injuries. Adding to this is application of emerging literature on the mind/body connection. See recommended resources at the end of this article.
So, what about my carpal tunnel you ask? Or perhaps another hand issue that has been diagnosed by a doctor? Our preliminary research has leant credence to our theories around several common hand issues – those with a name!
As always more data is needed. ARGHHHH. To further our research, I need you if you’re willing to be a case study in the next phase of this work. I’m specifically interested in Carpal Tunnel. Contact me, Julie, at www.littlecherubpress.com.
Speaking of research – I recently completed a pilot study at the University of Vermont Medical Center on DeQuervain’s (a tendonitis of the thumb) using this system and was privileged to present this at the American Hand Society Conference last year and the International Conference of Integrative Medicine and Health this year. I am hoping for publication soon. The study not only supported this system as a tool for deeper understanding but also indicated that just by making the connection healing was enhanced and pain was decreased. The results amazed our statisticians and me too!
RECOMMENDED RESOURCES
Intrigued? Here are four great resources to continue your journey.
Dispenza, Dr. Jo
You Are the Placebo – Making Your Mind Matter
(Hay House, 2014)
Hay, Louise
Heal Your Body
(Hay House Inc., 1984)
Rankin, Dr. Lissa
Mind Over Medicine
(Hay House, 2013)
Sonack, Julie and Savage, Janet
Hand Wisdom: A Holistic Guide to Hand Injuries and Your Health
(Little Cherub Press, second edition 2016)
HOW TO CONTACT US
If you want to know more about this topic or share your hand case with me please visit www.littlecherubpress.com and click on the Hand Wisdom Book link.
Julie Sonack is an Occupational Therapist that specializes in Hand Therapy. She has co-authored a book with Janet Savage, Hand Analyst, entitled Hand Wisdom: a Holistic Guide to Hand Injuries and Your Health. Please visit her website at www.littlecherubpress.com for more information. And go to HandTales.com for more information about Hand Analysis.
My final message to you is to take care of your amazing hands. They are meant to work well for you your whole life so you can continually express the unique genius that you are!
~ Julie
