A few years ago we had a very interesting visitor here at Lakeside: Dr. Meir Schneider, Ph.D. LMT, an international health educator, therapist and founder of the San Francisco School for Self-Healing. While he was giving lectures and workshops, he presented a very encouraging treatment for osteoporosis. Meir Schneider learned through his personal experiences.

Born with congenital cataracts, he was legally blind. At the age of 16 he began working on his eyes using techniques that were based on studies, done in the 1920s, by the ophthalmologist William Dr.Bates. As Meir describes it; “I started to have visions of healing through movement, and in these dreams, I saw that no disease is incurable and that the function of any one area of the body is deeply related to that of the whole body. As I began creating exercises for myself and for others with serious illnesses, I realized that the body is more capable of healing itself then we could ever imagine.”

For over 32 years, through personal sessions, lectures and workshops, as well as his books, DVD’s and audiocassettes, Meir taught tens of thousands to heal themselves. His clients range from athletes and musicians trying to perfect their performance to people afflicted with paralysis, chronic pain, and such “incurable” diseases as muscular dystrophy, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, respiratory problems, circulatory disorders, diabetes, back and postural problems, strokes, all kinds of vision problems and ….. osteoporosis.

During his visit here he gave several lectures and workshops describing how we can discover our own healing potential, and how we can learn movements for Self Healing and Improvement of Vision. He called this “Yoga for the eyes”. His stay here provided for many of us a source of incredibly encouraging information.

As a matter of fact, in my daily work with clients, I use a lot of the methods I learned from him here and later when I attended another seminar with him in Guernavaca.

One of the most interesting techniques he practices and teaches is called “Bone Tapping Massage” for both prevention and treatment of osteoporosis.

It is still a big challenge for the medical community to offer safe and effective treatments for osteoporosis.

This is how it works.

Tapping on the bones increases blood circulation and aids in bone construction. What is the idea behind the tapping?

We have two different kinds of bone cells: osteoclasts and osteoblasts. These cells have different functions: The osteoclasts are active in the bone resorption phase and debris removal of the old bone cells so that there is a place for growing new cells, the osteoblasts. According to Dr.Meir Schneider the tapping supports this process and especially helps in the formation of new bone cells. He reports very good results, even in severe cases of osteoporosis.

The technique may sound too simple to be true. Often people who have osteoporosis tend to believe that their health will deteriorate no matter what they do, but his evidence shows that they can stop the degeneration or slow it down, and even reverse it. This is a very good technique to add to exercises and healthy life style habits to prevent and to treat osteoporosis.

How to do it?

Bone tapping should be done on any bone which is close enough to the surface that you can feel. These include the vertebrae, the ribs, the fingers, the knuckles, wrists, forearms, elbows, shoulders – feet, ankles, shins, knees, femur and pelvic crest. In short, wherever you can feel your bones.

This type of massage is a light, constant, quick (about 3 per second) tapping with fingertips of all 5 fingers of the hand. The tapping should be done with a very loose wrist and a sense of fluidity. Tap for long periods of time – a steady, rapid, drumming tap.

If you do not have any weakness in your thigh muscles you can tap with an open fist on your thigh and the vibration of this tapping will reach the femur bone, while relaxing the thigh muscles. I personally feel it quite strenuous to use only the fingertips, so I also use them alternating with the side of the hand, the fist or the knuckles.

Do not tap too hard, because that would be traumatic for the fragile bones. But do not tap much too lightly, as this will have no effect. The tapping should be pleasant to your fingers as well as to the person who is receiving the treatment. You may find it amazing how relaxing and at the same time how energizing it is for the person whose bones are tapped.

Very interesting is also the fact, that the person who gives the tapping massages feels the energizing effect as well, a tingling and vibration in the hands and the body. So it serves the giver and the receiver in the same way. Bone areas you can reach, you can tap on yourself. But for the vertebrae and hip/pelvic area you need somebody to help.

Through the years I have offered workshops in” bone tapping” and I encourage people to form their own “tapping group”. It works best with 3 people working together alternating in one session on each other. The tapping is performed on the dressed person, but wearing light, soft and comfortable clothes.

How often?

In a manifest state of osteoporosis, this bone tapping massage should be done once a week for 10 weeks, after that twice a year. Each session should last around one hour for each person, but also depends on the severity of the condition.

See www.self-healing.org for Meir Schneider’s website.

For more information or questions you may contact Barbara Rotthaler, German Certified Health Practitioner and Naturopath, Tel. (01) 376 766 1987, email: barbararotthaler@gmail.com. www.chapalahealth.com