For over ten years, Shiatsu therapy has been one of the most grounding forces in my life. As someone who is highly sensitive, easily overstimulated, and living with post-viral fatigue, Shiatsu has always done something no other treatment could do: it speaks the language of my body when words fall short.
My best friend—who’s also been my Shiatsu therapist for the past 13 years—has walked this healing path with me, and you can explore her practice here. (most photos made by yours truly).Her treatments have seen me through some of the darkest, most chaotic phases of my health journey. There were times when my crashes were so deep, I felt like I was disappearing inside myself, and those sessions brought me back. Back to center. Back to breath. Back to me.
But here’s the beautiful part I want to share today:
That dynamic is changing.
From Crisis Mode to Maintenance
For years, I went to her because I had to—I had reached my limit, and I needed help now. But lately, something has shifted. As I’ve been going deeper in my healing journey—treating the Epstein-Barr virus, understanding my body’s electromagnetic sensitivity, reconnecting with my authentic self—I’ve noticed my energy field changing.
I no longer walk into a Shiatsu session feeling like I’m shattered. Instead, I arrive grounded. Curious. Calm. I’m not coming in to be rescued; I’m coming in to maintain the flow.
That’s a huge shift. And honestly? It feels like a quiet, powerful win.
What is Shiatsu Therapy, Exactly?
Shiatsu is rooted in Traditional Chinese Medicine and works with the meridian system—those invisible channels of energy (Qi) that run through the body. When these pathways get blocked or stagnant, we start to feel it: fatigue, tension, emotional overwhelm, and sometimes even pain.
Shiatsu practitioners use their hands, thumbs, elbows, and even knees to apply gentle pressure along the meridians. The goal is to restore balance, stimulate energy flow, and support the body’s natural ability to heal.
It’s like acupuncture, but without the needles—and for sensitive people like me, it’s the perfect energetic tune-up.
One specific area we focus on in my sessions is my chest area. She focuses on opening up the chest area, because a lot of emotional and energetic stagnation builds up there. It helps release grief, tension, and repressed energy held in the lungs and heart—two meridians that are often impacted in people who are energetically sensitive or healing from chronic illness.
Body as Messenger: What Shiatsu Has Taught Me
Through Shiatsu, I’ve learned to understand my body’s cues in ways I never could before. For example, I’ve noticed this bubbly, fizzy sensation under my skin or in certain organs. At first, it felt weird—like something was shifting inside me—and then I realized:
That was stagnant energy clearing out.
My body was speaking to me. It was saying:
“Thank you. This was stuck, and now it’s moving.”
And that kind of awareness is priceless. It’s not just a physical release—it’s an emotional recalibration, a frequency shift, a return to flow.
Shiatsu During Deep Healing: A Lifeline, A Lighthouse
During the most intense part of my healing, Shiatsu was non-negotiable. It was how I re-entered my body when I felt completely untethered. In fact, I wrote a blog post recently about the pain in my meridians that started when I began doing deeper healing work. That post shares more about the growing pains that come with real energetic transformation—and Shiatsu was a huge part of how I navigated it.
👉 You can read that post here.
Final Thoughts: From Survival to Flow
To me, Shiatsu is not just bodywork. It’s soul support. It helps me stay grounded, balanced, and more attuned to my body’s needs. But even more importantly, it’s been a mirror—showing me how far I’ve come.
I used to need it to survive.
Now I receive it to thrive.
And that shift? That subtle, powerful shift from “I need this to keep going” to “I choose this to stay aligned”? That’s the result of transformation. That’s what healing—real, embodied healing—looks like./ba
Other language vibes below 👇
🇳🇱 Nederlandse samenvatting
Shiatsu is al meer dan tien jaar een van de meest verankerde vormen van heling in mijn leven. Als hooggevoelig persoon met post-virale vermoeidheid heeft Shiatsu me geholpen op een manier die woorden vaak niet konden. In deze blog deel ik hoe de sessies me door diepe crashes hebben geholpen, maar ook hoe er nu een nieuwe fase is aangebroken: van crisis naar onderhoud. Mijn lichaam voelt steeds sterker en mijn energieveld verandert. Shiatsu is niet langer iets wat ik nodig heb—het is nu een bewuste keuze om in balans te blijven.
🇪🇸 Resumen en Español
Durante más de diez años, el Shiatsu ha sido una de las herramientas de sanación más profundas en mi camino. Como persona altamente sensible con fatiga post-viral, esta terapia me ayudó cuando nada más lo hacía. En este post comparto cómo el Shiatsu me sostuvo en momentos de crisis, y cómo ahora estoy entrando en una nueva etapa: de la urgencia al mantenimiento. Mi cuerpo está cambiando, y ahora elijo esta terapia no para sobrevivir, sino para seguir alineada con mi bienestar energético.
This post is part of my personal biohacking journey—if you’d like to explore more of the tools and practices that helped me reset my system from the inside out, check out my Biohacking page for the full collection.
🎧 Listen to this article on Spotify:
Join the Vibe!
I love seeing how my posts resonate with your personal journey—whether it’s EMF awareness, healing habits, or finding joy in life’s quieter moments. If something I shared inspired you, tag me on Instagram @Tanistates so I can cheer you on and maybe even share your story in return.
P.S. Curious to explore EMF protection tools? I’ve partnered with AiresTech to offer 25% off with the code TANISTATES—because protecting your energy field is part of the vibe. 🌐✨
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