"Before receiving shiatsu treatments I suffered from frequent neck and back pain and headaches. I used to just put up with the pain hoping it would go away. I suffer from cerebral palsy which affects the nervous system and causes involuntary muscle spasms and affects my coordination. Akemi's shiatsu techniques have helped to improve my blood circulation by working on various trigger points throughout my entire body. As a result, my nervous system becomes calmer and allows me to relax thereby reducing the spasms in my body.
The energy that is transmitted through Akemi's treatments really does make me feel more energized. I feel rejuvenated and revitalized after the session, and any pain which I was feeling before the treatment diminishes drastically.
Shiatsu enables me to work at my computer for longer periods of time. I feel that I have better concentration. I have also noticed that the coordination in my golf game has improved. I have become less stressed and am able to cope better with situations in my daily life. I really feel that I owe this to the benefits of shiatsu with the addition of better nutrition. I would highly recommend Akemi for her Shiatsu Therapy."
- Dan G., Business System Analyst
"I find that the treatments I get on a regular basis helps me function in life and something which I love to do, golf. Before I started the treatments I was unable to finish 9 holes at a small course, now I walk and play a full size course twice in a day.
- Paul L., Patient
"A friend recommended Akemi to me last September (06). I was suffering from headaches which were aggravated by coughing. I was very impressed with the way Akemi listened carefully to what I was saying, questioned me for clarification about my symptoms and systematically checked my body and head for tender areas I believed she genuinely cared for my well being. I came away from my first session feeling relaxed and assured that Akemi would help me. I always look forward to my visits.
Akemi is a professional in her approach and treatment of my health problems. She is also a warm, caring person and I believe that these attributes, along with her knowledge and skills in shiatsu have contributed to my improved well being. The neurologist told me to take aspirin. Akemi taught me exercises to do to help ease the headaches. During and after each session with Akemi, I am relaxed, centered and calm. She has the ability to "treat" the individual, not just the symptoms. I am much improved since last September. Thank you Akemi for all your help."
- L.C., Retired Nurse
(excerpt from a larger testimonial)
"I still remember clear details of my first Zen Shiatsu treatment. In June 1994, I had telephoned the Zen Shiatsu Institute (now Shiatsu Kokoro Dojo) to inquire about a shiatsu massage, booking an appointment with Akemi Nakamura . . . I feel that I can quite unequivocally state that shiatsu has had a profound and highly positive effect on my life. As a classical guitarist I am more relaxed, centered, focused and expressive when I practice and perform, and as a teacher I am not only more patient with my students, but also more aware of and increasingly able to respond to their needs. I have a deeper understanding of myself and I feel that I am better able to act on that understanding in a meaningful fashion.
The most significant change that I have undergone, however, involves the clearing of blockages relating to my emotional life and to my creative capacity. I had, in the past, composed music, but it was usually only under times of intense emotional duress; the labour was hard and the results, while possessing some quality, were meager in quantity. I had not written anything at all for some twelve years when … after a year and half of treatments, I started composing guitar pieces like a man possessed.
During the past two and a half years I have composed over fifty classical guitar pieces, made many solo and duo arrangements, and am currently (at the time this testimonial was written) halfway through writing a classical guitar method book.
… I know on an intuitive level that the positive changes that I have undergone in the last few years are, for the most part, directly attributable to my shiatsu treatments, and that in many ways, particularly in a musical sense, the quality of my life has improved in a clear and measurable fashion."
- Richard S., Musician, Teacher, Examiner, Royal Conservatory of Music