Massage and Bodywork Books

Following the publication of his ground breaking book "The Principles and Practices of No Hands Massage", Gerry Pyves has collaborated with David Woodhouse, a leading UK exponent of Chair Massage, to produce yet another bodywork classic: "NO HANDS Chair Massage.".

The knowledge and effervescent creativity of these two seasoned experts of bodywork fizzes off every page. Written in the style of a Wild West dialogue between Tonto and the Lone Ranger, you will find this a gripping read.

Covering important issues such as the history and development of Chair Massage, the social and historical role of Chair Massage in the modern world, and the methodology of zero-strain Chair Massage, this book is essential reading for any practitioner or therapist.

Underneath the highly readable and racy style of the dialogue between these two pioneers of touch in the UK there lies a surprising depth of knowledge. The whole issue of nomenclature is raised and the roots of Chair massage explored. As with everything NO HANDS much is challenged - all for good clinical reasons. The dominance of oriental Anma (acupressure) traditions is challenged and for the first time in Chair writing, these authors distinguish between meridian-based Bodywork and muscle-based Bodywork. They discuss how each travels a different path, but seeks the same destination.

What Gerry and David have created is an entertaining but highly informative book that reclaims Chair Massage for all Massage therapists and reclaims the right of every Chair enthusiast to work with health and freedom. This book is a revelation for anyone who wants to take touch out onto the streets and into the offices of the world using the Chair.

Gerry has rewritten the rules of Reflexology with the same revolutionary approach as his other two books have rewritten the rules of Massage and Chair Massage. His writing is like a breath of fresh air in a field mostly dominated by dry academic style writing. His style is that of an inspired but down to earth clinician, generously sharing the lessons of over two decades of Bodywork. More akin to poetry, he opens the book with a powerful poem about the feet - here is an excerpt:

So kick those shoes away
Prison wardens to the feet!
And free your feet
Feel the very soul of this Earth
Pulsating through your body!
And when you need that balm
Which only touch can provide
Then carry your feet to this altar
Where your every tissue’s memory
Is honoured

Beautifully crafted in sumptuous brown ink and lovely thick paper, this book is a delight to touch. It is a book to be savoured over and over again - you will cherish it forever. And like all the very best books, it has lots of pictures.

John Coombes’ amazingly evocative drawings of the feet and the body fill almost every page. These outstanding images are done with a true artist’s eye. Unlike most conventional static photos and images of Bodywork, these drawings capture all the complex vectors of Bodywork movement.

Learn about Gerry’s unique 4-stage treatment protocol for opening up the reflexes and read how Reflexology evolved at precisely the same time in history as our feet became imprisoned in clumsily crafted factory shoes.

Learn a practical model for where the reflexes actually live - and why we should re-evaluate our approach to the feet accordingly. Discover how Gerry applies the Seven Postural Secrets that are unique to NO HANDS to empower the work of the whole Reflexology profession. Understand how the Seven Postural Secrets also will now protect the careers of Reflexologists worldwide from an injury pandemic. . Find out how it is that

"Nine out of ten clients who have experienced this approach say they prefer it to conventional Reflexology"

The author returns again and again to the original writings of Eunice Ingham and honours her as the only true authority regarding Reflexology. Discover why it is that Gerry believes Reflexologists may be in danger of straying from Eunice Ingham’s simple command to "go and stimulate the reflexes" by becoming ‘quasi-medical’ practitioners. He states:

"I firmly believe that if Eunice Ingham were alive today, she would see the enormous therapeutic potential of the Seven Postural Secrets of NO HANDS and embrace their simple power with the same visionary fervour as she embraced the simple logic of her amazing work."

For every page of his writings Gerry Pyves has a comprehensive notes section in which he discusses the relationship between his own ideas and those of Eunice Ingham. Written with a surprising lightness of touch the depth of his clinical expertise and practical wisdom often take you by surprise. Like the visionary inventor of Reflexology, Gerry’s mastery of his own art is often demonstrated through unbelievable simplicity. Some pages bear reading over and over again - each reading revealing greater depths.

This book is not simply for Reflexologists, however. Gerry writes:"This book is suitable for any Bodyworker who would understand more of the feet. That is why Reflexology is not in the title. It is a celebration of the soul’s journey contained within the feet. Non Reflexologists will gain just as much from reading it."

This final book in the trilogy looks set to put what is being hailed as the UK’s 'New Massage' firmly on the world map. This trilogy is already a watershed landmark in Bodywork history.
 

About the Author:
"Don has indeed harmonized the secrets of all the different schools and knows how to teach the synthesis. I only wish his hands were big enough to fit around the whole planet - then tectonic stresses and fault lines would be smoothed and eased in a quiet way without earthquakes and eruptions."
(Frederic Lehrman, Senior Tai Chi Instructor, Founder of Nomad University)

About the Book:
"If you are already a bodyworker and want to learn more you will definitely appreciate this book. It will save you years of study. If you are thinking about becoming a bodyworker I know you will be inspired by Don. If you are reading this to learn more about your body, you are wise." (From the foreword by Sondra Ray.)

"This is a book for you who would understand and renegotiate the secret agreements made by your egos in the name of survival...a remembrance of the easy and graceful physicality that has always been your birthright but which may have temporarily misplaced...it's a reminder that for better or worse, you are already a bodyworker...so awaken once more to the healing power of touch."
(From How to Use This Book.)

"Simply put, this book is one of the best Bodywork books ever written. Don McFarland is a genius and one of the few living saints of healing touch. If you touch others, then this book is a must." Gerry Pyves

Read a book that shows the world the real power and depth of touch. This is a book you are going to want all your clients and friends to read. We have been waiting for a book that will tell the world why healing touch is so important.
This is it.

Read a book that will make you laugh and cry as you travel deeper and deeper with Mavis into the magical and sometimes surprising world of touch and healing. Through the use of traditional Massage techniques, Grant takes Mavis on a journey in which she discovers and releases much more than just physical tension.

If Massage is the Cinderella of the healing profession then this book is her glass slipper...

What the author, Gerry Pyves says about this book:

"What follows is the fictional story of Massage and touch for  one particular individual.The truth of the matter is that it is drawn from the reported  experiences of hundreds of Massage clients.  And everything in it actually happened..."
 

Buy ten copies of 'Mavis and I...' to sell or give to your clients.