Okinawa: Growing up in a Blue Zone

I was born and raised on a small island, where I biked to school each day under blue skies and oceans, deep green mountains, and enjoyed nutritious, mineral rich foods. I played outside until dusk every day, which gave me sunspots on my face, sun wrinkles, grounded feet, and good range of motion-all symbols of a healthy, active childhood. I enjoyed short distance running and volleyball, but I learned to Japanese calligraphy, play piano, and use the abacus as well. Until I graduated high school, I lived on this beautiful island called Ishigaki in Okinawa, Japan. 

Hello U.S.A.

After graduating high school and leaving my birthplace for the bigger city of Naha, Okinawa, I earned an associate's degree, completed service in the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, and got married. In 2001, moved to the US with my family. I was very excited to live in the U.S., but it was not an easy adjustment to work here.

​

This was far from the island lifestyle I was used to. I missed the social connections I had developed outside of my family, and it was difficult to find community with my language barrier. I was looking to learn a new hands-on skill, and it came to me during a TV commercial: I wanted to learn massage therapy. I waited until my youngest child started grade school and began school myself. I joined study groups, had tutors, and started to make connections and find community in massage. I remained determined even when homework took me half a day to finish because English was my second language. I bring this determination to my work each day in order to help my clients.

Discovering Neurokinetic Therapy

I began my career working for two chiropractors for six and half years then decided to start my own practice. Most of the time I enjoyed my work, but started to become frustrated with the limited of my massage training. Why did so many of my patients continue to have the same symptoms and issues? 

Did massage therapy not help them? How could I continue to help them without impractically frequent visits? What else could I learn to help them out.

That's when I learned about Neurokinetic Therapy (NKT). Neurokinetic Therapy is used to find the root cause of a patient's complaint. It is an application of Motor Control Theory, neuroscience, and functional anatomy and correcting learned movements and muscle functions within the body that can contribute to poor posture, joint tenderness and muscular pain. 

​

NKT has proven to be successful for my patients. One of my patients, John, is a retired engineer and frequent fitness class attendee. He also sings in a choir, but was complaining that pain in his right leg made it difficult for him to stand and sing longer than a minute. From watching his gait, I suspected the root cause of his pain to be hip joint compression. With NKT techniques, I identified that his overworked muscle and activated the necessary interacting muscles. After his second session, John's said he was already able to stand for more than an hour. 

Nuchi Gusui - Life medicine in the Okinawa Language
 
Massage therapy has brought me to a new level of appreciation for the human body and an increased desire to bring my clients into their own awareness of the need for self care.

It would be my honor to work with you to bring into your life an more complete connection between mind, body, and heart. 

Today is your day. Let's begin to work together. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions- I would be happy to answer.

Thank you, 

Miki Morrow
Yaima Movement Therapy - Your personal therapist