What is an acupressure mat? Well, it is a mat that is made of foam, covered in fabric and has a bunch of these tiny “rosette” shaped plastic spikes all over it. It allows you to experience acupressure on your own at home without having to go to a therapist. When you lay on the mat, the spikes push against and stimulate the acupoints helping relieve energy blockages and pain. Since there are so many rosettes, you don’t need know where all your acupressure points are, these will be sure to hit them.

Acupressure has been used for thousands of years in Asia to reduce pain, induce relaxation and healing. I suffered for years from lower back pain after my last daughter and I can say that this has helped me so incredibly much. I also sleep so much better on the nights that I use it which is a very pleasant side effect since I can suffer from insomnia or “mommy brain” that won’t shut off. Eastern medicine and Western medicine both believe in acupressure. Eastern feels that stimulating the meridians helps balance energy flow (your chi) to maintain your proper body functions. Western medicine believes that acupressure releases endorphins to boost circulation in those areas. Both sound pretty amazing right?

After looking at a bunch of mats I decided to buy one that had good reviews but was cheap compared to some other mats that can run in the $100 dollar range which I wasn’t ready to splurge on. I purchased the ProSource acupressure mat on Amazon https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00I1QCPHQ/ref=twister_B07PZHBXZP?_

How to do it:

Well first I recommend doing it with a light t-shirt on to get used to it. Lay your mat on the ground and slowly lower onto it. I place the neck roll under my neck and place my arms to my side, palms up or down, whatever feels comfortable. You can lay your legs down flat on the floor but my target area is my lower back so I place my feet flat on the floor with my knees up to push my back down into the mat. I usually like to put my toes under my dresser to hold my legs up because in about 5 minutes I get extremely relaxed to where I can’t hold my legs up any longer. Set a timer for 10 minutes. If you can pass that and go to 15 then do it! Eventually you can get to 30-45 minutes but I don’t recommend it in the beginning. The first 3-5 minutes hurt, I am not going to lie. It’s sharp and your back or whatever is touching the rosettes start to feel really warm. Take deep calming breaths to help you through the first little bit and also deep breathing promotes a great sense of calmness. After you hit around 5 minutes, the pain sensation melts away and you start to feel really heavy. I put on some relaxing, zen music and close my eyes during this. I really focus on relaxing. My hands start to feel heavy, then my jaw relaxes and then my legs can’t hold themselves up anymore. Every time now, I fall asleep, hence the timer to wake me up.  Afterward I get into bed completely relaxed and ready to fall asleep! I do this without any clothes on which is recommended, however to test it for the first time you may want to wear a shirt. I have had 3 people try this so far and each one is amazed by how they felt after. A complete feeling of relaxation comes over you. Sometimes I will sit on the couch and put my feet on it while typing. That is great for those of you who stand all day!! I lay on my mat almost every night and I can sure tell the difference in my sleep now on the nights I skip!

Acupressure mats are safe but they warn against them if you have sensitive skin, are pregnant or are on blood-thinner medication. If you are a generally healthy adult, it should be just fine. If you want to try this but are unsure, you can always consult your physician. I hope this “spiked” some curiosity (see what I did there) and you try one of these mats out. Let me know in the comments below if you do. I’d love to hear your feedback!