Product Review: Acupressure Mat

This is my acupressure mat. I have used it about 3-4 times a week for just under a year, sometimes more often if needed. I bought it on Amazon.com. (Only I got mine on sale for $17.) There are so many different brands out there, most of them appear to be pretty much the same. I highly recommend getting one with the neck pillow, but you can use the regular mat on your neck too.

What is it and what does it do? It's a foam mat (the foam is removable) with little "flower" spikes all over it:

You lay the mat on the floor (or your bed if it's an even surface) and then you lay down on it without any clothing in the way. It does not work well unless your skin is naked against the needles.

Let me make something very clear: I have never once been punctured or bled from the use of my acupressure mat.

You then continue to lay down on it for at least 10 minutes, but up to 45 minutes. The more you need the benefits from the mat, the more the first 1-2 minutes of laying on it will hurt. It might be so intense that you can hardly take the pain, but that pain does go away quickly. The more often you use it, or the better your health in general, the less painful it will be in those first couple of minutes. I usually only have mild pain from it, but when I'm feeling weak or sick, it is more painful. You will then start to feel light throbbing and heat for about a minute. Then you'll start to feel wonderful. I can easily get so relaxed on this mat that I fall into a very deep sleep on it. It's the most relieving feeling I can create for myself at home. When you are done, you slowly lift yourself off the mat. Let your skin breathe for a minute or two before you clothe yourself. You will notice your skin looks very prickly and bright red:

(I normally would not be inclined to post a photo of my stomach on the internet - I'm a modest person, but I wasn't able to get a photo of my back to show you. This was after about 5 minutes after I got up off the mat, so the redness and indentations have lessened a bit by this photo. I feel that it's important that you understand how the mat works in order to over come fear of it, and therefore I want to show you that it does not pierce even soft delicate skin.)

Let me explain what the mat actually does for you:

It does not replace acupuncture. Please see an acupuncturist if you need help with a medical issue that can be helped by acupuncture. This mat is the equivalent of rolling a tennis ball on your aching muscles as whereas acupuncture would be like going to a massage therapist for those muscles. Both are very helpful, but the mat is helpful to a lesser degree.

It does, however, replace the need for finding acupressure points on your body. Acupressure is used to either relieve pain or relieve a health symptom. My most common use for this mat is to relieve muscle tension in my back, neck, and shoulders. It really does help a lot! I get best results when I follow up with stretching. My second most common use for the mat is to help improve my digestion. I lay on my stomach (like in the above photo.) My digestion has been very bad this week, so laying on my stomach today was almost more than I could handle, but I stuck with it and after a few minutes I felt my stomach really relax. After about 10 minutes I felt things moving in my organs, which was badly needed. I actually felt hungry afterwords - meaning it worked! I've et way too little today because I haven't felt hunger due to liver and spleen issues.

Sometimes I will actually stand on the mat. Yes, barefoot. You may think me crazy, but like I've already made very clear, the points will not puncture the skin. Not even the skin of my feet. We have hundreds of pressure points on the bottom of our feet that are tied directly to all sorts of bodily systems and organs. Check this website out for a detailed map of the reflexology of our feet. No, it doesn't feel good to stand on the mat, but it does relax my whole body very quickly. It's an amazing way to let go of stress and calm the body down.

You can also lay on your side, sit on it, or use it on your hips and thighs. It can help relieve most areas of the body.

For the price of the mat, I highly recommend it for everyone! It's not just for those with medical issues or who are in pain. It promotes relaxation, stress relief, pain relief, better sleep, better digestion, and a better mood. Everyone can benefit from it.