Laying on of hands

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The laying on of hands is considered to be one of the oldest treatment methods known to man. In addition to the warming effect, it conveys social closeness and thus has a calming effect. In contrast to massaging , the hands are not moved when the hands are laid on. The symbolic gesture of the laying on of hands as a religious ritual must be distinguished from the laying on of hands , although it can also have a healing aspect.

Several alternative medical healing methods, for example Therapeutic Touch and Reiki , use the technique of the laying on of hands. Esoteric attempts to explain all the variations on the laying on of hands claim that the hands of selected people would emanate "energy flows" that cannot be specified. The process is supported by its proponents u. a. used to treat shingles , neurodermatitis and other skin diseases . The effect on these diseases has not yet been proven. Miraculous healings by the laying on of hands are described in the Bible , for example in Luke ( Lk 4.40  EU ), and in other works.

Physical contact can relieve anxiety, pain, and fatigue in cancer patients. In the USA , the alternative medical treatment method Therapeutic Touch plays a certain role. Some studies have looked at the effect of such touch on chronic pain and health improvement in the elderly.

See also

literature

  • Dominik Leupold-Kirschneck: The laying on of hands. A medical primal gesture in the past and present. In: Basel publications on the history of medicine and biology. 33rd edition. Schwabe, Basel a. a. 1981, ISBN 3-7965-0777-8 .
  • Martina Bühring: healers and healing. A study on the laying on of hands and discussion in Berlin (= disease and culture, 6). Reimer, Berlin a. a. 1993, ISBN 3-496-00421-5 .

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Mascha Schacht: Healing Hands . In: Image of Science . November 19, 2009, Retrieved September 9, 2019 (Touching relatives alleviates suffering in cancer patients.).
  2. ↑ Carolyn Magdalen Monroe: The effects of therapeutic touch on pain . In: Journal of Holistic Nursing . 27, No. 2, June 2009, pp. 85-92. doi : 10.1177 / 0898010108327213 . PMID 19299529 .
  3. ↑ Elizabeth Bush: The use of human touch to improve the well-being of older adults. A holistic nursing intervention . In: Journal of Holistic Nursing . 19, No. 3, September 2001, pp. 256-270. PMID 11847871 .