Japanese sekkotsu and jūdō seifuku

Domain X · Body, movement, breath & physical · 1920 · Japan

What it is

Jūdō seifuku is Japan's nationally licensed form of bone-setting. It is known in everyday speech as honetsugi (ほねつぎ) or sekkotsu (接骨), and its clinics are called sekkotsu-in (接骨院) or seikotsu-in (整骨院). Under Article 2 of the Act, a jūdō seifuku-shi (柔道整復師, judo therapist) is a person licensed by…

Format

• This method has two parallel tracks: the clinical pathway the client follows at the clinic, and the psychotherapist's referral and integration track. Clinical session counts are not set by any manual. The figures below are published claim statistics, not recommendations.
• Course and review. Published claim data for October 2014 show an average of 5.39 visits per month. About 90% of claims covered three months or less. Sprains and contusions make up most claims, and fractures, incomplete fractures and dislocations together are about 0.1%. For contusions and sprains…

Who practises it, and how they are trained or regulated

• Assessment. Training includes palpation by body region and manual muscle testing. Students must learn to identify contraindications (禁忌事項) before applying techniques. The structure of the intake interview is not described in the sources here.
• Notice. Is there a body complaint, an injury, or an existing sekkotsu-in attendance?
• Version followed: jūdō seifuku (柔道整復) as defined by the Judo Therapist Act (柔道整復師法, Act No. 19 of 1970, as amended to Act No. 69 of 2014). The scope used here is the one set out by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) and the Japan Judo Therapists Association (公益社団法人日本柔道整復師会, JJTA). It is written for a psychotherapist who refers clients to licensed practitioners. It is not a guide to delivering the…

Evidence status, as the guide reports it

• Evidence status. No independent systematic review of jūdō seifuku outcomes was verified. Treat health claims beyond acute soft-tissue and bone-joint injury care as unestablished.

Questions to explore with your client

• What drew you to it, and what are you hoping it will change?
• Is there physical contact? Was it explained beforehand, and do you feel free to say no or stop at any point?
• Does it involve any substance, plant preparation, remedy or supplement? Has your doctor or prescriber been told, especially about any medication you take?
• Does it involve intense or unusual breathing? Have you been told about the medical conditions for which that is not advised?
• Is it a group, retreat or community? How do they respond if someone wants to leave or raises a concern?
• Who runs it, and what training or registration do they hold?
• What actually happens in a session or meeting, and how often?
• What does it cost, and is there pressure to commit to more?
• How do you feel afterwards, in the hours and days that follow?
• Does it fit with, or clash with, the work we do here?

What practitioners of it watch for

• Use of unlicensed "bone-setting" services abroad without injury assessment.
• Self-blame, and culturally shaped reluctance to accuse a respected local figure. Your own urge to act faster than the client is ready to.
• Splitting between professionals, for example one being idealised and the other blamed. Accepting any gift or fee connected with referrals.
• Clients attributing worsening symptoms to "the healing process". Clients reluctant to complain because of the relationship with the clinic.
• Flooding or dissociation. A rush to interpret. Clients seeking more hands-on sessions mainly for emotional relief. If so, explore that need in therapy rather than through injury care.

When to involve someone else

• New or worsening physical symptoms, or advice to stop or change prescribed medication: involve the client's doctor or prescriber.
• Signs of coercion, isolation from family and friends, escalating costs or secrecy: discuss openly and consider safeguarding.
• A crisis or thoughts of suicide: follow your crisis protocol. In the US, call or text 988; in the UK and Ireland, Samaritans on 116 123.

Drawn automatically from the guide's own sections. Stay curious: neither endorse nor dismiss what the client values, and check anything that matters against the full guide and its sources. Not medical advice.