Monday, March 26, 2012

The Nose Knows: Why Does a Palm Heel Work?




If you have taken an IMPACT Chicago program, you have learned a palm heel strike to the nose, specifically to the area just beneath the nostrils. If you haven’t taken IMPACT yet, try taking the heel of your palm and lightly touch it to the area just beneath your nostrils. Why does this strike work?

The palm heel works because it is a strike to a vulnerable part of the body. The area underneath the nose and above the upper lip has many sensitive nerve endings.  When struck just below the nostrils with a palm heel, a person feels a burning sensation and their eyes tear up. Because nerve endings have been struck, it affects the entire nervous system. There is no credence to the idea that a palm heel strike can drive the septum into the brain, because two bones in the skull protect the brain.

To see a step-by-step approach to doing a palm heel to the nose by Molly (IMPACT Chicago lead instructor-in-training) and Ben (IMPACT Chicago suited instructor) go to http://www.girlswhotravel.org/health-and-safety/self-defense/

Martha Thompson
IMPACT Chicago
Director and Instructor

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