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Cracking-style adjustments scare me
You want postural correction, but the thought of forceful manipulation has kept you putting it off.
This is not bone-cracking manipulation
Thixotropic Chuna · Postural Correction
A Chuna approach that uses the natural softening property of connective and soft tissue (thixotropy) to release stiffened tissue without forceful manipulation.
Do any of these concerns sound familiar?
Problems with posture and body structure can be a hidden source of pain
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The correction doesn't seem to last
It feels better at the time, but before long everything goes back to the way it was.
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My body looks asymmetrical in the mirror
Your shoulders or pelvis look uneven from side to side.
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Posture keeps bringing the pain back
The way you sit and walk seems connected to your pain.
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What is thixotropy?
Just as a set gel softens when stirred slowly, the connective tissue and fascia in our bodies also soften when given steady stimulation. Thixotropic Chuna uses this property — sustained, gentle pressure instead of a sudden cracking force — to release stiffened tissue. Because balance is restored while the tissue is in this softened state, it places less strain on the body.
Core Solution
Here is how treatment proceeds
1
Postural Analysis
We check pelvic and spinal alignment and left-right balance, and explain how they relate to your pain.
2
Tissue Assessment
We locate stiffened connective tissue and fascia by hand and assess their condition.
3
Thixotropic Release
Using sustained, gentle pressure, we release the stiffened tissue while correcting alignment.
4
Maintaining Balance
We give you specific guidance on posture habits and exercises to help the corrected alignment hold.
Explained by the doctor
Is the popping sound during Chuna treatment something to worry about?
doctor Dr. Heo Ji-young
A graduate of the College of Korean Medicine at Kyung Hee University, with master's and doctoral degrees in pathology — the mechanisms of disease — from its graduate school. Later served as a research professor in the university's Herbology department, studying medicinal substances. Studying both disease and medicine from both sides is the foundation of this practice: explaining "why a given medicine works for a given illness" in the language of both pathology and pharmacology.
Explains autonomic, chronic, and intractable conditions — and structural problems of the body — in the language of modern science, and proposes treatment matched to the cause. Has taught prescribing and clinical practice to Korean medicine doctors for over ten years, and is a co-author of "Korean Medicine, Explained by Korean Medicine Doctors," selected for the 2018 Sejong Books list (general category).
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Does thixotropic Chuna hurt?
A. Because it uses sustained, gentle pressure rather than sudden cracking movements, it tends to be relatively comfortable. If you feel any discomfort during treatment, let us know right away and we will adjust the intensity.
Q. Does the adjustment only work if I hear a cracking sound?
A. No. The sound is simply gas bubbles releasing inside the joint and has nothing to do with whether the correction worked. Thixotropic Chuna is guided by changes in tissue condition, not by sound.
Q. How many sessions will I need?
A. It varies by body type and symptoms. After a postural analysis at your first visit, we will give you an estimated number of sessions, along with a maintenance schedule after correction.
Q. Is it covered by National Health Insurance?
A. Thixotropic Chuna is one part of how we assess and treat your structure during your visit, and it is not billed separately. Acupuncture, moxibustion, and cupping are covered by National Health Insurance; we will explain your exact out-of-pocket cost before your treatment.
Contact Us
Have questions?
We're here to help.
02-446-1075
Weekdays 09:30 - 20:00 / Saturday 09:30 - 13:00
Lunch Break 12:30 - 14:00 / Closed Sunday · Public Holidays
Articles on Chuna & Posture
Latest blog posts from our director
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The Force That Springs Back
Elasticity is not the ability to stretch well, but the force that springs back after being pressed. This returning force lives in many places — the lungs, the arteries, the skin — and when tissue turns slack or stiff, that back-and-forth grows smaller.
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Standing Still Is Work
A person takes gravity lengthwise. That weight is not held up by bone alone standing like a column — what pulls and what resists are woven together, a structure called tensegrity. And that weave carries on into the inside of the cell.
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Chuna That Does Not Crack Bones — The Principle of Thixotropic Chuna
Does Chuna have to crack my bones? This approach uses gentle, sustained input rather than a forceful thrust to temporarily reduce stiff tissue's resistance; suspected structural injury needs evaluation first.
Treatment Process
Here is what to expect at your first visit
1
Checking your vitals
We start by measuring blood pressure, pulse, and body temperature for everyone who visits.
2
Assessing your condition
If you are also considering an herbal medicine prescription, we review a questionnaire along with urine and blood sugar tests, oxygen saturation and perfusion index measured with a fingertip device, the mouth, the eyes' pupillary light response, breathing, and sympathetic nervous system response — together with a hands-on physical examination where we look, touch, and check your movement directly.
3
Explaining what we found
Based on what we find, we explain which part of your body is currently off balance. These checks are meant to reduce diagnostic error, rule out other underlying conditions, and prepare for any possible side effects. See the full list of what we check
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Setting a timeline together
For first-time patients, we often start with about one month, and reassess as your progress unfolds. Because of individual variation and the many variables in each person's physiology and condition, we cannot state this in absolute terms.
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This is not a separately sold procedure — it is part of care that looks at structure
What Dr. Heo Ji-young places importance on in diagnosis and clinical work is tensegrity and structural medicine. The body is not viewed as a machine that uses bones as levers, but as a structure where tension spreads across a whole network to keep balance. Pull on one point, and a distant point moves along with it.
Thixotropic chuna manipulation is used within that framework — both as part of diagnosis and, in part, as part of treatment. It is not a separately sold procedure, and we do not charge for it separately.
Kyunghee Meerae Korean Medicine Clinic, Gwangjin is located at Room 201, 46 Jayang-ro, Gwangjin-gu, Seoul, South Korea. It is a 7-minute walk from Guui Station Exit 4. · Directions