There are many people who over the years have put their lives in the hands of Michela Pasqualetti. Literally. 

Michela is a shiatsu operator , a profession that has to do with deep well-being. But that is also well suited to the concept of vocation. 

Yes, because in the days following that 24 August 2016, when central Italy shook irreversibly changing countries such as Amatrice or Accumoli, she found her place to exist: to go to the places of the earthquake and bring relief to the survivors of the earthquake with shiatsu . , a discipline that thanks to listening and contact  can make you feel real presence. And comfort.

The Shiatsu network for Amatrice is a free proposal that for years has made use of the availability of operators who dedicate their time and heart to the populations hit by the earthquake. 

You graduated as a Shiatsu operator for not long but you have found a “socially useful” method of use. Where did this inspiration come from?

The project for Amatrice came to life “concretely” in July 2017 , just before I graduated in this discipline and, “in my mind”, almost a year earlier. The “inspiration” came from several things tied together: a sad personal story, two images and a voice.

Unfortunately, in October 2015, my brother was diagnosed with a lung microcytoma; after a few days I accidentally found the sacred image of Rita da Cascia on the ground, famous as the “Saint of impossible causes”. I took it as a positive sign for my brother’s illness, which soon passed away.   

On 24 August 2016, as we know, there was a strong earthquake in central Italy which caused many victims. In Terni , where I live, I felt very strongly and, mindful of the one that destroyed L’Aquila , I understood that elsewhere it must have caused a disaster.

That night on the radio I listened to the interview with Sergio Pirozzi, then mayor of Amatrice, who spoke words that were engraved in my mind and heart: “ Amatrice no longer exists, do not abandon us ”. Words that subsequently led to the choice of operating precisely on that territory .

In October 2016, exactly one year after the first discovery, a second sacred image of Santa Rita; I started to think it was some kind of “message” but I didn’t know what kind. 

In the same month there was the earthquake that struck Norcia , Castelluccio and many other neighboring areas and the conviction grew in me that I had to do something for the people affected. What I knew how to do, even
as a student, was Shiatsu .  

So I thought about taking a week off, going to the area, bringing some relief to people by doing treatments . It was not easy to carry out this initiative also due to the more than two meters of snow that fell that winter and this idea remained in the works for a few months. In mid-May, on the occasion of a visit to Ascoli , I saw literally “crumbled” villages along the mountain and I realized that what I had seen up until then on TV and on the internet was nothing compared to the reality that presented itself to me. . So  I took up the idea, with the variant of involving other people . 

My classmates from the Italian-Japanese Shiatsu Namikoshi School in Rome and the teachers immediately welcomed the initiative with enthusiasm as did the Shin volunteer association and students from other schools. 

Tell us about this project

“Our” project initially consisted of a single weekend. It was not easy to organize, especially finding a “physical space” where to do treatments:  many people were still homeless . 

Even if in the end we succeeded, the departure was complicated: people had suffered a strong psychological trauma with numerous losses of loved ones and in a few moments the “monster”, as it is called by many of them, had taken away the sacrifices. of a lifetime. We did a kind of door to door between SAEs (Emergency Housing Solutions) to say that about fifteen Shiatsu practitioners were there for them. But what was Shiatsu? Most people didn’t know this and we invited them to try. 

That weekend was a success but no one could have imagined that an initiative that continues today would take hold . People, some with tears in their eyes, thanked us asking how long we would continue and we replied that there would be Shiatsu for Amatrice as long as there were volunteers for the treatments. With what courage to say it was only going to be for that weekend? We could only decide to continue .

To date, many colleagues have come to “lend a hand” to this project. From Lecce, from Bologna, people huddled a lot of kilometers in two days just to be there; clearly, whoever is closest guarantees a greater presence. Sometimes we were four, other times ten, on average six or seven, once a month on dates agreed with the Caritas of Rieti which kindly grants us the premises. We also came up with 45 treatments in a day and a half.

Undoubtedly a good experience for me too: I met many new colleagues , of different styles and schools of Shiatsu of origin, all united in bringing a bit of well-being to those who rely on us and, when available, also together with reflexology operators plantar and reiki .

Among our recipients there is no age group that prevails : children, adults, not so young, seek, in addition to the physical well-being that shiatsu can bring, psychological support, the desire to “disconnect” from everyday life, a quiet moment to dedicate to themselves that it does not make them feel abandoned.

What life stories are encountered in this particular experience?

There are many stories because everyone experienced the earthquake in a different way . There are those who have lost family members, who are friends, who are simply acquaintances, who have lost their homes, who have managed to save something. 

Each of us, when faced with a great tragedy, has a
different way of dealing with it. One thing we have certainly noticed is that now, compared to when we arrived two and a half years ago, people are much more discouraged and unmotivated because the bureaucracy moves very slowly . After all this time we have become familiar with our recipients and we know the story of almost each of them also because some have been with us since that very first weekend in July 2017.

A story we all know is that of “ grandmother Filomena ”, an 81-year-old lady whose daughter was just over
forty and a teenage granddaughter who had already lost another daughter due to illness by the earthquake. 

The first time came on Saturday afternoon and then returned on Sunday morning, bringing with him, in addition to the psychological trauma, also a lot of physical pain due to age. He could not squeeze his fingers and the treatments mainly involved arms and hands. On Sunday afternoon, with emotion, she came to thank us because she, after a long time, she at lunch she had managed to eat without dirtying anything, she had made it again to squeeze her fork well. 

Since then, grandma Filomena has skipped two, maximum three appointments but only because she is far from Amatrice and the best thing for everyone is when, taking leave, she finally allows herself a smile .

Shiatsu, and I think I can also speak on behalf of my colleagues, has been all we could offer but over time it has become an extraordinary resource on a physical, psychological and human level, a personal enrichment from every point of view. 

Professionally, some of us as students have dealt with physical problems from the most common to the most complex, taking advantage of the experience of other colleagues and growing as operators; Above all we understand that when you put your heart and passion into what you do the results are amazing . 

This experience gave us the opportunity to create a sort of big family with the inhabitants of the areas affected by the earthquake , who welcomed us with affection, esteem and trust. Every time we have to leave it is a mutual regret, we leave already with the desire to see each other again
in the next appointment, and we look forward to the hot season, when we stay two days and we get together to have dinner all together. 

We would also like to create a second group for Accumoli , we are trying to organize ourselves, to sensitize a greater number of operators. 

This initiative gives the opportunity to find oneself among people who lived nearby before the earthquake and now, overwhelmed by the events, find themselves living miles away for logistical reasons. However small, we try to help bring relief. We would like to be an even more constant presence in the area, because we could solve some problems more quickly, but it is not easy. With our monthly appointment, however, we certainly bring something useful and appreciated: more than one person has told us that, since that terrible night of the earthquake, the only moments in which he can relax are those in which he is under our hands. 

I believe that physiotherapists and  osteopaths also operate in the area from time to time and undoubtedly if there was a more assiduous presence and a collaborative plan by all the results would be even more visible.