What Myotherapy does for your Body and your Health
Where do we start when treating? Why Joint by Joint if its muscular?
It is important to understand how our bodies function, the correct movement patterns and how our body mechanics (or ways we move) interact with our body as a whole. Through this we see how pain in one region is caused by non optimal movement elsewhere. For example, if our foot is not stable our ankle, knee and hip will not be functioning as it should and we end up with pain in one or all 3 joints. This Video gives a great diagram and daily examples of how this works.
Screening & Assessment - Why and How?
FMS & SFMA - To understand each client as an individual and unique case we need to first assess your body as a whole. We observe your regular posture, walk (gate cycle) and general stance, as well as functional movement tests to assess how your body is moving at present. From there we record results, pain and dysfunctions to formulate an appropriate treatment plan to correct the movements that are causing your injury or chronic recurrent pain.
Dry Needling
(Myofascial Trigger Point Dry Needling) is the use of either solid filiform needles (also referred to as acupuncture needles) or hollow-core hypodermic needles for therapy of muscle pain, including pain related to myofascial pain syndrome . The practice of ‘dry needling’ involves inserting an acupuncture needle into a trigger point and is typically used to treat the pain associated with injuries. A trigger point is a tender spot in a tight band of muscle which causes pain when pressed or squeezed. We use this practice to desensitize the pain response and turn off the chemical signal top the brain.
Modern Cupping
One way to think about cupping is that it is the inverse of massage. Rather than applying pressure to muscles, the suction uses pressure to pull skin, tissue and muscles upward. You usually will feel a tight sensation in the area of the cup. Often, this sensation is relaxing and soothing. Depending on your comfort and your practitioner's assessment of the problem, cups may be moved around or left in place. They may remain on your body briefly or for longer amounts of time. Each treatment is unique to you on that particular day.
Ultrasound Therapy
Therapeutic ultrasound is a modality that has been used by therapists since the 1940s. Ultrasound is applied using the head of an ultrasound probe that is placed in direct contact with your skin via a transmission coupling gel.
Therapeutic ultrasound has been shown to cause increases in healing rates, tissue relaxation, tissue heating, local blood flow, scar tissue breakdown.
Kinesio Taping
Both thickness and elasticity, which allows kinesio tape to be worn without binding, constricting or restriction of your movement.
Kinesiology tape is used for treating athletic injuries and a variety of physical disorders. For the first decade after its introduction practitioners in Japan were the main users of the therapeutic kinesiology tape. By 1988 the tape had been adopted by Japanese Olympic and professional athletes before spreading across the world.
You would have noticed that more an more professional athletes use kinesiology taping improve their sporting performance, prevent injury and allow them to return to sport quicker.
Rigid/Sports Tape
Rigid strapping tapes provide strong support for joints during high-stress sport activity, minimising excessive joint activity that can cause further injury. The tapes are suitable for taping ankles, knees, fingers, shoulders and elbows.
Does massage therapy work? A review of the Science of Massage Therapy
Does massage therapy “work”? What do massage therapists say that they can do for people and their pain, and is there any scientific evidence to support those claims? In this article, I examine massage therapy in the light of science.
You Were Right All Along: Massage Works ~ By Matt Fitzgerald
Many triathletes swear by massage. They may not have the slightest idea how it works, but they are unshakably certain that it works. They can feel it. A good massage seems to take post-workout soreness and stiffness out of the muscles. A regular regimen of weekly massage seems to keep the body loose and supple and enhance freedom of movement.
The first scientific evidence that massage helps heal muscles after exercise ~ By Katherine Hobson; The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal's Katherine Hobson has a story today about a study that tested the common-sense idea that massage helps soothe sore muscles.
Researchers analyzed the samples from the different legs to see what was going on after the massage. They found two major changes: reduced signs of inflammation, and an increase in production of mitochondria, the cell's energy factories.
Don't call it Pampering: Massage wants to be Medicine ~ By Andrea Petersen; The Wall St Journal
While massage may have developed a reputation as a decadent treat for people who love pampering, new studies are showing it has a wide variety of tangible health benefits.
Research over the past couple of years has found that massage therapy boosts immune function in women with breast cancer, improves symptoms in children with asthma, and increases grip strength in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome. Giving massages to the littlest patients, premature babies, helped in the crucial task of gaining weight.