Myofascial Release
Fabulous article about MFR
08/05/11 16:12
Just thought I would
share this fabulous article about myofascial release
and chronic pain. Its from altmed.com and is really
worth a read.
Myofascial Release for Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is pain that lasts longer than three months or that continues well beyond the time when healing would be expected to be complete. It is one of the most difficult conditions for medical practitioners to diagnose and treat. The most common type of chronic pain is lower back pain.
Three factors complicate the treatment of chronic pain. First, chronic pain is not always associated with a specific injury or disease. Second, chronic pain is rarely constant; it often comes and goes for no obvious reason. Third, pain intensity is subjective and depends on a description by the patient. Because alternative practitioners tend to treat the whole body rather than one particular system, they often find success in relieving nonspecific chronic pain. Myofascial release is one alternative therapy used to treat chronic pain.
How Does Myofascial Release Help with Chronic Pain?
Chronic pain can be caused by many conditions that create uneven stress on the fascia, or the thin, strong connective tissue that covers muscles and bones and surrounds internal organs such as the heart, lungs, and intestines.
These conditions include:
There are no scientific studies that exactly explain how Myofascial Release works. Nevertheless, practitioners believe that correcting uneven strain on the fascia releases tension. This increases free movement of the fascia, helps muscles to move more easily, and relieves chronic pain throughout the body.
What is Myofascial Release?
Myofascial Release is a type of bodywork that helps release uneven stress in the fascia and restores equal muscle tension by increasing flexibility of the fascia. Normal, healthy fascia is flexible and provides a seamless, interconnected web that supports body structures.
Sprains, strains, scarring from surgery or injury, inflammation, disease, trauma from falls, repetitive stress, and even poor posture create uneven stress on the fascia. When the fascia is stressed, it loses its flexibility and no longer moves normally when the body moves. This creates unequal tension on muscles and causes them to lock or alter the way they move. This tension can result in chronic pain. Myofascial Release uses soft tissue massage techniques to restore the flexibility of the fascia and release tension from muscles. Occasionally Myofascial Release is referred to as connective tissue massage.
What Happens During a Myofascial Release Session?
Myofascial Release sessions usually last about one hour and can occur from one to three times a week. During the initial session, the practitioner and the client will discuss the client’s pain, treatment goals, and how Myofascial Release will help achieve those goals. The practitioner will also do a visual evaluation of the client’s posture and movement to help pinpoint potential sources of the pain. There is no standard protocol for a Myofascial Release session. Therapy is individualized based on the client’s pain and the feedback the practitioner gets from working with the client’s body.
The client usually wears a bathing suit or sports bra and pants to provide the practitioner maximum access to the body. No lubricant is used. The practitioner will use light pressure, compression, and traction to stretch the affected fascia. The process is slow and generally comfortable for the client. The process increases blood flow to the site and encourages the fascia to relax, unwind, and correct itself.
The practitioner also uses gentle pressure to find any painful trigger points and determines which part of the body needs work based on the feedback obtained from touch. Often only one or two parts of the body are worked on in a single session. Nevertheless, because all fascia is connected, working on one area will benefit the entire body. Normally the client will not feel stiff or sore on the day following treatment. Occasionally deeper, more intense pressure is needed if the fascia is tightly bound, and this may result in some brief soreness.
Although the client may begin to feel better after a single session, it generally takes three or more sessions before seeing relief of specific symptoms. Clients should check with their insurance company about coverage for payment. If Myofascial Release therapy is prescribed by a physician or administered by a licensed physical or occupational therapist, a specific number of sessions may be covered by insurance.
Who Does Myofascial Release?
In the United States, there is no national body that certifies practitioners of Myofascial Release. Although some form of Myofascial Release has been done since the 1940s, John T. Barnes, a physical therapist, popularized the technique in the 1990s. Many people trained in Myofascial Release are physical or occupational therapists, osteopathic physicians, or chiropractors who have taken special classes, often taught by Barnes, to learn the technique. Other practitioners of Myofascial Release have training in additional bodywork techniques such as Rolfing, Swedish massage, and deep-tissue massage.
Myofascial Release for Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is pain that lasts longer than three months or that continues well beyond the time when healing would be expected to be complete. It is one of the most difficult conditions for medical practitioners to diagnose and treat. The most common type of chronic pain is lower back pain.
Three factors complicate the treatment of chronic pain. First, chronic pain is not always associated with a specific injury or disease. Second, chronic pain is rarely constant; it often comes and goes for no obvious reason. Third, pain intensity is subjective and depends on a description by the patient. Because alternative practitioners tend to treat the whole body rather than one particular system, they often find success in relieving nonspecific chronic pain. Myofascial release is one alternative therapy used to treat chronic pain.
How Does Myofascial Release Help with Chronic Pain?
Chronic pain can be caused by many conditions that create uneven stress on the fascia, or the thin, strong connective tissue that covers muscles and bones and surrounds internal organs such as the heart, lungs, and intestines.
These conditions include:
- Back strain or injury
- Fibromyalgia
- Whiplash
- Injury to joints
- Repetitive Stress Injuries (RSI)
- Carpal Tunnel Syndrome (CTS)
- Strains and sprains from falls
- Plantar fasciitis
- Physical stress
- Psychological stress
- Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (CFS)
- Arthritis
- Psychological stress
- Poor posture
There are no scientific studies that exactly explain how Myofascial Release works. Nevertheless, practitioners believe that correcting uneven strain on the fascia releases tension. This increases free movement of the fascia, helps muscles to move more easily, and relieves chronic pain throughout the body.
What is Myofascial Release?
Myofascial Release is a type of bodywork that helps release uneven stress in the fascia and restores equal muscle tension by increasing flexibility of the fascia. Normal, healthy fascia is flexible and provides a seamless, interconnected web that supports body structures.
Sprains, strains, scarring from surgery or injury, inflammation, disease, trauma from falls, repetitive stress, and even poor posture create uneven stress on the fascia. When the fascia is stressed, it loses its flexibility and no longer moves normally when the body moves. This creates unequal tension on muscles and causes them to lock or alter the way they move. This tension can result in chronic pain. Myofascial Release uses soft tissue massage techniques to restore the flexibility of the fascia and release tension from muscles. Occasionally Myofascial Release is referred to as connective tissue massage.
What Happens During a Myofascial Release Session?
Myofascial Release sessions usually last about one hour and can occur from one to three times a week. During the initial session, the practitioner and the client will discuss the client’s pain, treatment goals, and how Myofascial Release will help achieve those goals. The practitioner will also do a visual evaluation of the client’s posture and movement to help pinpoint potential sources of the pain. There is no standard protocol for a Myofascial Release session. Therapy is individualized based on the client’s pain and the feedback the practitioner gets from working with the client’s body.
The client usually wears a bathing suit or sports bra and pants to provide the practitioner maximum access to the body. No lubricant is used. The practitioner will use light pressure, compression, and traction to stretch the affected fascia. The process is slow and generally comfortable for the client. The process increases blood flow to the site and encourages the fascia to relax, unwind, and correct itself.
The practitioner also uses gentle pressure to find any painful trigger points and determines which part of the body needs work based on the feedback obtained from touch. Often only one or two parts of the body are worked on in a single session. Nevertheless, because all fascia is connected, working on one area will benefit the entire body. Normally the client will not feel stiff or sore on the day following treatment. Occasionally deeper, more intense pressure is needed if the fascia is tightly bound, and this may result in some brief soreness.
Although the client may begin to feel better after a single session, it generally takes three or more sessions before seeing relief of specific symptoms. Clients should check with their insurance company about coverage for payment. If Myofascial Release therapy is prescribed by a physician or administered by a licensed physical or occupational therapist, a specific number of sessions may be covered by insurance.
Who Does Myofascial Release?
In the United States, there is no national body that certifies practitioners of Myofascial Release. Although some form of Myofascial Release has been done since the 1940s, John T. Barnes, a physical therapist, popularized the technique in the 1990s. Many people trained in Myofascial Release are physical or occupational therapists, osteopathic physicians, or chiropractors who have taken special classes, often taught by Barnes, to learn the technique. Other practitioners of Myofascial Release have training in additional bodywork techniques such as Rolfing, Swedish massage, and deep-tissue massage.
Leaving Sedona
21/02/10 17:18
Myofascial release 2 was exhausting, brilliant but
exhausting. Im really proud of myself for coming here,
the last few days we have been studying more crainial
techniques and advanced myofascial techniques for the
sacro-iliac, psoas,thorax and the dural system. I am
really looking forward to using these techniques when I
get back to my massage clinic in Brighton. The training
that is available in the UK is brilliant but to have
come here has been a dream come true. I am really
fortunate to love the work that I do so much that 2
weeks in a classroom makes me feel recharged and
excited.
Myofascial Release Unwinding
17/02/10 17:12
That was a pretty intensive few days. One of the big
things about myofascial release is working on yourself
as a therapist. Its simple really, if you cant feel
yourself how can we expect to beable to treat clients.
So these past few days have all been about working on
oursleves. Its been incredibly hard work, long days and
non stop, I feel exhausted, raw and happy. Some of it
is about leaving our egos outside the treatment room,
though its meant witht he best will in the world we as
therapists can often walk into a treatment room
thinking, right Im going to make this client better,
but really we can only facilitate someone elses
journey, its down to ourselves as clients to get
better.
Myofascial Realease 1
12/02/10 17:05
Just finished the first 4 days of the course, amazingly
brilliant course. John is an incredible teacher and
manages to keep everyone engaged. Its a really good mix
of hands on work and theory. Loads of slides of fascia
under the skin and seeing how this form of bodywork
really works on stuck conditions. Its interesting to be
studying with a lot of Americans, they seem to be
impressed with our level of knowledge. People have
travelled from Canada, all parts of the US and Italy to
attend this course.
Sedona is stunning, after working all days its lovely to get out into the mountains to clear the heaad and work on our own restrictions.
Sedona is stunning, after working all days its lovely to get out into the mountains to clear the heaad and work on our own restrictions.
Myofascial release in the USA
08/02/10 16:59
Heading out to Sedona in Arizona tomorrow. Its a long
journey but I am very excited, Im going to train with
John Barnes, I cant beleive how lucky I am to be
training with him. Its a 2 week course in myofascial
release, Ive already studied it here but training with
John is a bit like learning the guitar from one of the
Beatles. Myofascial work is realing at the forefront of
treating long term pain conditions. It realy works with
the body using a number of techniques to reduce
restrictions in the body.