THE EFFECTIVE MEDICAL MASSAGE: MYOFASCIAL THERAPY
Dr. Geier talks a new treatment for pain management Wouldn’t it be great if you could treat the majority of all pain related symptoms with a non-invasive approach? Now, you can. As a Chiropractor, my education and training was focused on relieving pain by influencing the nervous system through the use of spinal manipulation. However, in my practice I intently focus on the myo, which is the Latin term for muscles and connective tissue called fascia. Here in lies the term Myofascial therapy. When treating pain, I chose to focus on the myofascia of the body because this is the most important component to influencing the Central Nervous System to decrease pain, specifically honing in on treating this pain by taking an alternative, non-invasive approach. Unfortunately, myofascial therapy receives little attention as a major source of pain and is seldom taught in modern medical school training. Even more unfortunate is the lack of insurance reimbursement for this important therapy. So, let’s dig into the topic a little deeper.
running through, around and crisscrossing every inch of your body including muscle, organs, blood vessels, nerves, spinal cord, brain and skin. The central nervous system receives its greatest amount of sensory nerves from myofascial tissue. This means that the fascia is as important or more important than muscle in sensory input delivery. The key to this statement is that your myofascia becomes the byproduct of your environment without you even realizing it. It experiences stress, memorizes chronic poor posture, feels the weight of your head sitting at the computer all day, and permanently holds onto old untreated injuries. As a result of never ending signaling to the brain, the body develops symptoms like pain and endocrine dysfunction like adrenal fatigue, dysfunctional mood and brain fog, to name a few. If the fascia controls the information that can influence the brain, then this is the first step to calming down the body’s pain response and also improving overall global body function.
THE SCIENCE BEHIND PAIN AND MYOFASCIA The muscular system is the largest sensory organ. Approximately 50 percent of your body weight is made up of about 400 skeletal muscles. Your fascia is actually one giant interconnected web of connective tissue
WHAT IS MYOFASCIAL THERAPY? It is a deep tissue treatment involving the breakdown of fascial adhesions known as trigger points. These trigger points ultimately create a permanently shortened muscle, resulting in pain and muscle dysfunction and, in turn, weakness and uncoordinated movements. Myofascial therapy can be performed in many ways including by a practitioner’s hands, using tools that break down adhesions and stretching. This therapy proves to be a very efficient and effective therapy for pain management, improving athletic performance and reducing cellulite.
COMMON INJURIES RELATED TO MYOFASCIAL TRIGGER POINTS • Pain or stiffness in your neck, mid- or lowback • Headaches or jaw pain • Sciatica and other nerve related symptoms like numbness and tingling • Tendonitis, Bursitis and Plantar Fasciitis • Joint pain especially in your shoulder, knee or wrist • Generalized dull, achy pain • Athletic performance issues
HOW DOES HEALTHY FASCIA BECOME UNHEALTHY FASCIA? This happens when extra layers of fascia grow due to stress, trauma, repetitive motions, dehydration and inflammation. Inflammation comes from repetitive working out or even eating inflammatory foods such as (but not limited to) sugar, fried food, certain oils and processed wheat.
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