Thursday, July 27, 2006
Shiatsu
Shiatsu is a form of healing through touch, originally developed thousands of years ago in Japan. Shiatsu shares much of its background theory with acupuncture and it has been referred to as acupuncture without needles. Like acupuncture, Shiatsu stimulates the body's vital energy (known as ki or chi). Instead of needles, pressure is applied to various parts of the body and stretches, rocking movements and some massage movements are used. Shiatsu the body begins to re-adjust itself and healing takes place.
I’ve had a number of very expensive Shiatsu treatments, all it achieved in doing was putting me to sleep! So I guess at least it does relax you, but then again a 1 hour power nap would be much cheaper.
Shiatsu
I’ve had a number of very expensive Shiatsu treatments, all it achieved in doing was putting me to sleep! So I guess at least it does relax you, but then again a 1 hour power nap would be much cheaper.
Shiatsu
Sunday, June 11, 2006
Trigger Point Massage
I had briefly heard about Trigger Point treatment from different therapists who claimed to be experts in hundreds of things, this being one of them. Then I searched for a book on this topic on Amazon and came across a book that almost changed my life. The book is called Trigger Point Therapy by Clair Davies (see recommended reading).
There are many things I like about this book, first is the author’s personal experience with back problems. Like me and I am sure many others, he had suffered for a long time with various back and muscular problems, went to many therapists for treatment but to no avail. He then decided to take his health in his own hands, and did some research in an attempt to fix his own problems. To cut a long story short, he came across a book by Travell and Simons which is a huge volume going into the detail of trigger points, its causes and treatments. The author of this book was the personal physician of John F Kennedy and is based on her personal experience.
Trigger points are taut bands of muscle or muscles fibre which can be delicate to touch, produce referred pain (i.e. pain in a remote area) and a twitch response. It may be easier to explain with an explain, say for example someone has an accident and suffers whiplash. Now their problems may not be just limited to a sore neck, some develop other symptoms of pain around the shoulder blades, mid back, tingling and numbness in the hands, chest pain etc. Then you think, well hold on, I have a problem in my neck, why is there a whole range of other problems? In this example, due to the whiplash injury, muscles such as the Scalenes develop trigger points. Muscle fibres become taut and shorten. These scalenes are connected to the neck vertebrae and the top ribs. The effect the tightening and shortening of the muscles has is that it lifts the rib up creating secondary pain in the check, upper back. At the same time, as its lifting up the rib, the nerve bundle going through the neck vertebrae, under the arm pit into the hand also gets impinged causing symptoms which may appear as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
I have read Clair Davies book cover to cover many times, and have managed to solve quite a few of my problems by his techniques of self treatment. This book is primarily a self-treatment guide and gives very good detail on how to apply the self-applied techniques. He goes through every trigger point from your toes to your head and there associated referred pain pattern. So for example, a shoulder problem could be caused by one of many trigger points. Going through the book, you start searching until you come across a trigger point which amazingly reproduces the pain you feel, then you begin to massage.
I have managed to find many trigger points quite successfully, but it requires patients. I had a long problem with my shoulder blades and neck. I tried one of the very many trigger points which could cause this problem. Sometime you think you have found the trouble maker, you massage and it feels good, but then it comes back. I eventually found trigger points in my Scalene muscles at the side of the neck towards the front. When I pressed on the trigger point, the referred pain pattern would go to my shoulder blade, back of my neck, and even down my arm. However, sometimes I have been over enthusiastic with the massage and was left with a pins & needle feeling in my fingers for a week.
This truly is an amazing book and I’d recommend this to everyone. But you have to be patient with it, and follow the instructions noted carefully.
I’ve been so impressed by treatments of trigger points, I have tried to find a therapist who is a specialist in this field, but haven’t been successful so far.
trigger point
There are many things I like about this book, first is the author’s personal experience with back problems. Like me and I am sure many others, he had suffered for a long time with various back and muscular problems, went to many therapists for treatment but to no avail. He then decided to take his health in his own hands, and did some research in an attempt to fix his own problems. To cut a long story short, he came across a book by Travell and Simons which is a huge volume going into the detail of trigger points, its causes and treatments. The author of this book was the personal physician of John F Kennedy and is based on her personal experience.
Trigger points are taut bands of muscle or muscles fibre which can be delicate to touch, produce referred pain (i.e. pain in a remote area) and a twitch response. It may be easier to explain with an explain, say for example someone has an accident and suffers whiplash. Now their problems may not be just limited to a sore neck, some develop other symptoms of pain around the shoulder blades, mid back, tingling and numbness in the hands, chest pain etc. Then you think, well hold on, I have a problem in my neck, why is there a whole range of other problems? In this example, due to the whiplash injury, muscles such as the Scalenes develop trigger points. Muscle fibres become taut and shorten. These scalenes are connected to the neck vertebrae and the top ribs. The effect the tightening and shortening of the muscles has is that it lifts the rib up creating secondary pain in the check, upper back. At the same time, as its lifting up the rib, the nerve bundle going through the neck vertebrae, under the arm pit into the hand also gets impinged causing symptoms which may appear as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome.
I have read Clair Davies book cover to cover many times, and have managed to solve quite a few of my problems by his techniques of self treatment. This book is primarily a self-treatment guide and gives very good detail on how to apply the self-applied techniques. He goes through every trigger point from your toes to your head and there associated referred pain pattern. So for example, a shoulder problem could be caused by one of many trigger points. Going through the book, you start searching until you come across a trigger point which amazingly reproduces the pain you feel, then you begin to massage.
I have managed to find many trigger points quite successfully, but it requires patients. I had a long problem with my shoulder blades and neck. I tried one of the very many trigger points which could cause this problem. Sometime you think you have found the trouble maker, you massage and it feels good, but then it comes back. I eventually found trigger points in my Scalene muscles at the side of the neck towards the front. When I pressed on the trigger point, the referred pain pattern would go to my shoulder blade, back of my neck, and even down my arm. However, sometimes I have been over enthusiastic with the massage and was left with a pins & needle feeling in my fingers for a week.
This truly is an amazing book and I’d recommend this to everyone. But you have to be patient with it, and follow the instructions noted carefully.
I’ve been so impressed by treatments of trigger points, I have tried to find a therapist who is a specialist in this field, but haven’t been successful so far.
trigger point
Thursday, June 08, 2006
Chiropractic
Many people have visited Chiropractors for back problems, and I have heard various comments about them. Some people regard them as crooks, some as the next best thing since sliced bread! I think both opinions are true, but that largely depends on who you visit for your treatment. There is good and bad in all.
Chiropractors specialise in diagnosis and treatment of problems with joints, ligaments, tendons and nerves of the body, in particular the spine. From my experience with Chiropractors over the last 15 years, these guys will first diagnose your back problem with an x-ray, then will use various movements and palpation techniques (not all Chiropractors are skilled in this) which involves feeling the spine with the fingers and identifying misaligned vertebrae and muscle tension. Its amazing what a skilled Chiropractor can identify with this technique, they can usually find the problems without you telling them anything!
I get various problems with my back, from stiffness, pain, soreness, restricted movement etc etc. These sometimes develop other symptoms such as headaches, light headedness and tingling in the arms. When I visit my Chiropractor, he assesses the back, and has the knack to pin-point the problem, loosens the muscles up, and adjusts the vertebrae (i.e. gives it a crack!). Its amazing, the symptoms almost immediately disappear.
The problem I have though, the symptoms reappear after a day or so, and you end up in the endless visits to the Chiropractor who provides temporary relief, until the next session. In fact, I have been so many times to the Chiropractor, I have learnt how to crack backs myself! Even my friends come to me with back problems “Hey, my back is stiff, can you give me a crack!”.
There are some Chiropractors out there who are in the profession to just make money and nothing else. I have been to some who just visit you for 5 minutes, yes 5 minutes! And crack your back and send you home until the next session. They get through about 10 patients an hour, each paying £$£$, I let you work out the math!
But I would stress, some are genuinely good and have worked wonders for some people. For back problems, I’d always advise people to see a Chiropractor, their knowledge of the spine is excellent. But it is difficult finding a “good” Chiropractor, always go on a recommendation and don’t go to ones who are fresh out of college! I’ve been there and have been a practice dummy for a few.
However, I have also heard some horror stories of certain Chiropractors where treatment has gone wrong. Adjustments of the neck are always very delicate, and some people have ended up with permanent damage to nerves during treatment.
Obviously, always see your Doctor before embarking on any treatment. My doctor however, his answer to everything was rest and pain killers! That never worked for me and in fact made my condition worse. I thought, forget this, and started researching myself into various treatments.
For me, Chiropractic doesn’t always reach the root cause of a problem, it just spends a lot of time treating the symptoms, and quite successfully too. Knowing this, I still visit the Chiropractor for temporary relief until I find something that really works!
back pain chiropractor massage
Chiropractors specialise in diagnosis and treatment of problems with joints, ligaments, tendons and nerves of the body, in particular the spine. From my experience with Chiropractors over the last 15 years, these guys will first diagnose your back problem with an x-ray, then will use various movements and palpation techniques (not all Chiropractors are skilled in this) which involves feeling the spine with the fingers and identifying misaligned vertebrae and muscle tension. Its amazing what a skilled Chiropractor can identify with this technique, they can usually find the problems without you telling them anything!
I get various problems with my back, from stiffness, pain, soreness, restricted movement etc etc. These sometimes develop other symptoms such as headaches, light headedness and tingling in the arms. When I visit my Chiropractor, he assesses the back, and has the knack to pin-point the problem, loosens the muscles up, and adjusts the vertebrae (i.e. gives it a crack!). Its amazing, the symptoms almost immediately disappear.
The problem I have though, the symptoms reappear after a day or so, and you end up in the endless visits to the Chiropractor who provides temporary relief, until the next session. In fact, I have been so many times to the Chiropractor, I have learnt how to crack backs myself! Even my friends come to me with back problems “Hey, my back is stiff, can you give me a crack!”.
There are some Chiropractors out there who are in the profession to just make money and nothing else. I have been to some who just visit you for 5 minutes, yes 5 minutes! And crack your back and send you home until the next session. They get through about 10 patients an hour, each paying £$£$, I let you work out the math!
But I would stress, some are genuinely good and have worked wonders for some people. For back problems, I’d always advise people to see a Chiropractor, their knowledge of the spine is excellent. But it is difficult finding a “good” Chiropractor, always go on a recommendation and don’t go to ones who are fresh out of college! I’ve been there and have been a practice dummy for a few.
However, I have also heard some horror stories of certain Chiropractors where treatment has gone wrong. Adjustments of the neck are always very delicate, and some people have ended up with permanent damage to nerves during treatment.
Obviously, always see your Doctor before embarking on any treatment. My doctor however, his answer to everything was rest and pain killers! That never worked for me and in fact made my condition worse. I thought, forget this, and started researching myself into various treatments.
For me, Chiropractic doesn’t always reach the root cause of a problem, it just spends a lot of time treating the symptoms, and quite successfully too. Knowing this, I still visit the Chiropractor for temporary relief until I find something that really works!
back pain chiropractor massage
