We are able to provide massage therapy to people with a significant health history.  A diagnosis from your doctor is not necessary.  However, we are able to work with your physician, chiropractor, osteopath, or other doctor to meet your goals.  Our goal is to decrease the need for long-term medical or even worse surgical intervention.  Is your health care provider giving you prescriptions?  Talking about injections? Surgery is not always the answer. We successfully treat the following pain syndromes:

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Soft Tissue Pain – how does it develop?

There is a way to treat both the cause of musculoskeletal pain & the resultant symptoms. It involves therapeutic assessment, manipulation, & movement of the locomotor soft tissues to reduce/ eliminate pain & dysfunction.   It all traces back to the body’s fascial adhesions and muscle imbalance.

The entire body is surrounded by progressively deeper layers of connective tissue called fascia. Fascial adhesions are “sticking points” which prevent normal movement. 

In some joints, repetitive movements cause certain muscle groups to become strong & short while opposing muscle groups become overstretched & weak.  This is a “muscle imbalance”.
        Muscle groups shorten, due to prolonged poor posture, repetitive motion, or  injury & need to be released, lest they pull bones onto nerves & blood vessels & cause or contribute  to a wide variety of painful conditions.

      Muscle tension & imbalance around the joints sets up a neuromuscular response that attempts to restore balance, but also creates tension in the joint. This leads to joint degeneration, cartilage thinning, and an increasingly limited range of painless motion – a limit which causes the formation of adhesions (sticking points) in the joint capsule itself.  The fascia that should be moving instead begins to act as superglue – gluing the bone to the socket. 

Attempting to force movement (Ouch!) to free up the glued joint only lays down more “glue” (fibroblasts) & progressively deeper adhesions until the once fluid joint becomes  unyielding and feels solid.

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So why does Orthopedic Massage work on Soft Tissue Pain?

These deep fascial adhesions can be melted like you would melt jello. Much like jello, fascia becomes more liquid and pliable when it is heated up (with techniques such as using the bone itself to melt the fascia inside the joint with very gentle movements).

Theory states that heat, pressure, & gentle stretch facilitate myofascial (deep) warming & release – however, muscles rebel by tightening around the joint if even mild discomfort develops during the technique.

Therefore orthopedic massage must do a delicate dance between muscle imbalances, joint capsule melting & the absolute need to keep all work pain free.

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How to prepare for an Orthopedic Massage session:

Don't worry - you don't have to endure more pain to get out of pain!  Although Soft Tissue Release may sound like the kind of rough approach that makes one wish for a stick to clench in one’s teeth —it's not. 

Do expect to move around more than you would in a relaxation massage therapy session. 

         In many cases, your street/work clothes will do just fine.  For Orthopedic Massage, there's no need to get completely undressed like you might for a Swedish or relaxation-type massage session.  The therapist might instruct you to bring athletic wear to change into.  For men, just a pair of shorts will do.  For women, a pair of shorts with some kind of top, like a sports bra, is best. (Lycra is a good all-around choice since it's not bulky and stretches well.)  
        The special stretches and movements are part of what makes this approach so effective.  (You will also learn some of these stretches, along with other unique self-care techniques, as something you can do on your own to maintain and accelerate your progress.)

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