Brighton Body Massage Blog

November 8th. Working today with a client with persistent neck and shoulder pain on one side. Living with this for many years and noticing that it worsens with stress she decided to see if massage could help. On palpation I found that her upper and lower trapezius muscle ( along the top of the shoulder) was dense and knotted. This restriction in the muscle is responsible for referring pain into the head. A combination ofHot stone, Trigger point therapy and Myofascial Release worked to reduce this "lump". Long stretching of the muscle at the end helps to re-align the fibres and allow the blood to flow through the area removing toxin build up. A few more sessions will be needed to remove this but it just shows that we sufffder often unnecessarily forthe sake of some Clinical Massage.

October 18th - 11 Never underestimate the effect of stress on the body. Emotional stress can manifest as muscular pain. Having regular massage can help build awareness and connection with our bodies helping us to understand and take note of what our bodies are telling us. Massage can help unlock these emotional holdings and enable us to move on physically and emotionally bringing about relief from pain. All kinds of massage can help but Myofascial release and Hot Stone Massage are particularly helpful combined with movement therapies such as Nia, Tai Chi and Chi Gung to name a few.

 Sept 29th: All this work on pelvis's and hips has got me examining this structure in some detail. I have always known that the pain people experience does not necessarily come from where they are feeling it and yesterday I had a light bulb moment with a client in clinic. This lovely lady was suffering with sacroiliac joint pain and referred pain into the right glute and upper thigh. It is always re-assuring to people that you have listened to them when you go to the area they have the problem with so I worked all the gluteal attachments which were indeed sore but I noticed early on she had a pelvic rotation to the left thus indicating a shortening of muscles in the left.Sure enough the left side was much more tender and tight in the quadratus lumborum and yet weak and collapsed in the right. But most interesting of all was that the psoas on the left when released immediately created balance in the pelvis. Talking to a client and explaining why you are rooting about deep in their stomach to cure their glute pain is essential and takes some sensitivity ! This complicated structure suddenly became clear as a bell to me in this instance as I felt the stresses and strains present in her pelvis and this is the joy of working as a massage theapist. The constant discovery, learning and understanding makes this the most fascinating career to have. I thank all my clients for giving me the opportunity to learn more and help more.

Sept 14th: still no end of adductor problems coming in. These pesky muscles are often neglected in treatment, partly because of where they are being a bit tricky to get to, ( inside thigh) and partly I think because we tend to get a bit obsessed with their big brothers the quads and hamstrings always stealing all the glory! I have been doing some reading about these neglected muscles and it is interesting and obvious really how when they become tight they pull the pelvis into a lateral tilt, or as Rachel of Jing massage says, like a saucer tipping milk out of one side. This in turn impacts on the lateral rotators of the hip just for starters. It seems that once the adductors are strained it becomes a recurring issue for people. Re-aligning the pelvis is a way I am exploring to see if longer lasting results can be achieved. Thankyou to my friend Syd for offering up her adductor group for me to practice on!

August 15th: time flying past and still seeing  lot of hip and leg issues.One interesting discovery I found in a client with strange nerve sensations in her tibialis anterior (shin) was that by relieving the trigger points in this muscle the peculiar sensations were relieved. I had thought that when nerves were involved there was little I could do but of course the classic pain I treat all the time is sciatic pain where the sciatic nerve is compressed by a tight piriformis. So yes, I still refer to osteopaths to make sure everything is where it should be but should not forget the mischief a muscle can cause when compressing its surrounding tissues.

July 22nd: where does the time go? seem to have had a run of sprained adductors and hip problems still.A common issue is that people carry on through the pain and attempt to stretch these poor tight muscles that are weak with trigger points. This is futile. Trigger point therapy massge will focus on eliminating these nasty pain loci with ischemic compression and deep tissue massage. Then when these little knots have been relieved can the muscle be stretched and lengthened usually with some Sports massage stretches such as PNF stretching. Then strengthening exercises can be introduced.

June 28th: well its been a week since I propped the bed up and I have stopped slipping downwards and I did seem to thrash about a bit the first few nights but that has stabilised. I don't notice the incline at all now so am maybe ready to go up another 3 inches. I have noticed however that I don't need to get up for the loo in the night which is one of the benefits suggested, especially good for MS sufferers for whom this is a problem. Am working hard with  client with a low back injury who has a lot of pain in the hip and sacroiliiac joint. Her glutes and lateral rotators of the hip especially piriformis seem to harbour a lot of trigger points but I also found her adductors were very tight also so working with her to release these. Hopefully this will bio-mechanically balance the joint and help stop the recurrence of tp's. back on the 5th July Byee.

June 23rd:  I am looking with interest at something called Inclined Bed Therapy. A client suffering with Multiple Sclerosis informed me of this as something she was going to try. The concept is simple, raising your bed up to 6 inches higher at the head end on blocks or bricks. The health benefits are many and significant all to do with the effect of gravity being enhanced in comparison to sleeping horizontally. Just some effects I am interested in particularly relate to improvement in spinal conditions such as Scoliosis, Lordosis and Kyphosis, balancing of the pelvis, reduction in snoring ( Hurray) ,increased de-toxification and reduction in oedema and varicose veins. This simple method with its far reaching benefits was discovered by Andrew Fletcher. I have just propped my bed up last night and will be reporting back and dissecting the science behind this intrguingly simple therapy. For more info http://www.heal-me.com.au/ibt.html

June 7th. Treated a client in Lewes with a golfing injury today, this involved the release of fascia that had tightned up around the injury site when it happened 4 weeks ago. This is always an interesting as most of my work involves shoulders and neck pain, so rib work is a highlight to my day and can give huge relief to a client and even improve breathing when the diaphragm fascia has become implicated. I always use a variety of techniques including trigger point work for focussing into the knots and releasing the muscle, hot stone to reduce pain and Myofascial release for the broader release of fascial planes. Lewes and Brighton appointments available 6 days a week

May 17th. Fab day, new clients, great to use some Myofascial release on a horrible frozen shoulder. This condition called adhesive capsulitis really benefits from the slow stretching techniques in this work , literally un-sticking the fascial tissues that have become hardened. Mobility and pain can lessen even after one session. Then also some detailed hip and lumbar work to an injury of the spine to help re-gain movement. Its exciting for me to use all these tools and to see improvements. very rewarding! Clients popping up in Brighton and Peacehaven today as well so lots of whizzing around.

May 10th. Another beautiful day in Brighton, my dream day would be a walk along the sea front, followed by a morning massage or facial maybe with hot stones and rose oil, maybe a beautiful foot massage as well, then lunch, more beach a snooze, then off out for supper. Sometimes after a lot of remedial work it's good to remind yourself what its like just to have a treat.

Apr 20th. Currently on holiday at home, taking the air and giving my hands a rest from all that trigger point therapy and massageing. I always tell my clients to consider those aches and pains that seem so relentless. Do they go away when you are on holiday? what does this tell us....at the least it does let you know that you are not falling to pieces, its just the demands of your job. So it is important to constantly be looking at how we can improve our posture and reduce our stress levels whilst at work. Dropping the shoulders is key along with a well positioned monitor and chair for all of you desk bound people. Off to lie in the garden to practise my being horizontal posture! back next week.

Brighton Marathon now done with and it was exciting that one of my runners improved his time by 20 minutes on last year. I am hoping some of this was down to him having invested in regular sports massage this time around which enabled us to identify areas of restriction and to devise a stretching routine which kept him much more fluid and flexible.

Hay fever time is setting in for folks already and one treament people find useful is Hopi ear candling. Not only does it shift hard built up wax but helps remove irritants from the ear canal and soothe the nasal passages.Hopi candles are a natural product and the treatment is very relaxing and can relieve itchy ears, noses, stuffy heads and congestion. Why not try it?

 April 6th:Yesterday I started treating a client with a persistent pain beneath his scapula brought about by a surgery to his shoulder blade. This left a big knot of scar tissue that as yet no-one had treated for him. Using Myofascial Release techniques, ie, gently easing into the bound up fibres I was able to improve the pliability of this hard area thus releiving the pain radiating from it. A simple technique not found in your regular Deep tissue massage and worth exploring even for very old scar tissue such as cesarens or hernia surgeries and many more.

 March 28th:The last month has been exciting in that my new wave of clients who started coming in the New year are now seeing relief from the problems they came in with. A lot of the time I am asked how to prevent recurring problems. I can advise a little but tend to refer to other specialists. Yoga and Pilates are two favourites that I suggest people should take up as I find increasingly that people are unable to relax and are permanently contrating their shoulders and neck muscles without realising. Tightness in these areas can lead to all sorts of symptoms including migraines, ear pain, insomnia. Good posture and awareness of muscle tension along with regular massage and exercise are all key in maintaining a healthy musculo-skeletal system. I think of it like keeping an engine well oiled and all the moving parts flowing beautifully and in harmony. Myofascial release is a wonderful way to encourage really hardened tissues to get moving as well as Sports Massage and Deep tissue massage, all using techniques to ease tension and give you more energy and releif from pain.

Feb 18th: Well it's been 2 weeks of treating neck pain almost exclusively with one pair of legs thrown in at the weekend. Have more legs coming due to the Brighton Half marathon on Sunday! Its been fascinating tho and worrying for people suffering so much discomfort from chronic build up of tension in their necks leading to all sorts of disturbing phenomena. Soft tissue problems are often not identified by the medical profession and yet remedial massage therapists who are expert in this area can resolve these symptoms with a little a patience relatively easily.It saddens me that people see their Gp's and then get referred for all manner of tests when simply laying hands onto someone's shoulders will give you all the information required.

The culprit mainly of these problems is usually computer work and poor posture combined with stress, deadlines, exams and also ignoring the warning signs until pain becomes unbearable. The good news, focussed work to the trapezius , erectors and rhomboids of the back and then meticulous work hunting down ofnasty little pain referring trigger points in the scalenes, Sterno-cleido mastoid and cervicles and ofcourse those hugely sore occipitals is often able to gain significant relief after one session. More on the symptoms of neck and shoulder related tension soon!

Jan 25th 2011. Interesting day at Natural Balance, Brighton, with 3 new massage clients. All presenting with serious chronic pain complaints and all requiring different approaches. My first ever annular tear which is the fibrous capsule that surrounds the discs between the vertebrae. The damage causes the fluid inside to leak out and this can impinge on the spinal column causing pain. Massage for this requires a sensitive approach that involves releasing the spinal muscles to create space for the disc to ease back where it should be. A nice cold stone on the site helped to take down the inflammation. Its great to get to use this knowledge havng spent so much time studying!

Jan 20th 2011

Clients always ask me if muscles are connected or if the pain in their neck could have anything to do with their low back problem. I always tell them everything is connected. We have this idea in the West that the body is a series of separate organs, tissues, bones etc somehow attached together, when in fact everything is continuous and blends beautifully into each part. Muscles, tendon, ligaments, bones, viscera all  interconnected and whole. Tom Myers explains this as the body being one whole muscle held in around 600 fascial pockets. Understanding this concept helps us to treat out bodies more holistically , something Chinese medicine has been doing for thousands of years, and also helps explain why when you come for a massge for neck pain, I may fiddle around with your feet for some time!

Jan 14th 2011

Very naughty me, haven't posted for ages. Have been blinking like a mole coming out of hibernation since Christmas. However am pleased to report that I have discovered that strengthening the glute muscles with specific exercises ie lateral leg raises has alleviated my sacroiliac problems so I am going to pass this on to all my clients who are experiencing similar issues. It brings me back to the point that in order to keep ourselves free of pain we need to keep our bodies strong and not rely on health professionals to fix us,but to assist us in maintaining our bodies. So, get to the gym!

Nov 30th 2010

Fabulous first day of Advanced Myofascial Release course with Jing Massage. Taught by Ann Cruickshank and Rachel Fairweather we learnt techniques for thoracic release. Particularly lovely were the rib release techniques , great for things like Thoracic Outlet problem, pec minor syndrome, breathing, asthma, bronchitis or pneumonia,( post virus) and also we discovered helps to relieve the tightness across the front of the chest that so many of us have from sitting hunched over computers all day. I had two clients in last week with rib problems due to old broken rib injuries and now I have wonderful new ways to help them. Cervical release tomorrow!

Neck pain and headaches