Massage

How Massage Therapy Can Help Tendinitis and Tendinosis Treatment

It is summertime and chances are you’ve been exercising or taking on a hobby on the weekends. Summertime is also the time there is an increase in injuries; one of the most common being tendon injuries. Most of us don’t realize how much damage we can do as we start or overdue it in an activity, but as you’ll discover, it’s quite easy.

Types of Tendon Injuries

  • Tendinitis – one of the most common conditions for the tendon; it is pain in soft tissue caused by a tear in the tendon fiber and inflammation; it is a result from chronic overload or repetitive motion with the tendon; most commonly found in adults, especially those over 40 years of age
  • Tendinosis – means “abnormal condition of the tendon”; it has been argued that this is the proper term for tendon pathologies because a true tear and inflammation of the tendon (tendinitis) is uncommon compared to other pathologies
  • Tenosynovitis – an inflammation and/or irritation between a tendon and its surrounding synovial sheath; it is caused by chronic overloading or excess friction between a tendon and its sheath; the symptoms of tendinosis and tenosynovitis are similar, but you can distinguish the two by determining if the dysfunctional tendon has a synovial sheath

The most common symptom of any tendon pathology is a pain at the site of a tendon and its surrounding area. The pain may be gradual or sudden, usually caused by an overuse or doing too much too soon when the tendons are not used to movement. Specialized massage techniques for tendinitis can be especially helpful with relieving pain in the surrounding area.

It has been proven that a breakdown in collagen fibers has also been one of the main problems for tendinosis. Collagen fibers give a tendon its strength, while elastin fibers give it a small amount of flexibility.  If the tendon pain is truly tendinitis, the tissue repair and inflammation would take less time to heal than rebuilding the collagen fibers.

Avoiding Tendinitis

Instead of exerting yourself too hard if your body has not performed an activity in a while, take it slow at first and gradually build up your activity level. Try to avoid too many repetitions.

Avoid activities that aggravate the problem. Rest and ice the area the same day that you are feeling pain. If the condition doesn’t improve within a week, you may need more advanced treatments and should visit your primary care physician. From there, your physician can decide the next steps in treating the pain.

How Massage Can Help Tendinitis

There are a few ways that massage therapy can help your tendinitis or tendinosis. Tendinitis massage can help identify and locate the injury. Once the location of the injury has been found, friction massage in the precise location will stimulate the healing response and release tension in the adjacent muscles that had to work harder while the tendon was injured. However, the most important part of tendinitis massage and tendinosis healing is self-care by the client in between sessions. Call me or visit me to discuss how we can work with your physician to provide you with the best self-care tips while healing. Your physician will help guide you on how to rest and treat the tendon and massage can help reduce the physical stress and the emotional stress that injury may be causing.

How to Determine if it is Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome

If you’ve been feeling pain in your pelvic region, don’t assume that it’s not a valid condition. Chronic pelvic pain syndrome is a condition where the individual experiences pelvic pain that lasts six months or longer. Chronic pelvic pain syndrome (CPPS) can be a symptom of another condition or can be a problem on its own. Sometimes pelvic pain can develop for no apparent reason, without any definitive source or cause. However, there has been a significant increase in research in the past decade to study the cause and optimal treatment for chronic pelvic pain syndrome.

There is no known “cure” for chronic pelvic pain syndrome, but there are many forms of treatments that can alleviate the pain; as well as relieve the psychological and emotional stress  caused by the chronic pain. continue reading »

The History of Massage Therapy in Ancient Civilizations

Akmanthor

Pehr Ling, a Swedish physical therapist, was credited with the birth of the Swedish massage around 1776.  “Swedish massage” is the most commonly recognized representation of massage therapy, but it is not the earliest of it.

There is a plethora of evidence to support that massage therapy has been used as a natural healing method in many ancient civilizations including China, India, Japan, Egypt, Korea, Rome, Greece, and Mesopotamia. Some say massage began as a sacred system of natural healing for injuries, pain, stress, and illnesses. Others disagree and believe that massage was not advocated or practiced until modern times. Prior to that, it was believed to be incorporated in other healing methods.

The history of massage is not easily found from research and there is much debate over the exact details, but here’s a brief overview of massage therapy throughout ancient history. continue reading »

Benefits of Pediatric and Infant Massage

babiesMassage therapy is known to be especially beneficial for children, and can address not only their physical ailments, but their emotional care as well. Even if your child doesn’t have any health conditions, they may still be experiencing pressure academically and socially more than ever before.  Infant massage is an important way to communicate with baby and to build trust and understanding.

There are some very clear distinctions between the two modalities of infant massage and pediatric massage. Pediatric massage generally applies to children up to age 18, and infant massage is specialized for children up to 12 months.  It’s important to know how each modality can help your child and why it’s important to start massage as early as possible. continue reading »

Energy Healing: Let the Good Vibes Flow

Acupuncture point Hegu (LI 4)

Acupuncture point Hegu (LI 4)

In a sense all therapeutic massage techniques promote good vibes, due to their relaxing and deeply quieting nature. While energy healing is often thought to influence mainly spiritual and mental aspects of oneself, significant physical benefits are also notable. Science verifies that the body is bio-energetic, and thus your body can benefit from creating a harmonious balance of its energies.

Energy healing can be conveyed via direct hands on techniques; by working with the energy field itself without direct contact; and indirectly, such as when we are exposed to certain outside stimuli. Nowadays, most of us are aware, and it is commonly accepted that various external forces have an immediate effect on our state of well-being: imagine the relaxing sound of soft rain, or the comforting smell of vanilla or cinnamon.

The practice of massage therapy, including many energy healing techniques, serves as a medium of sorts to transfer good vibes between the body and mind, leaving a sensation of ultimate relaxation. Direct energy-healing modalities take this concept even further by targeting principally the bio-electric energetic forces flowing through all of us more specifically than others do. At the same time, these techniques provide wholly physical benefits as well, making them a vital tool for heightened of mental and physical well-being.

Some such techniques include: continue reading »

Massage Therapy for Stress Relief

relaxed-guyThe benefits of massage therapy are numerous, but the most requested and desired by far is stress relief.  We know that stress can accumulate in the body and mind even with the activities of everyday life;  similarly, negative stress can be reduced by modifying some everyday habits and finding new ones to encourage more balance in your life. Regular exercise, plenty of fluid intake and rest, positive attitude and environment and of course, massage therapy are a few of the choices you can make.

In this fast-paced, challenging world, the desire for stress relief is on par with Eurydice’s desire to escape the underworld (and probably to seek revenge on her husband). Although most of modern society can’t compare to the standards of Greek mythology, everyone has their problems. Whatever they may be, massage therapy helps to alleviate the associated stress that goes along with them, and in doing so helps to improve overall happiness and quality of life.
continue reading »