Rehabilitative Massage
Trigger point therapy:Designed to alleviate the source pain through cycles of isolated pressure. The trigger point is identified by probing with fingers or apparatus. The trigger point is a spot characterized by heightened discomfort in the patient and a noticeable hardness to the therapist. While the application of pressure on this spot causes the discomfort to become very clearly recognizable, it has the dual and counter-intuitive effect of feeling good at the same time.
Myotherapy: What the myotherapist does is use a compression technique to ease the pain. The therapist presses on these trigger points for about five to seven seconds to bring about relaxation. Often during a session the trigger points can be erased so that the patient no longer suffers from pain. Then the therapist re-educates the muscle to its normal resting condition using corrective excerise program. This is done through a series of specially designed exercises. The exact exercises will depend on the person, as each session will be specifically designed for the individual. Each patient will be trained in their own set of exercise that will keep them pain free.
The pressure applied by the therapist may be a bit painful at first but will go away as soon as the pressure is released. At the end of the session, the muscles are gently stretched and taken through a series of exercises to enhance their range of motion. Since the technique is relatively simple, patients can be taught the procedure so that they can complete the exercises at home between sessions.