Direct Myofascial Release – a Perspective from Mike Grafstein CAT(C), SMT(C)

As both a practicing Certified Athletic Therapist and Certified Sports Massage Therapist I have been fortunate to have come across many myofascial release courses. They have ranged from fascial chains to various forms of direct and indirect myofascial release.

Do I prefer one over the other? Not really, it’s just a matter of the clients situation and what I think best works at that time.

Why Direct Myofascial Release

I guess the biggest thing for me is that with most of the direct myofascial release techniques, I use my forearm and elbow. I am able to save my wrists, hands and fingers.

The ability to use mainly my forearm and elbow speaks loudly to me for a couple of reasons.

1) I have “wonky” wrists. Years ago before I got into massage school I sustained a significant wrist injury in a ball hockey game. Simply put this one idiot took it upon himself to try to eliminate me from the game with a slash attempt below the belt; lucky for me I saw it last minute and was able to protect myself at the expense of both my wrist joints.

2) I love to work with out oil! I enjoy giving half hour to hour massages oil free. Recently one of my clients went 90 minutes without any lotion!

3) Many times I find it more effective than traditional swedish massage.

That being said I understand that it is not necessarily a treatment for every client or a tool of choice by all massage therapists.

I have specifically found this technique very helpful for treating knee issues such as patellar tendonitis, iliotiband friction syndrome and lateral patellar tracking.

When I am able to “separate” the vastus lateralis from rectus femoris (video) and the vastus lateralis from the iliotibialband there tends to be more freedom and less painful movement at the knee. I see this  a lot with soccer players when they run.

I find that if I work slowly and deliberately on specific muscles I am able to gradually get “deep” with this approach.

The biggest challenge is working within the clients comfort level.

I inform my clients on the technique I plan to use and allow them to decide whether or not they want this type of work done.

The last thing a client needs is for some agressive therapist to stick their elbow into their psoas and “dig” deep.

Rolfing

My first exposure to direct myofascial release was in a course I took on soft tissue mobilization back in 1992. The instructor for the course was a structural integration therapist with training from the Rolf Institute.

If you look around at most direct myofascial release practitioners they have a background in Rolfing or Structural Integration.

Direct myofascial release is tool like any skill that you learn that you can can put into your toolbox to help you get postive results for your client.
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Mike Grafstein has designations both as a Certified Athletic Therapist CAT(C) and Certified Sports Massage Therapist SMT(C). He is a senior instructor and clinic supervisor at Bryan College in Toronto, practices out of Upper Canada Sports Medicine Clinic in Newmarket and is an Athletic Therapist with Bryst International.

Mike is also the creator of the MyolageTM Myofascial Release Treatment System recognized as the “Grandchild” of myofascial release.

Visit the Myofascial Release youtube Channel.

Schweitzer’s Deep Tissue Therapy (SDTT)
A Perspective on Deep Tissue Massage

My name is Gary Schweitzer and I am a Registered Massage Therapist from Kelowna, B.C. I am excited to be a guest writer on this blog. The topic I am going to discuss is deep tissue therapy.

A subject I am passionate about and that I have been personally involved with in my career as a student with a world class mentor, a practitioner with my clients and as an educator teaching in Canada, the United States and Europe.

The most important lesson I learned early on in my career is that discerning clients not only recognize the merit of deep tissue therapy, they demand it. My attitude is if you are not including some form of deep work in your practice a lot of people and a lot of money is going right out your door.

One of the biggest challenges a massage therapists has is to work at a deep enough level to effectively treat the depth and breadth of the muscle belly in order to release chronic muscle spasms.

A lot of clients have bodies like sheets of steel and it asks of the practitioner to put out a lot of effort in order to create a treatment that the client deems valuable enough and effective enough to be motivated to come back.

We all must remember we are “helpers” but we mustn’t forget we do need to make a living.

Regarding of your size, fitness level or current state of your health if you can’t deliver what your clients need they will look elsewhere.

Most Deep Tissue  approaches are Very Painful for the client and Damaging for the Therapist….Occupational Strain is Rampant in our Profession.

When I first started teaching in 2000 in the USA I noticed that 85% of my students were hurting everyday they went to work. I also noticed that when I observed them working that the treatments they were giving were exceedingly painful for the client.

It was at that moment that I decided to change everything. I designed a workshop that implemented unique, innovative and dynamic techniques that were easy on the therapist. Admittedly it took years to perfect but in the process I was able to reduce the 85% who were hurting every day down to less than 5%.

The basis of the approach I teach combines a rigorous bio-mechanical focus and utilizes techniques that support the practitioner not destroys them. Bio-mechanics is often misunderstood and there are very few who have a foundational understanding of it in order to teach it to RMT’s.

For me it took years to perfect the bio-mechanics, marry it to movement and add advanced techniques in order to reverse occupational strain.

Getting consistent and above average results simply allows you to attract a large following of raving fans who will continue to see you on a regular basis. The money they pay you is an exchange for the energy you expend while working with them.

How to make Deep Treatments Manageable not Exceedingly Painful…

The second biggest challenge was making it easier for the client. That revelation came after at least seven years of practice and hundreds of students attending my workshops. It happened one day while teaching in Vernon, B.C. While working with my elbow on the paraspinal of a student who was very uncomfortable.

I wanted to make it easier for her to handle and without thinking I pressed my left hand down on her back and continued with the same pressure with my right elbow.

To my surprise she could not feel my elbow at all. That revelation was the beginning of using “the gate theory” to minimize patient discomfort. In all my workshops from that point forward I have used this distraction technique to eliminate virtually all discomfort for the client which in turn allows me the freedom to work at a deep level.

How to Create a Win/WIN for you and your clients.

After teaching 1500 students all over the world I have gotten increasingly passionate about two things. Eliminating occupational strain for the practicing massage therapist. Nothing gives me more gratification than teaching in a workshop and having most of the room complain about experiencing pain in more than one area of the body on a daily basis and at the end of the three days have them walk out the door pain-free.

The second thing I am passionate about is removing the association in the mind of the client that all deep treatments have to be painful to be effective. Most clients are willing to put up with a painful treatment if they know it will take care of the pain they feel on a daily basis.

What if the client can relax on the table while you give them their deep treatment and they don’t have to feel incredible discomfort while doing so?

Gary Schweitzer is a Registered Massage Therapist and has been in clinical practice for over nineteen years. He has 24,000 hours of hands on clinical experience. He has taught his basic level workshop in Canada, the United States and Europe to over 1500 students. He is an occupational strain expert and through his three day intensive workshops has transformed the lives of hundreds of massage therapists so that they can work pain-free and achieve above average and consistent results with their clients.

After twelve years of teaching live workshops he is taking a break from offering his three day workshop. If you are experiencing occupational strain and are looking for a new way of working you may consider his three day workshop on film. For more information on his 4 part DVD series home study program go here: http://www.sdtt.com/basic_level_dvd.html

A Review of Different Myofascial Release Courses

With so many myofascial release courses out there which one do you choose?

Are looking for a direct or indirect myofascial release course or are you looking for a fascial chain or visceral manipulation course.

Are you looking a course that has over 100 people or are you looking for class sizes less the 25?

These are the types of questions you need to ask yourself. Courses may be anywhere from to $250 dollars to $1000 or more.

These myofascial release seminars last anywhere from a one day workshop to a 4 day workshop or part time studies over weeks, months or years.

Just a few things to keep in my mind investigating the course you want to take
1) class size
2) location – in town or out of town
3) reputation
4) CEUS – can use this for professional development
5) One instructor or an instructor with many teaching assistants

The techniques in these courses are very effective and add another skill for you to put into your tool box.

Remember, the more courses you take the more you have to offer your clients.

John Barnes Myofascial Release Seminars

Any one who has ever taken a John Barnes swear by it. In some circles it is known as the father of “indirect myofascial release”.

The indirect myofascial release technique, according to John Barnes, is as follows:
• Lightly contact the fascia with relaxed hands.
• Slowly stretch the fascia until reaching a barrier/restriction.
• Maintain a light pressure to stretch the barrier for approximately 3–5 minutes.
• Prior to release, the therapist will feel a therapeutic pulse (e.g. heat).
• As the barrier releases, the hand will feel the motion and softening of the tissue.
• The key is sustained pressure over time.

Here is one review found on John Barnes Blog- http://massagemag.com/massage-blog/myofascial-release/2011/05/10/copy-cat-myofascial-release-courses/#comments

“As a physical therapist, I have not found a more effective technique than using my hands to apply myofascial release as John Barnes teaches it, which uses sustained and gentle pressure. This can be a very non-invasive and indirect technique as well as direct when appropriate…

Soft Tissue Release – Myofascial Release Continuing Education

This course claims to be the father of all modern or current day myofascial release techniques.

The technique in this is broken down into a hold / brace and stretch of the fascia done passively, actively and also with an overpressure.

Brought into Canada by Stuart Taws it is now taught by Jim Billotta Certified Athletic Therapist

Jim is an excellent instructor and gives you good information that you can apply immediately in your clinic setting.

Generally speaking clients only need shorts and t-shirt to be effective in their treatments.
Visit the website here: http://www.softtissuerelease.ca/

Anne Hartley Myofascial Release Classes

Anne Hartley BPHE, dip ATM, CAT(c), DO(MP), is a prominent Canadian Athletic Therapist.

Anne is well known for her knowledge and understanding of therapeutic modalities. She is a retired professor of 32 years in the Athletic Therapy Program at Sheridan College in Brampton, Ontario Canada.

She has lectured extensively in both Canada and the United States in over 100 workshops.

She graduated from the Canadian College of Osteopathy with a Doctorate in Osteopathic Manual Practice in 1999.

She has a unique set of courses that follow myofascial chains from head to toe. Her courses are fast paced with tons of information and lots of practical hands on techniques.
Her course material is different in that you learn the deep, intermediate and superficial lines of fascia from head to toe.

She travels both in Canada and the USA to give these courses. She is absolutely brilliant. Visit her website http://www.annehartleyagency.com/home.htm for a course near you.

Nerve Mobilization

Other courses that are excellent include nerve mobilization http://www.nervemobilization.com/ by Doug Alexander.

Doug presents his material in a very fun and effective way. Doug has both and upper and lower body nerve mobilization course.
Doug teaches you to distinguish between nerve pain and fascial tightness.

Doug has a unique way of treating carpal and tarsal tunnel syndrome. In his course you are able to locate the restriction and address the issue through myofascial release, compression and proper stretching.

Myolage TM – Myofascial Release Treatment System

Finally we would like to introduce to you MyolageTM The Myofascial Release Treatment System by Mike Grafstein Certified Athletic Therapist and Registered Massage Therapist.

MyolageTM is considered to be the “Grandchild” of all myofascial release courses.

It is slowly gaining momentum in the field of massage therapy and spreading into other disciplines.

Here are just a few techniques that you learn in this course:
1. MyolageTM Meld
2. MyolageTM Direct
3. MyolageTM Lock –Passive
4. MyolageTM Lock Active
5. MyolageTM Direct Dynamic

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These are just a few of the many forms of myofascial release courses out there.

Each course you take should leave you with more questions than answers. These courses should fill your desire to learn more. In this profession things are continually evolving.

Please feel free to share your thoughts on a myofascial release courses you have taken or about any the information provided on this post.

Autism and Massage Therapy

By Sarah King

Massage therapy provides many benefits for those with autism. Although it is important to understand that massage therapy is not a cure for autism, regular treatments can provide relief for some of the effects of autism.

What Is Autism?

To understand how massage therapy fits into a care plan for someone with autism first we need to discuss a little about what autism is. Autism is a complex developmental disability resulting from a neurological disorder that affects the brain.

A diagnosis is based on the presence of specific behaviors, and early diagnosis and treatment by a multidisciplinary team provides the best opportunity for positive results. Typically, individuals with autism have challenges with verbal and non-verbal communications, social interactions and connecting with the outside world.

They may exhibit repetitive movement, lack of ability to make eye contact, sensitivity to touch, sight, hearing, smell and taste. Individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder may lack the ability to veer from routine and may exhibit social interactions that may appear odd or atypical.

Signs of Autism and Symptoms of Autism

The first signs may be noticed before the age of 3, but parents may also notice a loss of skills their child previously had. Each individual with autism is affected differently with regards to symptoms and severity; therefore one individual may not appear to have obvious symptoms while another may require assistance with all aspects of their life.

ASD includes a variety of categories. Because the spectrum is so broad there is not a typical “look” to ASD.

Canadian researchers put the prevalence of Autism Spectrum Disorder at 1 in 165. Despite the prevalence, there remains a lack of understanding among some health and education professionals and the general public.

Diagnosis is a complex process that should be left to professionals in the field.

So what does this all mean with regards to massage therapy and autism? First we’ll discuss what it means to families living with autism.

Families Living With Autism

In research where parents were taught and performed massage routines, parents reported children were more relaxed, more talkative, lucid, happier and energetic during and immediately after the massage. On the days after the massage, parents reported children were happier and less frustrated. Generally parents felt physically closer to their children.

Some children even developed cues to request massage from their parent . In another research paper parents reported that children appeared to tolerate touch better, demonstrated by an easier time with everyday tasks such as dressing.

Again, parents felt “closer” to their child. In yet another study where parents were taught massage techniques and provided it to their children every night before bed, findings included, more on task behavior and attentiveness at school as well as improvements in sleep at night.

Benefits of Massage Therapy for Children with Autism

Based on these studies and what we understand about how massage therapy works with the nervous system, clients with autism benefit from massage therapy with improved sleep, decreased anxiety, improved tolerance for touch and improved focus.

In addition clients with autism benefit in many of the same ways as other clients, such as reduction of generalized muscle tension, injury healing, greater awareness of their own physical well being, and stress management.

When parents learn and perform massage regularly, children have a greater benefit due to the increased consistency of treatment and the increased benefit of physical bonding between caregiver and child.

For massage therapists what this means is that we have a lot to offer clients with autism and families with children with autism. We can provide hands on treatment for injuries and specific problems for those with autism, but we can also provide caregivers with an invaluable tool to assist them in improving the quality of life for their child.

What Massage Therapists Treating Children with Autism Need to Know

Massage therapists must also understand that it will be important to step outside their own understanding and expectation of how the appointment should progress. It may take several meetings before a child with autism will allow you to touch them.

One individual may require the environment to be totally quiet while another may require specific music and with a different volume than the average client. Working with individuals with autism can be very rewarding as well as unpredictable.

An unfamiliar noise or smell in the building where the massage takes place can potentially interfere with the appointment taking place at all. A massage therapist working with children with autism must be able to be fully present and aware of their interactions.

This seems like a given but the massage therapist may get caught up in their own routine and using techniques or pressure that the client does not like. This can be detrimental when working with children or any individual with autism. Some children with autism can reach a state of intense anxiety very quickly.

The massage therapist must hone their skills in verbal and non-verbal communication in order to read the body language and cues of their client before they escalate. It’s important to be able to progress slowly if necessary and take cues from your client and/or their caregivers.

At the first hands on visit you may only be able to touch a client’s hands or feet, but another client may be able to get right on the table. Some clients may accept direct hands on contact while another client may prefer to get massage with an object e.g. over the clothes with a hand held flexible exercise ball as an example.

The key is to be flexible, and open to re-evaluating and altering everything you think you know about massage therapy from communication and consent, to the massage environment, to positioning, and to techniques and how they are delivered. Once a client has been exposed to massage several times they may be very insistent on exactly the same routine every time.

It’s also important from a business perspective that a massage therapist understand there may be a need to be flexible in the way we do business. Providing massage therapy for individuals with autism can be rewarding for all involved but massage therapists should be very honest with themselves about their skills in flexibility, communication and modifications.

Home care can go a long way in assisting individuals with autism as well.

For more information on autism you can visit Autism Ontario, Geneva Centre for Autism or Health Canada.

RMT4KIDS will be hosting “A Day with Autism” in the near future. Dates will be posted on our website soon.

Sarah King RMT
RMT4KIDS
www.rmt4kids.com

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References for this article:

Cullen-Powel, Lesley, Barlow, Julie H, Cushway Delia. Exploring a massage intervention for parents and their children with autism: the implications for bonding and attachment. Journal of Child Health Care. Copyright © 2005. SAGE Publications, London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi Vol 9(4)

Cullen, Lesley, Barlow, Julie ‘ Kiss cuddle, squeeze’: the experience and meaning of touch among parents of children with autism attending a Touch Therapy Program, Journal of Child Health Care Copyright © 2002 SAGE Publications London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi Vol 6(3)

Escalona Angelica, Field Tiffany, Singer- Strunck Ruth, Cullen Christy, and Hartshorn Kristen. Brief Report: Improvements in the Behavior of Children With Autism Following Massage Therapy. Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, Vol. 31, No. 5, 2001
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Other Resources for parents with Autistic Children:

“Wots Normal”-Autism, Aspergers ASD by Kerri Stocks
www.autism-aspergers-asd.com

The Essential Guide To Autism By Rachel Evans
www.essential-guide-to-autism.com

The Ultimate Autism Solution By Sandra Arntzen, M.Ed
Sign up for a complementary information webinar
www.UltimateAutismSolution

Upper Body Muscle Imbalance Considerations for Massage Therapists

By Rick Kaselj of Exercises For Injuries

Massage therapists spend most of their days working on muscle imbalances in their clients. The cause of those muscle imbalances can be an old injury, poor posture, prolonged sitting or a motor vehicle accident.

Your clients are getting the benefits of massage when it comes to their muscle imbalances, but one thing that will help them get better results faster is to include muscle imbalance specific exercises.

I know you probably give a few exercises to your clients, but let me highlight some of the common mistakes that I see massage therapists make when giving exercises to address muscle imbalances.
Just Focusing on Stretching in the Neck

A common area that massage therapists work in is the neck. Often times they recommend stretching to help with the neck muscle imbalances. Kind of like this exercise:

http://youtu.be/JZJTSpWv7Uc

Stretching helps deal with the symptoms that are going on in the neck, but often do not address the problem that is going on in the neck.

In order to help address the problem in the neck, you need to focus on strengthening. Of the three muscle contractions, you must focus on the isometric contractions of the neck in order to help with muscle imbalances.

Here are two exercises that you can do with your clients that will help them out:

http://youtu.be/MelDe_94N-8

http://youtu.be/hIvJ4gPkLtA

Not Spending Enough Time on Stability

It is common to give clients with lower back pain exercises for core stability to help with their recovery.

More and more research is coming out that support core stability as essential for injury recovery and prevention when it comes to the upper and lower body. Yes, core stability can help with shoulder, hip, knee and ankle injuries.

This is a video that will give you a solid example of an exercise that you can do:

http://youtu.be/xBMnfPIifJM

Getting Clients to Floss at Home

Massage therapy is like the six-month cleaning you get at your dentist’s office, and doing self-massage at home is the daily flossing one does for dental health.

Something that I give my clients is self massage exercises. I will use a foam roller or a ball (tennis or softball). I will work on muscle imbalance areas in the upper body, for example the latissimus dorsi, sternocliedomastoid and pectoralis major.

I don’t have a video for the upper body, but here is one of my favorite muscle imbalance exercises for self-massage of rectus femoris (thigh):

http://youtu.be/oo4WFZhC9WM

Improving Mobility

With our clients driving and sitting so much, it is very common for there to be a decrease in movement in their mid-back (thoracic spine). This decrease in movement in one area leads to greater stress on other areas, including the shoulder and lower back.

Incorporating exercises that help increase the movement in the thoracic spine will drastically help your clients with their muscle imbalances and decrease the stress in their shoulder and lower back.

Make sure to incorporate exercises that target all 6 movements of the thoracic vertebrae and not just extension.

Here is a thoracic mobility exercise with the foam roller that I find effective:

http://youtu.be/hiPqobEzu04

Get Better Client Results

The bottom line is addressing upper body muscle imbalances will help your clients get better results.

Educating them on muscle imbalance exercises that can help speed up the process will help your clients get faster results and see the benefit of seeing you.

This will lead to happy clients, repeat clients, and more referrals.

In the end, it is a win-win for everyone.

The Last Word on Muscle Imbalances

I know you work on muscle imbalances all day long. I know you give exercises to your clients. I hope highlighting some common mistakes that I see when it comes to exercises for upper body muscle imbalances will help out.

I know if you implement the tips from above and the muscle imbalance exercises, you and your clients will see the results and benefit right away.

About the Author

Rick Kaselj is a personal trainer in Vancouver, Canada that specializes in designing exercise programs for clients recovering from injuries. Rick has trained thousands of clients and completed his Master’s of Science degree focusing on injury recovery. Rick shares with other fitness professionals and exercise enthusiasts, the muscle imbalance strategies he uses to prevent injuries, overcome injuries and bust through fitness plateaus in the Muscle Imbalances Revealed program. You can get more information about his program by visiting http://MuscleImbalanceRevealed.com.

Thai Massage From An Asian Perspective by
Shama Kern

Thai Massage has established a firm presence in two worlds that look at massage in very different ways. It originated from India’s yoga system and made its way to Thailand about 2500 years ago.

It comes out of a tradition that knew next to nothing about anatomy, science, regulations or ethics.

It did not need to know about them since it was based on a different concept, a holistic perception of the body, mind and spirit, an indivisible unit that needs to be treated as one. Instead of learning anatomy, the therapists studied energy lines. Instead of learning scientific concepts, the practitioners developed their feeling and intuition.

Eastern versus Western Thinking

If you ask any Thai Massage therapist in Thailand about scientific proof, ethics, anatomy or physiology, they will have no idea what you are even talking about. Their way of thinking is quite different. Let me give you a practical example.

I asked an excellent therapist here in Thailand about anatomy. She cannot name a single muscle or bone in the body and told me there was no need to know them since she could feel everything with her hands.

When I mentioned scientific proof, she said that she knew from experience that it worked, and that she had helped many people. She saw no need for further evidence, and neither do her clients.

This woman is sought out by many western therapists and yoga instructors for her body work and has been flown all over the world to work on clients who love her massage. However, she would have no chance to pass a western style licensing exam since she was never trained in the theoretical aspects of massage.

I live in Chiang Mai, Thailand, which has the highest concentration of Thai Massage schools on the planet. Thousands of western students come here from all over the world to study Thai Massage from teachers who would never be considered qualified professional therapists in the west, not because they are not good therapists, but because their approach to massage is totally different.

One of my own most influential Thai Massage teachers falls into that category as well. He is quite famous, highly intuitive, very effective, has shamanic abilities, and many of his thousands of students have been returning to him year after year. He would still fail a western massage exam.

In the West massage has established a framework that supports it in several ways
• Regulations to prevent abuse and to assure the quality of work by practitioners
• Ethics to establish appropriate behavior and interaction
• Training in anatomy and physiology to increase the knowledge of the therapist
• Scientific research to provide evidence for the effectiveness of massage

While this framework is certainly very useful, it is important to understand that not one of the four legs of this framework will make you a better massage therapist when it comes to actually touching people. Or to state it in another way, it is possible to be an excellent therapist without knowing anything about regulations, ethics, anatomy or science.

I can say this from my unique vantage point of living, practicing and teaching Thai massage in Thailand for many years. Thai Massage has been around for 2500 years. It was a primary method to help people with their aches, pains and diseases.

How did those ancient massage therapists work without the western framework?
• Instead of regulations, a strong cultural background set standards
• There is little need for ethics in small communities where the therapist is known by everyone and depends on his or her reputation. A second factor was that Thai Massage was traditionally practiced by monks who had high ethical standards already.
• Thai Massage places more emphasis on energy lines than on anatomy and physiology. Therapists acquired anatomical knowledge through feeling, intuition and practice.
• Instead of requiring scientific proof by third parties, Thai Massage was judged by the results that the clients were getting.

Maintaining a focus on what matters most in massage

What can we learn from this cultural comparison? There is a tendency in the western world to place more and more emphasis on the framework of massage with ever increasing amounts of regulations, ethics, theoretical training and more research. This is all fine and well as long as it does not detract us from the essence of massage which is much harder to teach than science or anatomy.

The essence of massage

From the eastern point of view, massage is much more than a way to manipulate someone’s anatomical parts or generate changes in the physical body that can be measured by science. It is a way of moving energy, of rearranging a subtle anatomy that cannot be measured by science, but that can be perceived by a trained therapist and experienced by the client.

In addition to massage techniques, it requires skills like quality of touch, intuition, sensitivity to energy, empathy, kindness, a genuine desire to help, and a love for your chosen profession that goes beyond the money that can be earned with it.

The framework is meant to support the essence of massage

There is no doubt that the framework of massage has an important place in the western world. But this framework serves little purpose in the eastern world which focuses more on the essence of massage and less on science and clinical data.

• It is possible to be an excellent therapist knowing only the essence of massage without any western style framework
• It is not possible to be an excellent therapist with only a strong framework and lots of theoretical knowledge but lacking the essence of massage

Thai Massage pilgrimage to Thailand

I see it all the time here in Chiang Mai. Well known western Thai Massage teachers with degrees, certifications, and many professional qualifications bring groups of their students to Thailand to experience and study Thai Massage with teachers who have few or none of those credentials but who understand the essence of massage.

Why do western students do this? Because there is something beautiful, something magical in experiencing Thai Massage in its original cultural setting.

There it is – unsanitized, devoid of framework, credentials or clinical data. Theoretical knowledge counts for a lot less than what you can actually do. It is beautifully reduced to its essence, and, at least here in Thailand, that is what matters most.

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Shama Kern is the founder and director of Thai Healing Massage Academy and has published 16 home study video courses including Complete Thai Massage, Thai Rocking Massage, and Heavenly Head Massage. A free introductory 6 part video course is available here.

13 Plus Myths of Massage by Lee Kalpin RMT

What is a myth? The dictionary defines the word Myth as “any invented story, idea, or concept”, or
“An unproved or false collective belief that is used to justify a social institution.”

There are numerous myths which have become part of the belief system of massage therapy.

Some of these myths are very common and I have heard about them from massage therapists from many countries. Others are local and seem to be limited to graduates of a particular school. Here are some of the most common myths

Massage Myth 1:

Lactic acid is responsible for DOMS (Delayed Onset Muscle Soreness) and massage can remove lactic acid from the muscles.

It used to be thought that lactic acid was responsible for DOMS. We now know that blood circulation removes lactic acid from muscles within a few seconds, and it is not responsible for DOMS.

Massage Myth 2:

Massage removes toxins from the muscles
The topic of “toxins” has, in the past few years, become a big one in natural healthcare. The word “toxins” is rarely used properly or defined in any way and has come to be used as a catch-all word for anything bad or unhealthy that may be in the body.

No matter what may be meant by the word “toxins”, there is no way that massage can pump or push the “bad stuff” out of muscles.

Massage Myth - Drinking Lots of Water Flushes Out Toxins...

Massage Myth 3: Drinking lots of water flushes toxins out of the system

– encourage the client to drink water after a massage
Along with the “toxin myths”, there is often the belief that massage releases toxins into the system and they must be flushed out with water.

If, in fact, the client had toxins in their system this would be a serious health crisis and the client would have to go to the Emergency Department immediately.

If toxins were in the blood stream, drinking water would not remove them: – it’s not as if the body is a pipe clogged with sludge that has to be flushed through!

It’s fine to offer your client a drink of water: just don’t encourage false beliefs about toxins.

Massage Myth 4: Massage Causes Dehydration.

Some therapists insist that their clients drink water because they believe that people become dehydrated during massage. This is very unlikely, unless the massage is done in an extremely hot room!

There are several ways in which the body can lose water: by sweating, or through excess urination or diarrhea. None of these things are likely to have happened in the massage room. A small amount of moisture is lost through evaporation when breathing.

Massage Myth 5: Massage can get rid of cellulite

This is a favorite treatment in some spas and salons. Cellulite is FAT and it would be very nice to think that we could get rid of our fat by having a massage! However, there are only two ways to get rid of fat: by exercising and by eating less

Massage Myth 6: It is contraindicated to massage a person who has cancer (or had cancer)

This myth originated in the days before it was known how cancer spread from one part of the body to another. It was thought that the cancer cells could be spread through the circulation or lymphatic system.

We now know that cancer is a malfunction of the immune system, and cells metastasize to various organs that have affinity for that particular type of cancer. Massage will not move the cells, any more than regular exercise would spread the cells through the body.

Massage Myth 7: If you massage a person who has consumed alcohol, it will increase the effects and make them more intoxicated

It is contraindicated to massage a person who is intoxicated, for various reasons.

Clients may be less aware of sensation and may tolerate a much deeper massage than they should. He or she may fall asleep and be unaware of the depth of massage. Or the person may become aggressive or unpleasant!

But a person who has consumed a small amount of alcohol (like a glass of wine) will not become more intoxicated than they were prior to the massage.

Massage Myth 8: Ischemic compression for trigger point release should be done as deep as possible:

Many people believe that trigger point compression has to be painful to be effective. The pressure needs to be deep enough to cause “ischemia” – in other words, to temporarily cut off blood supply to that area of the muscle. Once ischemia has been created, there is no point to applying more pressure.

Massage Myth 9: No more Than Three Trigger Points

Another trigger point myth I have heard is that you should never do more than 3 trigger point releases in a treatment (no reason stated for this one – it was just stated as a fact) and there is no rationale for it.

Massage Myths - Deep Tissue Massage...

Massage myth 10: Deep treatments – It must be Deep to be a Massage:

Only deep massage is therapeutically effective – as deep as possible.

Lighter massage is just for relaxation…

In fact, depth of treatment is totally subjective. What one client perceives as deep massage seems light to another person. Basically, most people think that if they feel pain, they are receiving deep massage.

Going to deep may cause micro-tearing of the soft tissue. Sharpness is a sign of tissue damage.

Massage Myth 11: High Blood Pressure – It will Cause a Heart Attack:

You cannot massage a person who has “high blood pressure”. This myth does not define how high the blood pressure reading is. What must be considered are the causes of hypertension and the general health of the client?

If a client’s hypertension is well controlled with medication, then they can receive the same massage as anyone else.
Is the person on blood pressure medication, how long have they been on the medication?

In general a blood pressure greater than 159/99 is a contra- indication to treatment.

Myth 12: Pregnancy – You should not massage pregnant women during the first trimester

This idea is impossible to enforce! Many women do not know they are pregnant until the second or third month, by which time they may have already had several massages. Massage therapy is no harder on the body than regular exercise and activities.

Massage Myth - Build Muscle with Tapotement

Massage Myth 13: You can strengthen muscles by performing tapotement

You can straighten a scoliosis by doing tapotement on the weak side and stretching on the tight side.

That is the same as saying that doing tapotement on a stomach will create six pack abs.

The truth is that only resistance type exercises will help to maintain or improve strength.

Massage Myth 13 Manual Lymph Drainage Causes Channels To Collapse

Manual Lymph Drainage causes the lymphatic channels to collapse for 20 minutes so you cannot do any other manipulations after MLD. If that were true clients would be wasting their time and money for manual lymph drainage.

more myths of massage therapy…

You should not massage the feet and ankles of a pregnant woman as it may cause her to miscarry.

You must massage toward the heart or you could damage the heart valves.

It is contraindicated to massage pitted edema

You can only do ischemic compression for one minute – after that the muscle will die, or something.

Lee Kalpin, RMT has been in practice since 1984, practicing at her home-based clinic in Holland Landing, Ontario.
She has also been involved in the academic side of the profession for many years.
Lee taught and developed curriculum for three different massage therapy schools over the years, and served in administrative positions as Dean and Academic Coordinator.

Lee presently adds variety to her clinical work by serving as a Peer Assessor and by teaching Continuing Education courses in Body Mechanics.

Sports Massage Therapist – Remo Bucci A Personal Perspective

Certified Sports Massage Therapist - Remo Bucci

As a child to early adult hood I was very active in a lot of school sports, such as volleyball, field events in track and field, football, wrestling, soccer, and archery. In College, I focused my attention to weight training until I Injured my low back due to poor technique, but it rectified itself and I continued training with some modifications. (I later found out that I developed disc herniations at multiple levels of the lumbar spine).

It wasn’t until a year and a half later when I was working for my brother’s paving company that I made the disc herniations worse and I was seriously incapacitated for almost 2 years.

It took another year to slowly return to normal active daily living thanks to therapy, nutrition, and exercise. Being injured for 3 years deconditioned me to the point where I could no longer participate in a lot of physical activity, and I feared being incapacitated again. Since then, weight training has remained my preferred fitness activity.

With being not able to participate in the sports that I enjoyed and loved, and wanted to be a Massage Therapist because of the great importance it had it my rehabilitation, I decided help athletes.
When I was a massage student at Sutherland-Chan School and Teaching Clinic, I learned of the Canadian Sport Massage Therapists Association (CSMTA) from my teachers who were involved with the association.

I thought this will be the right path for me so I took every sport outreaches and clinics that I can and attended conferences and workshops after I graduated in 1995.

It took me five years to get my requirements to perform the written and practical exams. At that time I had to accumulate 1000 hours (500 in clinic and 500 on field) before I could do both. It was all 500 hours of volunteer (usually weekend and weeknights) and my wife’s support that I did the field hours. I was one of three that were the first to go through this examination process in 2000 and it was well forth it because it made me a Certified Sport Massage Therapist.

Being certified allowed me to apply to Major Sporting Games with team Canada. My first Game was the 2003 Summer Universiade in Daegu, South Korea. I was the only Certified Sport Massage Therapist on an experienced and well organized Canadian medical team of Medical Doctors, Athletic Therapists (A.T.) and Physiotherapists (P.T.). Needless to say I was very popular, some days too popular amongst over 150 Canadian athletes. Each member of the Medical Team over-saw a particular Canadian team (i.e. women’s volleyball and men’s basketball).

The A.T.s and P.T.s would screen athletes and the ones that were injured would be referred to me. There was no flushing or relaxation massage given by me, only treatment and recovery focused massage. Amongst attending serious injuries, the A.T.s and P.T.s gave flushing massage so that I would not be burnt out.

I worked 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. with several meal and relaxation breaks for twelve days.

After about the seventh day of the games the treatments tapered off as certain sports were finished. I averaged about sixteen athletes a day during the busy days of the games. One day I treated twenty two athletes.

I was forewarned about the gruelling schedule by other Certified Sport Massage Therapists, so I trained for two months prior to leaving. I did Pilates and weight lifting, massage therapy, active release therapy, osteopathy and chiropractic therapy. It paid off because my body was starting to feel only a little sore near the end of the games.

Daegu became my stepping stone to other Major Games because now other therapists knew me and validated my work and professionalism. I was accepted to go to my next Major Game which was the 2004 Summer Paralympic Games in Athens Greece. I was assigned to the Core Medical Team but just before I went I was told most of my time would be spent with the Athletics Team (Track and Field) because it was a very large team that needed multiple therapists.

My clinic time was divided between the Paralympic village for the first eight/nine days (from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.) and the athletics warm-up track (from 7 a.m. to 10/11p.m.) for the rest of the time. During the first two days in clinic I learned to modify my techniques, especially with spinal cord injuries, such as lighter pressure and slower speed for non-innervated tissue to prevent spastic reflexes.

They were long hours at the track but it was worth it. Two other therapists and I stayed until 10 to 11 p.m. because Canadian athletes were in the finals and winning medals. The finals, medal ceremony, and media coverage all took place before they could come to get treatment.

The medical team consisted of three doctors and fourteen therapists including three Massage Therapists. The medical team complimented each other, and egos were checked at the door. It was a true multi disciplinary approach for the common goal of having the athletes compete as injury free as possible.

The Head Doctor of the Paralympic Games saw how hard working and professional I was, and how I got along with the team that in 2005 she asked me to go to Espoo, Finland for the European Paralympic Track and Field Championships. An A.T. and myself treated out of our room (which is typical if it is not a Major Game) if were not on the track.

With being involved in 2 Major Games it led me to be accepted to the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy. It was my first winter sport and during the course of the games my schedule for treating athletes was humane. My average day was treating between five to eight athletes that I was assigned to (figure skating, snow boarding, and free style skiing) ranging from half hour to an hour sessions.

Prior to me going to the Olympics I had a chance to take my wife and my oldest daughter on a tour of Italy which was amazing because my heritage is Italian. It was great to show off my parent’s country to my family.

I took time off from applying to Major Games after Italy because it was getting to expensive to be a volunteer. Therapists get their transportation, meals, accommodations, and clothing paid for but they don’t get paid for their services even at the Olympic level. I had to focus on supporting my family.

I went back into the sporting world at the Canadian National Track and Field Championships in 2009 where a coach that I knew saw me and recommended me to the new head coach to be part of a new Integrated Support Team for the Paralympic Athletics Team. I was brought out to the U.S National Paralympic Championships so that the coaching staff could observe my skills. Once I was hired they offered me an honorarium that was well acceptable.

I have been with Athletics Canada since then going to a second U.S. National Paralympic and Canadian Track and Field Championships, Development and Spring Training camp, World Paralympic Track and Field in New Zealand, and Para Pan-American Games in Mexico. It was a long 14 year road of family, career, and financial sacrifice to finally receive an income for what I love to do.

Also in 2009, I gave back to the CSMTA by being part of the process of reorganizing the requirements of how candidates in the association can have more opportunity to accumulate their hours and stream line the written and practical exams. Later on that year I became Chair of Certification and Examination.

Established in 1987, the CSMTA is a non-profit organization that seeks to serve the Canadian athletic community at all levels, and educate its members, athletes, coaches, parents, and the public about the importance of sport massage therapy. The association is a certifying body in Canada that provides leadership in the specialty of sport massage and education by establishing professional standards and qualifications for Massage Therapists.

The Canadian Olympic Committee recognizes the CSMTA as being a member of the expert group along side Athletic Therapist, Sport Physiotherapist, Sport Chiropractor, Sport Medical Doctors, and Exercise Physiologist. With the recognition, it allows the CSMTA to make a short list of Massage Therapists to be picked for the Canadian Core Medical teams and Canadian teams at Major Games.

It was through this association that I was able to get a foothold on to an amazing sporting career even though I was not able to be an active person in sports due to my injury. I became educated and formed bonds with like minded therapists that were driven to provide the best possible care from grass roots (local, community level) athletes to high performance athletes because of the CSMTA.

Each Major Game was a wonderful, fulfilling, life altering, adventurous, and hard working professional experience that has shaped the way I treat and teach.

It gave me a way to visit countries that I couldn’t on my own. It made me part of sport teams that formed bonds between athletes and other therapists for an optimistic common goal that you can’t normally get by working in a clinic. It could not have been possible at all without the immense support of my wife with whom I’m indebted to.

Remo Bucci with Jeffry Buttle

Remo Bucci R.M.T., S.M.T. (c) is a senior instructor at Bryan College (formally Elmcrest College) in Toronto
He Treats at Club Physio Plus (inside the Ontario Racquet Club) in Mississauga.
http://www.clubphysioplus.com
You can contact Remo at [email protected]
Canadian Sport Massage Therapists Association at csmta.ca