Transcript Massage Therapy

Massage Therapy
Alzona, Lauren Joshua A.
History of Massage
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Natural reaction to when the body hurts is to rub it
Dates back to at least the ancient Olympics
In Europe in the Middle Ages, the Church of Rome &
its religious teachings discouraged massage as a
healing practice
Massage is derived from 2 sources
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Arabic verb mass “to touch”
Greek word massein “to knead”
Egyptians, Romans, Japanese, Persians, & Chinese
were known to practice massage therapy
History of Massage
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Sweden – early 19th century, Peter Ling (acknowledged
founder of curative gymnastics) – appears to be founder of
modern day massage techniques, incorporated with
French massage techniques
Techniques have changed dramatically in the past 50
years
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Based on research by Albert Hoffa (1859-1907), James
Mennell 1880-1957), & Gertrude Beard (1887-1971).
Scientific basis to massage was added
Late 1980’s, Amer. Massage Therapy Association was
organized (1992 – Nat’l Cert. Exam. For Therapeutic
Massage & Bodywork was formed)
What is Massage Therapy?
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Mechanical modality
Used to manipulate the body’s tissue
Effective in promoting local & systemic relaxation,
increasing local b. flow, breaking down adhesions, &
encouraging venous return
Act of rubbing, kneading, or stroking the superficial
parts of the body with the hand or an instrument for
the purpose of modifying nutrition, restoring power
of movement or breaking up adhesions
Time-consuming
Treatment Considerations &
Guidelines
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Need to know underlying pathology
Need to know basic massage principles (must have
manual dexterity, coordination, & concentration). Must
also exhibit patience & courteousness.
Hands must be clean, warm, dry & soft. Nails must be
short and smooth. Hands should be warm.
Avoid constant hyperextension or hyperflexion of any
joints which may lead to hypermobility.
Must obtain correct positioning that will allow for
relaxation, prevent fatigue & permit free movement of
arms, hands, & body.
Treatment Considerations &
Guidelines
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Must obtain good posture to prevent fatigue &
backache.
Weight should be evenly distributed on both
feet.
You must be able to fit your hands to the
contour of the area being treated.
A good position is required to allow for correct
application of pressure and rhythmic strokes
during the procedure.
Points for Consideration
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Pressure regulation should be determined by
the type & amount of tissue present. Also,
pressure is governed by the condition & which
tissues are affected.
Each stroke must have equal pressure & time
(rhythm present).
Duration depends on pathology, size of area,
speed of motion, age, size, & condition of
athlete. Also, massage may not be warranted
on a daily basis (e.g. friction massage).
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Some areas may take 30 minutes.
Points for Consideration
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If swelling is present in an extremity, treatment
should begin proximally.
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“Uncorking the bottle”, “uncorking effect”
Massage should never be painful, except
possibly for friction massage. It should not
cause ecchymosis.
Direction of forces should be applied in the
direction of the muscle fibers.
Each session should begin & end with
effleurage.
Points for Consideration
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Make sure the patient is warm and in a comfortable,
relaxed position. Also, make sure the patient is
properly draped.
The body part may be elevated if necessary.
Massage should begin with superficial stroking.
Each stroke should start at the joint or just below the
joint (unless contraindicated) and finish above the
joint so that strokes overlap.
Pressure should be in line with venous flow.
Bony prominences & painful joints should be avoided
if possible.
Massage Media
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Used to decrease friction between the
patient’s skin and the clinician’s hand
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Lotions, peanut oil, powder, analgesic
balms
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Massage can be given without any medium
being used
More medium should be used on
hairy areas
During petrissage – lubricants
interfere with the kneading & lifting
During friction massage –
lubricants may interfere with
the certain results you want to
obtain
Massage Strokes
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Effleurage
Petrissage
Friction (circular, transverse)
Tapotement
Vibration
Myofascial release techniques
Various other forms – some may combine
strokes
Mechanical Effects
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Techniques that stretch a muscle, elongate
fascia, or mobilize soft-tissue adhesions or
restrictions are all mechanical techniques
Mechanical effects are always accompanied by
some reflex effects
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As mechanical stimulus becomes more effective,
reflex stimulus becomes less effective
Muscle – massage is done either for
mechanical stretching or to relieve pain
associated with trigger points
Mechanical Effects
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Skin – massage has been shown to increase
skin temperature, increase sweating &
decrease resistance to electrical current
It has been shown to toughen yet soften the
skin
Acts directly on the surface of the skin to
remove dead cells
Stretches & breaks down fibrous tissue
Effleurage
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Stroking of the skin
Performed with palm of hand
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Performed with fingertips
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Stimulates sensory nerves
Superficial, rhythmic stroking:
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Stimulates deep tissues
Contours the body or relates to direction of
underlying muscles
Deep stroking:
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Follows course of veins & lymph vessels
Effleurage
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May be performed slowly for relaxation or
rapidly to encourage blood flow & stimulate
the tissues
Performed in rhythmic manner
One hand should always be in contact w/ skin
Light effleurage is performed at beginning &
end of massage or may be used between
petrissage strokes
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At beginning – relaxes patient & indicates area to
be treated
At end – calms down any irritated areas
Petrissage
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Lifting & kneading of skin,
subcutaneous tissue, & muscles
Performed with fingers or hand
Skin is gently lifted between
thumb & fingers or fingers &
palm & gently rolled & kneaded
in the hand
Often performed without lotion
Frees adhesions by stretching &
separating muscle fiber, fascia,
& scar tissue while assisting
with venous return & milking
out waste products
Friction
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Goal is to mobilize muscle & separate adhesions
that restrict movement & cause pain
Facilitates local blood profusion
Not necessarily a “pleasing” treatment
Circular:
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Applied with thumbs working in circular motion
Effective in treating muscle spasm & trigger pts.
Friction
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Transverse:
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Applied with thumbs or fingertips stroking the
tissue from opposite directions
Can use elbow, end of rolling pin, etc. for larger
areas
Reaches deep tissues
Begin lightly and then move to firmer strokes
Muscle should be placed in relaxed position
Should be avoided in acute conditions
Effective in tendonitis or other joint adhesions
Tapotement
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Gentle tapping or pounding of the skin
Most common form uses ulnar side of wrist to
contact skin “karate chop”
Wrist & fingers are usually limp, alternate
method “cups” the hand
Promotes relaxation & densitization of irritated
nerve endings
Vibration
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Rapid shaking of the tissues
Soothes peripheral nerves
A mechanical device can be used
Acupressure
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Acupressure – based on Chinese art of Acupuncture
The Chinese make no distinction between arteries,
veins, or nerves when explaining function of the body.
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Concentrate on the system of forces that regulate all bodily
functions.
Qi (pronounced “che” exists in everyone & controls all
aspects of life)
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Qi is governed by two opposing forces, Yang (positive) &
Yin (negative) forces. Disease results from some imbalance
between these two forces.
Yin & Yang pass flow through passageways/lines in the body
called “jing” (Chinese) or “meridians” (West).
Acupressure
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12 meridians in the body
named according to the part
of the body with which they
are associated. The
meridians on one side of the
body are duplicated on the
other side; however, two
additional meridians exist
that can’t be paired.
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*not paired
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Lung (L)
Large Intestine (LI)
Stomach (ST)
Spleen (SP)
Heart (H)
Small Intestine (SI)
Urinary bladder (UB)
Kidney (K)
Pericardium (P)
Triple warmet (TW)
Gall bladder (GB)
Liver (LIV)
Governing vessel (VB)*
Conception vessel (CV)*
Acupressure
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Along the meridians lie the acupuncture points
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Whenever there is pain or illness, certain points on
the surface of the body become tender
When pain is eliminated, these tender spots
disappear
According to acupuncture theory, stimulation of
specific points through needling can reduce
pain in areas associated with a particular point
Thousands of points have been identified
Acupressure
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Electrical resistance of the skin at certain
points corresponding to the acupuncture points
is lower than that of surrounding skin,
especially when a disease state is present.
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Russian research has shown evidence of skin
temperature difference at these points.
Myofascial Trigger Points
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Trigger points are the counterpart of
acupuncture points
May be found in muscle, tendons, myofascia,
ligaments & capsules surrounding joints, in
periosteum, & in the skin
May activate & become painful due to trauma
Stimulation of these points have resulted in
pain relief
Rolfing
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May also see it is “structural integration”
Goal - to balance the body within a
gravitational field through a technique
involving manual soft-tissue manipulation
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Improve balance, posture, flexibility, movement
efficiency
Basic principle of treatment is - if balanced
movement is essential at a particular joint, yet
nearby tissue is restrained, both the tissue & the
joint will relocate to a position that accomplishes a
more appropriate equilibrium.
Rolfing
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Standardized approach that is administered without
regard to symptoms or pathologies
Technique involves 10 hour-long sessions, each
emphasizing some aspect of posture
10 sessions include:
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Respiration, balance under the body (legs/feet), sagittal
plane balance (lateral line from front to back), balance left
to right (base of body to midline), pelvic balance (rectus
abdominis & psoas), weight transfer from head to feet –
sacrum, relationship of head to rest of body, upper ½ of
body to lower ½ of body relationship, balance throughout
the system
Additional “tune-up” sessions may be required
Integrates structural with psychological approach