All names are changed to protect privacy.
Whiplash
- Neck
- Head
- Whiplash
- Headache
- Neck Pain
Kathy couldn’t figure out the cause of her
frequent neck pain and headaches. When we went into her history during her intake assessment, she revealed that 6 years ago she was
rear-ended in a motor vehicle accident.
Kathy’s doctor said she had
whiplash and sent her for
physical therapy, but she never followed through with the suggestions of her therapist. Now she
couldn’t fully turn her head nor could she move it very far
forward or backward without
pain. Her
regular headaches were putting a damper on her life. I asked Kathy to try four sessions of my Extensive Neck Protocol. She did, and after just
one session she noticed a
huge difference in her flexibility. Her
headaches also lessened. With further sessions of the focused type of
therapy for her neck coupled with the
gentle muscular energy techniques I taught her for self-care at home, by the third session Kathy got
full relief and felt like a new person.
Man Has Insomnia and Spinal Pain
- Spine
- Back
- Ankylosing Spondylitis
- Insomnia
Austin had
insomnia nightly accompanied by spinal pain. His doctor diagnosed
Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS).
I didn’t use my
ordinary spinal protocol on Austin as it isn’t suited to his condition of
Ankylosing Spondylitis. But I did another kind of muscular therapy. When I called him 2 days later, I was delighted to hear he was
nearly pain free and
finally sleeping. Massage therapy doesn’t eliminate
Ankylosing Spondylitis, but it certainly brings much needed temporary
relief and a good night’s
sleep.
Shoulder Pain and Can’t Zip Dress
- Shoulders
- Restricted movement
Pat came to me with
shoulder pain unable to reach her arm back to zip her dress. After one session with my Rotator Cuff Protocol, Pat returned to say not only did her
shoulder pain subside, but that she could she zip her dress. To her amazement she was
full of energy. She asked if that was related to the treatment. I explained that the
shoulder pain she had was
draining her energy.
Drinking From Glass Causes Arm Pain of Tennis Elbow (Lateral Epicondylitis)
- Arm
- Tennis elbow
Frances had classic symptoms of
Tennis Elbow (Lateral Epicondylitis). She had
severe pain in her arm near her
elbow every time she went through the motion of drinking from a glass or bottle. It was hard to lift a half gallon of milk out of her refrigerator due to
the pain. After just one session of my Arm Protocol with accompanying ice applications and stretches done at home, the severity of Frances’
arm pain diminished greatly.
Piriformis Syndrome, Sciatica Symptoms Cause Pain in Butt and Leg
- Butt
- Leg
- Piriformis syndrome
- Sciatica
Piriformis Syndrome, which causes
sciatica symptoms, was the diagnosis from Kim’s doctor. Sometimes Kim’s
terrible pain went all the way to her foot. After diagnostic tests, her doctor said she had
tight gluteal muscles pinching her
sciatic nerve and prescribed ineffective muscle relaxers. After three sessions of my Hip/Gluteal Protocol and stretching regimen, Kim is
out of that awful pain.
Plantar Fasciitis and Foot Pain
- Feet
- Plantar fasciitis
Linda had the foot pain of Plantar Faciitis (PF). As a hairdresser she was
on her feet all day. The
bottoms of her feet were painful, especially first thing in the
morning. Some days she found her self hobbling. Her doctor said she had
Plantar Fasciitis. When Linda came to see me I found she had tight calves. After coming for my Leg Protocol four times,
icing regularly and following
stretching instructions, Linda is well on the
road to recovery.
Lower Back Pain on One Side
- Back
- Imbalance
George made an appointment with me for
low back pain on his right side. During our discussion in the evaluation process, he informed me that he
sits on his wallet, which he kept in his right back pocket. This uneven sitting position caused an
imbalance of a muscle in that area for such prolonged periods of time that it became stuck in contraction. This proved to be the cause of George’s pain. These symptoms can also be caused by sitting on an
uneven chair, habitually
leaning to one side or
carrying heavy things on the opposite side. George’s issues were treated with the Spine & Back advanced bodywork protocol.
Upper Back and Shoulder Pain
- Neck
- Back
- Incorrect head posture
Mary came to see me with neck and
upper back pain between her shoulder blades. She was a secretary by profession and spent long hours at her
computer. Her postural habits became evident during my physical evaluation. Her
head was forward and her
shoulders rounded. This was key to Mary’s pain. After my neck and upper back protocol she said she felt 70% better.
Musician’s Hand and Arm Massage Therapy
- Arm
- Hand
- Musician
Suzanne is a
musician who had never been to a medical massage therapist. She worried about
tightness and stiffness in her arms and hands. As a
keyboardist, she played both
piano and
organ. Her doctor suggested she
stop playing keyboards from four to six weeks to give her arms and hands a rest.
This was
unacceptable to Suzanne. Her finances couldn’t withstand putting her career on hold. During her desperate search for help, she saw an ad for advanced
medical massage for professional musicians with arm and hand problems. After contacting and speaking with the medical massage therapist, Suzanne felt reassured and decided to give the medical massage treatment a go. Thoughts about the long Beethoven piece she was scheduled to play the following week were daunting, since
her arms and hands lacked their normal strength and flexibility.
When Suzanne arrived for her arms and hands massage, the massage therapist evaluated her arms and hands and educated her about her condition. The massage therapist proceeded to work specific muscles and tendons of Suzanne’s arms and hands.
After the session, her arms and hands seemed to come to life. With a sigh of relief, Suzanne played her Beethoven piece later that week in front of a
live audience with arms and hands that “
felt loose and flexible like those of a 10-year-old!”
Medical Massage for Shoulder Pain, Neck Pain, and Headaches
- Neck
- Shoulders
- Headache
Nothing the medical doctor in Nashua NH did could help John’s
neck pain and shoulder pain, which were causing
headaches. John had assumed this was a medical condition. He looked into alternative treatments in Nashua such as massage therapy to ease his pain. He soon found
massage therapy places in Nashua NH that treated headaches. The relaxation massage he got in Nashua massage therapy places was good, but it didn’t help his
neck pain, shoulder pain or his headache. John came to me for deep tissue and medical massage, which were better than relaxation massage. He found this kind of therapeutic massage therapy eliminated his upper body pains, including his
headaches.
Connecting Mind to Body to Cure a Headache
- Shoulder
- Neck
- Headache
- Computer User
Ever since I became a
massage therapist who deals with people’s pain, I became interested in the theory of
mind-body as a unit. An amputee swears he can “feel” his missing leg (phantom pain). A controlled study finds that a placebo group
spontaneously healed without medication. A “voodoo” victim dies not from the voodoo curse of cancer, but from the heart attack caused by the belief he has voodoo-induced cancer.
Our minds our so powerful they can create limbs, heal us without medicine, and kill us based on a belief.
Massage therapy is a profession where understanding these dynamics can lead to
alleviating the causes of pain. Mary came to my office with
headaches. She had been to two medical doctors.
Nothing was wrong — that they could find. X-rays and MRI’s proved it. One doctor gave her
oxycontin — a highly addictive narcotic — for her non-existent problem. The first thing I noticed about Mary was that her
right shoulder was higher than her left. Mary had been unaware of the difference. Her doctors hadn’t mentioned it. Sitting incorrectly at a computer can
cause head and neck problems. Mary’s headaches began, she told me, after she started her new job. We assessed the height of her
chair, desk and computer. These were all correct for her height. Was the job
stressful? The required skills, she said, were well within her range. So what was different?
Well, at her old job, Mary said, her
boss trusted her to get the job done.
But this new boss didn’t seem to trust her at all. The boss was always
hovering over her shoulder, telling her how to do the simplest of tasks. Mary felt
angry and untrusted. Mary was used to being trusted. At her old job when she did a good job her boss told her. Her boss never told her how to do her job. But now, whenever Mary even thought of her boss, her body went into
defensive armor-mode. Her shoulders moved up toward her ears. Her back muscles tightened. Her headaches began.
Enjoy the Gift of Pain Relief
As a licensed massage therapist (in New Hampshire), my role is
to help relieve pain. As a student of the
mind-body connection, I also like to help discover the causes of the pain.
Now that Mary is aware of her body’s reaction to her boss, she can be more conscious about keeping her shoulders out of her ears.
Combined with neuromuscular and trigger point massage therapy, Mary’s mindfulness of her body’s reactions has
kept her headaches away now for many months.
Massage therapy can be effective without examining the mind-body connection. It’s just more effective with it.
Eliminating the pain’s cause is the most powerful gift you can give yourself.
