Soft Tissue Mobilization Technique
This technique is designed to address muscle and fascia restriction. It uses specifically shaped tools that match body contours with an emollient to facilitate the process. In the East it is known as Gua Sha.
The procedure is painless. It is quite similar to deep tissue massage except a tool is used to focus on reducing distortions in the fascia and areas of the muscle where there are trigger points.
Dynamic stretching is incorporated into the technique to reduce stiffness, expand range of motion and restore overall mobility.
The Problem: A Cycle of Pain
- Trauma — Chronic pain can begin with a major injury or small harmful motions repeated over time.
- Protective Reaction — To prevent further injury, the body responds with a protective measure. The nervous system sends an impulse to the muscles around the area of injury, causing them to tighten. The muscles that tighten create a network of tension sites called trigger points.
- Muscle spasm — chronically activated trigger points develop areas of low tissue oxygen and the muscle shortens. This can end in spasm.
- Chronic pain — trigger points and spasm results in chronic pain.
- Loss of motion — This constant tightening creates a loss of range of motion and pain until the protective impulses are interrupted with a combination of chiropractic and soft tissue mobilization.