About Touch

Hornet’s nest

Thu, 29 Oct 2009 23:31:40 +0000

This last summer a client was training for a marathon. He came to see me for a massage, he had hip and low back pain and worried that this would prevent him from finishing the race. After a couple of massage sessions and by using some self-massage at home he was able to run and finish the marathon.

The self massage I taught him was for an area on the side of the thigh, the hornet’s nest. It’s a perfect name because a number of trigger points can form here and they feel very sharp and stingy, perhaps even angry like a disturbed hornet’s nest. They typically refer pain and discomfort into the thigh, hip, and sometimes low back. The good news is it’s an easy area to massage with the aid of a bouncy ball.

Start by standing next to a wall and place the bouncy ball between the wall and the side of your upper thigh (about the area where your hand touches when standing normally). You can lean into the wall to use more pressure or back off to use less pressure. Then using your knees move the ball around to find the hornets (trigger points). When you find a tender spot you can hold the ball there, breathe, and the soreness should decrease in about 12 seconds. (If not you are using too much pressure.) Another method is to roll over the sore spot slowly, go back and roll slowly over it again.

My sister used this self massage technique with great success, and you can read about her experience here.

Barefoot Running

Tue, 13 Oct 2009 07:20:15 +0000

I love doing yoga. I love the way it prompts me to move my body in ways I don’t during the course of my normal day. I love the awareness of tension and restrictions I had not noticed before. I love that I can do it with minimal and equipment. I was in disbelief when I saw an add for yoga shoes. Are they really necessary? Would I loose some of the foot strengthening benefits by using them? And well it just seemed strange to wear shoes during a yoga class.

I just read an article that suggests runners may also benefit by being shoeless. Interesting theory and practical advice if you want to try it out.

http://www.wired.com/wiredscience/2009/07/barefoot/

Therapeutic Hair Pulling

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 20:33:30 +0000

We’ve all heard of people saying they’re so stressed they want to pull their hair out. Well this self massage tip will tap into that urge, however you hair will stay intact and you will actually reduce your stress. I recommend this to clients who have tension headaches and migraines, and will often have them do it between massage sessions so the work

First the logic and anatomy behind my suggestion. The skull and muscles on head are covered by a layer of what is called fascia. The fascia is a layer that surrounds muscles, bones, organs and nerves and helps support and protect the body. The fascia can be soft and pliable or hard and dense, when it’s the latter this can compress on the nerves causing discomfort and also affect the muscles below.

Start by grabbing a handful of hair, too small a handful will make this technique painful so get a good size handful. Start by gently pulling the hair away from your head. You want to pull just enough to feel some soreness or a burning sensation but not so much that your are tensing up somewhere else as a result! Take deep breaths and when the soreness decreases move on to another section of hair, continuing until all the hair has been pulled. When this can be done comfortably you can grab the hair and turn it in a clockwise direction while gently pulling it away from the skull. The final step is to do it counterclockwise.

It’s not necessary to do all these steps at once, wait until just pulling is not painful and then move on to twisting. Spend a few minutes each day, go slowly and you will be amazed at the results.

You name it, and exercise helps it

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 23:33:35 +0000

“The single thing that comes close to a magic bullet, in terms of its strong and universal benefits, is exercise,” Frank Hu, epidemiologist at the Harvard School of Public Health, said in the Harvard Magazine.

I have written often about the protective roles of exercise. It can lower the risk of heart attack, stroke, hypertension, diabetes, obesity, depression, dementia, osteoporosis, gallstones, diverticulitis, falls, erectile dysfunction, peripheral vascular disease and 12 kinds of cancer.

But what if you already have one of these conditions? Or an ailment like rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, congestive heart failure or osteoarthritis? How can you exercise if you’re always tired or in pain or have trouble breathing? Can exercise really help?

You bet it can. Marilyn Moffat, a professor of physical therapy at New York University and co-author with Carole B. Lewis of “Age-Defying Fitness” (Peachtree, 2006), conducts workshops for physical therapists around the country and abroad, demonstrating how people with chronic health problems can improve their health and quality of life by learning how to exercise safely.

The data show that regular moderate exercise increases your ability to battle the effects of disease,” Dr. Moffat said in an interview. “It has a positive effect on both physical and mental well-being. The goal is to do as much physical activity as your body lets you do, and rest when you need to rest.”

This is an excerpt from an article in the New York Times that shows how even gentle and moderate exercise can increase overall health and well-being, also if we have chronic conditions. (You may have to register with NY Times to read the full article.)

Welcome to my blog!

Thu, 28 Aug 2008 23:29:20 +0000

This blog will focus on simple and effective approaches to self-care.

Stay tuned for the first entry in September!

Jennifer