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Multi-Disciplines in Massage Therapy

I began my teaching career in 1993 at the Utah College of Massage Therapy. If I had a magic wand and wanted to create a different approach to learning that centered around a more focused approach, I am sure the dark forces of mediocrity would have defeated me in my quest. I used to laugh when a student who graduated from the massage schools where I taught my craft of Rolfing and Cranial Sacral therapy, would show me their newly minted business cards adorned with a vast array of disciplines. Those massage disciplines would have been impossible to learn in even a rudimentary fashion given the amount of time that they were exposed to them. I know this might seem controversial even using the term rudimentary, but I stand my ground on the issue. The multi-discipline approach that is taught at most massage schools is taught in the hopes that a student will resonate with a particular discipline and after graduation pursue it with great fervor. Makes sense if the majority of students actually did that. I would say that most might expose themselves to a superficial level at most! Please forgive me if you don’t fall into this category.

I would change the paradigm if I were the leader of the free world of massage schools! I would expose students for a month of their 6-12 month journey to every discipline offered at the school. And then allow the student to pick one or two that they resonated with them. The teacher of course would have a great impact on their decision to study that craft. Upon their graduation, they would have a firm grasp of the two disciplines. Anatomy and kinesiology would also be mandatory and studied the entire time in conjunction with the two main approaches. Using the above mentioned course of action, I believe a massage therapist would have no trouble enrolling their clients in experiencing multi-disciplines when challenges are brought to their table that provided the best use of that discipline. Their confidence and skill levels would be sufficient when they graduated, because their knowledge of the disciplines would be relatively thorough for the present day length of massage schools. [Read more…]

Danger of Antibiotics

Becoming More Informed On Antibiotic Usage Can Be Life-Altering!

I totally support the use of antibiotics, just not in farming practices, except for the occasional emergency. But, the danger of antibiotic use exists. That being said, unless you have been living in the jungles of Papa New Guinea for the past 90 years or so, you know that the use of antibiotics has saved millions of lives! Heck, my grandfather, who I never had the pleasure of meeting, met his demise in the early 1930’s from septicemia after having an abscessed tooth pulled! The poor guy was ready to reap the rewards of a great fortune he had amassed at the ripe old age of 42 in the late 1920’s. Maybe he had bad karma or something like that, because what would have been a simple procedure today, killed the poor bastard! You are probably frighteningly aware of the lurking epidemic that will undoubtedly create a major culling of our species in the not too distant future. One needs to be aware of the dangers of antibiotics.

My job is simple really, I hope that my clients leave my office feeling better and in more control of their existence. So, I give exercises and supplement recommendations that oftentimes accelerates their journey back to the tennis courts, the roadways, the weight room, the playing fields and office chairs that are often their nemesis. I wanted to share with you some information that I believe is relevant for those of you who practice the healing arts. So, this article’s whole purpose isn’t about the value of antibiotics, but the dangers of some antibiotic usage. [Read more…]

So, You think That Deep Tissue Massage is Deep?

The world views Rolfers as the Marquis de Sade of the massage profession. It has been interesting as Rolfer, who has been a part of that community for 26 years, to observe a tug of war between those who believe the technique shouldn’t be painful and those who who think painful touch is a part of the process. Much like the martial arts tradition of hard and soft styles. Each often scoffs at the other in condescendence. Its the Peter Melchior versus Emmet Hutchins syndrome. Rolfers who have been plying the trade for awhile know exactly what I am talking about. Some love it light and some love it hard to the point of masochistically brutal. Its a strange species and a strange world I inhabit. I would have to say being a practitioner of Cranial Sacral therapy for almost 21 years in tandem with my Rolfing work, that I tend to live more in the soft style. That being said, I do bring my client/patients to their edge from time to time Rolfing them, but I believe they would say Rolfing Structural Integration is not a painful process…just a wee bit intense on occasion.

I think that if you meet hard tissue with hard force you aren’t connecting to the person and the tissue pattern that you are trying to unveil, will elude you. Minimum touch at the most effective point, which I am sure would probably correspond with an acupuncture point, sets in motion a wave of beneficial effects. Because all connective tissue is connected as we now know, much like a geodesic dome, we can effect deeper tissue with a lighter focused touch. Banging away at hard connective tissue will ultimately cause problems to the practitioner and probably not achieve the desired result. I like to “push” wait for a response, potentially push a wee bit harder, but then aim the tool in a slightly different direction and listen carefully for the response. Sometimes I will softly touch the resistant tissue and wait, oftentimes the tissue responds to my passive attitude and relaxes. The body has the innate wisdom and knows way more what it needs then a hard external force being applied by a practitioner of the massage genre. Our touch only awakens the homeostatic response which their body is capable of mustering at that moment. [Read more…]

Change Your Life, Learn To Ride The Cranial Sacral Wave

Many of you in your journey of healing have heard about the discipline of Cranial Sacral Therapy. Some of you may have even had a rudimentary exposure in your massage school training. Let’s talk a bit about about the origins of this splendid work. Cranial Osteopathy was first introduced by William Garner Sutherland D.O. (1873-1954) over a century ago. His journey began when he noticed that the cranial sutures of the temporal bones were “beveled like the gills of a fish” indicating the ability to allow for expanding and contracting movements with the parietal bones. His conversations about this discovery with his mentor, Dr. Andrew Stills, the founder of the first osteopathic school in America, began the odyssey that we now call craniosacral therapy. Both men believed the system was “designed to breath”. He called this breathing movement, the primary respiratory mechanism. The idea that the bones of the skull could move, was contrary to contemporary anatomical belief then, as it is today by some scientists and medical practitioners. Dr. Sutherland was a deeply spiritual man and later described the origin of the wave inherent in the cranial sacral system, the “Breath of Life”, from the Book of Genesis 2:7. This was an acknowledgement of the vital force as a fundamental aspect of osteopathic philosophy.

The cranial system is a semi-closed, hydraulic system comprised of the spine, the skull, its cranial sutures, diaphragms, fascia of the body and the cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) which flows through the spinal cord and then exists the foramina of the vertebrae and into the interstitial fluid. By coming into contact and awareness in a reflective manner, the therapist is able to create a homeostatic response within their client’s nervous systems. [Read more…]

Why So Many Hip Replacements?

I have been asked recently in one of my massage continuing education classes if I have many clients who have had a hip replacement. I answered plenty, and some with both hips replaced. I marvel at our trauma medicine and what it has been able to accomplish in the past 100 years!

The illiofemoral joint is a deeply cupped ball and socket joint with very strong muscles and ligaments attached to it. Consequently, many of the impacts and pulls that are placed upon can create pain and dysfunction Dr. Ida Rolf, the founder of Structural Integration commonly known as Rolfing, believed that the hip joint was the greatest determining factor in postural symmetry.

For any massage therapist who is pursuing insights in the hip and lower back pain in a massage continuing equation courses, they should explore methodologies and approaches that bring balance into the joint because of the long term wear and tear that usually leads to the necessity of a replacement. Often times when I ask my clients if there was anything that precipitated their painful condition that necessitated the surgery, there was no determining factor that could be addressed that could be considered responsible for the replacement…only conjecture. So, its extremely important for the therapist to begin to educate their clients to the necessity of focused work in the hip as a preventative measure. [Read more…]