Optimum Health Center

Styles of Massage and Bodywork

Rehabilitative Bodywork - Rehabilitative bodywork addresses specific concerns with a wide array of specialized techniques. Many therapeutic modalities exists, each using different techniques targeting particular types of problems or body systems. Utilizing advanced modalities to address specific body concerns to clear the body of short or long term problems or troubled areas.

​

Pain Management Styled Bodywork - This may use a combination of techniques not limited to structural integration, neuromuscular therapy, myofascial release, trigger point therapy, or cross fiber manipulation, along with the rehabilitative styles of manual therapy and oriental bodywork, to eliminate the dysfunction that is causing the pain syndrome. This clears the muscular issue to restore proper function of the muscular and skeletal systems to clear pathology that causes the pain.

 

Sports Massage - This is designed to increase athletic performance and to deal with the effects of repetitive muscle use, whether your running, performing manual labor, or sitting and typing through the day. All of these can develop into contracted muscles, fatigue, strain, then producing injuries. The sports massage focuses on the particular muscles involved with these habitual activities. As part of athletic training, massage increases the athletic performance by increasing circulation, flexibility, and reducing the chance of injury.

 

Styles of Rehabilitative Manual Therapy:

 

Neuromuscular Therapy - NMT is a specific massage technique that assists and rehabilitates recovery from long or short term pain and physical restrictions. It enhances the bodies function of the joints and the connections between the bones, muscles, and movement of the body, through rebalancing the bodies structure and function. NMT is great for back pain, shoulder issues, carpal tunnel, restless leg syndrome, and many other muscular and joint issues.

 

Cranial-Sacral Therapy - A gentle technique that corrects imbalances which may manifest in sensory, motor, or intellectual dysfunction. This is facilitated by specific gentle techniques designed to clear the obstructions within the nervous system, and identifying the restrictive zones in the body to allow for proper functioning. CST is extremely effective in treating headaches, neck and shoulder pain, TMJ dysfunction, chronic fatigue, eye problems, and depression and other emotional disorders.

 

Muscle Energy Technique - A direct, soft tissue approach to increase joint mobility, reduce muscle tension, increase range of motion, and correct postural alignment. It is effective in treating the spine, knees, elbows, and shoulder. This is appropriate for pediatric to geriatric, sports injuries, auto accidents, general orthopedic, respiratory and neurological patients.

 

Strain/Counterstrain Style - The purpose of this technique is used to reduce the length of the muscle, which allows the muscle memory to reset, restoring the muscles to its appropriate length. This allows for proper functioning of muscle tissue and reduction of pain.

 

Myofascial Release - This gentle and relaxing form of therapeutic treatment utilizes isolating and stretching the interconnected tissue commonly known as fascia. Utilizing specific holding techniques to stabilize the tissue while gently applying a light lateral movement and holding the tension allows the restriction to release. This promotes an increase in circulation, blood flow, and energy to move naturally through the affected area.

​

Visceral Manipulation - VM assists functional and structural imbalances throughout the body including musculoskeletal, vascular, nervous, urogenital, respiratory, digestive and lymphatic dysfunction. It evaluates and treats the dynamics of motion and suspension in relation to organs, membranes, fascia and ligaments. VM increases proprioceptive communication within the body, thereby revitalizing a person and relieving symptoms of pain, dysfunction, and poor posture.

An integrative approach to evaluation and treatment of a patient requires assessment of the structural relationships between the viscera, and their fascial or ligamentous attachments to the musculoskeletal system. Strains in the connective tissue of the viscera can result from surgical scars, adhesions, illness, posture or injury. Tension patterns form through the fascial network deep within the body, creating a cascade of effects far from their sources for which the body will have to compensate. This creates fixed, abnormal points of tension that the body must move around, and this chronic irritation gives way to functional and structural problems.

​

Neural Manipulation - Neural Manipulation examines mechanical relationships between the cranium/spine hard frame to the dura and neural elements. It provides assessment and treatment approaches to address restrictions of the dural and neural components not commonly focused on with musculoskeletal symptoms. Neural Manipulation identifies and releases local nerve restrictions while at the same time examines the effect these local fixations have on the rest of the body, and by accessing this relationship, resolves the more comprehensive (global) dysfunctional patterns.

A nerve only functions correctly when it is able to move freely within its surrounding structures. The modality of Neural Manipulation facilitates nerve conductivity and intraneural blood supply for local and systemic responsiveness. By understanding the detailed anatomy of the neural manipulation, one can clearly see the potential for pathological change when nerves are restricted.

Manual therapy, as it applies to the treatment of nerves, follows the standard principles of mobility and function. For optimal function nerves must be able to move freely within its surroundings. 

​

Energetic Balancing - Energetic Balancing allows me to bridge the gap between bodywork and energy medicine. EB integrates manual therapy and energetic techniques to relieve tension in the energetic system affecting the core level of physical dysfunction locally and throughout the body. 

Over time, our body tissues not only accumulate stress patterns of physical tension (poor ergonomics, trauma, surgery, sports injuries, car accidents, falls, etc.), but also unresolved energetic stress patterns from emotional tension (unsettled emotions, trauma, fears, phobias), mental tension (thoughts, beliefs), and consciousness. Unless released, these unresolved energetic stress patterns can alter physiology and create energetic lesions that eventually lead to dysfunction and disease.

EB releases these unresolved acute and chronic energetic stress patterns to balance the energetic system, improve physiology/function, and achieve overall health and homeostasis.  

​

​

​

 

where we heal the sick, and fix the broken