Muscle and Joint Pain – Injuries & Treatment

Most of my clients who come to see me have some sort of muscle or joint pain which is common due to our hectic lives, work, stress, posture, sport etc. This article covers the types of injuries that can be treated with Sports & Remedial massage. As part of the treatments I offer I often use a Scenar device which is considered the most technically advanced pain relief device in existence – Please see my article on Scenar Treatment.

Background
Muscle and joint pain is very common and as we age we all get more aches and pains. We should not just assume that it’s just old age or arthritis pain etc and often these aches and pains can fairly easily be rectified. Some of my clients have been delighted when I have discovered they have a muscle imbalance or restricted fascia that is causing their joint pain rather than arthritis or a serious joint issue.

I have many types of client some have sports related injuries, other posture or stress, others from work or hobby related etc. Some instances there is a direct known injury cause and for others it is often a latent problem that builds up and can be some while before they noticed that ache and pain!

The body often does gives faint signals that most of us don’t notice or ignore. Only when the body cannot deal with it any longer the body gives out the pain signal and then we take notice! Often we sometimes subconsciously calm the body’s signals down eg we rub the area, put on pain relieving cream and rest the area etc. but often we don’t actually have it looked at until we get further more extreme signals. The problem with this scenario is that the longer we leave it the worse it normally gets, affecting other areas and muscle groups and taking longer to heal.

Injuries
The many types of injuries I have treated include these listed below (this is not an exhaustive list) :-

Note:
Some clients have come to see me with various conditions after being diagnosed by the GP, which I have found to be inaccurate. A recent example was plantar fasciitis, which is a painful condition of the foot that is difficult and painful to treat as the area is so tender. After assessing my client I focused my treatment on his peroneus muscles in his leg and after 3 treatments he was literally jumping for joy as he thought his condition and pain was chronic and long term, affecting his work. I am certainly not as educated or as qualified as a GP but I do know my muscles!

I am honest with my clients if I think I cannot help them, either from an initial phone call or by the first or second session, which will establish if the treatments are starting to be effective. After the first treatment sometimes you may feel worse, being slightly tender or sore for a couple of days afterwards as your muscles recover and the body is also adjusting itself. After this you should feel more flexible with less pain.

The effectiveness of the treatment is not only down to the treatment but also the following factors:

My treatments will often inevitably involve some discomfort and low levels of pain while working into deeper tissues. I listen though my hands when working through layers of tissue as to gain the body’s acceptance to work deeper. I will also communicate throughout the session to ensure any work is within manageable pain levels. Some of my clients describe their pain during a massage as “sweet” or “feels like healing pain” and “like a good bear scratch”!!

Treatments
I use the following techniques:

In Summary…
Most people will suffer pain from time to time in their lives whether from injuries, work, posture etc. Some pain we may have to learn to live with but there are many therapies out there that can help. I have helped many people in the past, please see some of my testimonials. If I cannot help you with your pain relief within your muscles or joints I can give you advice on what other therapies may be able to help your situation.