Massage therapy to help you achieve your goals

Massage feels good. If you’ve ever enjoyed a massage after you’ve exhausted yourself running, working out at the gym or simply working in the garden, you know how much better your muscles work afterwards. Athletes, performers, office workers and countless clients at Essex Physiotherapy have felt the benefits of my massage, but how many people know how a massage actually works?

Massage increases blood flow to muscles, speeding up the arrival of the nutrients they need to function as they should, while disposing of metabolic waste that can cause pain and slow recovery. If you don’t move around much during the day then blood flow is naturally reduced, so massage is a great way of getting your circulation pumping again.

 Sitting at a desk all day, or any repetitive use in a stationary position such as gaming or playing an instrument, can cause muscle fibres to become stuck together, known as an adhesion. These adhesions restrict movement and if untreated can lead to whole muscles over-firing and eventually becoming  painful. A well-targetted massage can work on the problem tissue, lengthening fibres and breaking down  adhesions until a normal range of movement can be restored.

Imagine your muscles as a rope and pulley system across your skeleton. Usually everything moves smoothly, but if one of the ropes is too short or too weak it could become overloaded and stretch or even snap. The same can happen in your body, if muscles are not moving properly, leaving you vulnerable to injury. Massage isn’t just for treating injured tissue but for preventing injury as well by keeping all your ‘ropes’ moving fluidly and at the right strength and length.

If you’re a dedicated athlete, massage can be essential for speeding up recovery from muscle fatigue, letting you get back to your sport quicker without resorting to painkillers or anti-inflammatories.

During a massage I use massage wax or oil sparingly so I can move over your skin smoothly but still maintain a good contact.  I examine the area where you feel your symptoms to identify tissues that are stiff but also assess areas which could feed into the problem.

If I am treating specific issues, I may concentrate on only one part of the body per treatment.  I use deep tissue massage and a variety of techniques which may involve moving the client’s position in order to stretch, contract or access muscles that can only be reached from certain angles.

A neuromuscular technique popular with my clients is trigger point release, where I find specific points of discomfort and use graded compression to achieve deep muscle release underneath. This helps to loosen tight muscles, restore circulation and reduce specific areas of nerve over-excitation.

For other clients a more general massage is indicated. I not only look at the muscle or area where pain is present, I also look at the relating structures and pain referral areas. I aim to rebalance the muscle groups and work along specific chains of muscle movement. So if you come in with wrist pain I may also treat your neck and if you have tight calves I might also treat your lower back.

At Essex Physiotherapy, I collaborate closely with the physiotherapists and may work with clients to treat muscles that have tightened through compensatory patterns and new issues brought up in reaction to their recovery, such someone who has been on crutches for weeks and then developed upper body pain tightness. By loosening and relaxing problem tissues my work goes hand in hand with the physiotherapist’s, helping to rehabilitate the person holistically.

Sports massage can also prove relaxing and calming on the mind and soothing to the body, easing your aches and pains. I hope that the whole experience will leave you feeling in a physically and psychologically improved state and ready for whatever your next challenge may be.