Article Index - Myofascial Release
 
Without Awareness There is No Choice
 
You've been given a multitude of different diagnostic labels and all the experts are telling you there is nothing wrong. You feel imprisoned in a body that won't respond and allow you to play and work again. You feel helpless and out of control. What if something was overlooked? What could it be?
 
The instinctual “Freeze Response”
When many of us are injured, we go into a state of disassociation at the moment of trauma to survive. Our body/mind experiences an instinctive "freeze response" and this positional, physiological memory becomes indelibly imprinted into our mind/body awareness. The sympathetic and parasympathetic autonomic nervous systems become stuck in a state of hyper-arousal that is not under our voluntary control. It is like having your foot on the accelerator of a car and the other foot on the brake. This consumes an enormous amount of energy and eventually exhausts us. Because this positional memory becomes disassociated and locked in our subconscious, we have no awareness of it and without conscious awareness, we have no control of it.
 
This "freeze response", over time, creates holding or bracing patterns that eventually produce increased chronic muscular tone, spasm, and myofascial restrictions that eventually become symptoms.
 
Traditionally, therapy focuses on symptoms, explaining why modalities, exercise, joint mobilisation and muscle energy techniques, massage and/or medicine can, many times, only produce poor or temporary results.
 
Why didn't good psychological counselling help? Possibly because the majority of psychological therapy is done in consensus consciousness. In other words, "talk therapy" and analysis are focussed on the conscious level and the cause of the chronic symptom complex is on the instinctual level, which is not accessed by words and analysis, or for that matter by traditional therapeutic interventions or medicine. What can help this state of disassociation? Myofascial Release and Myofascial Unwinding. Myofascial restrictions do not show up in any of the standard tests, so myofascial restrictions that solidify these chronic holding or freeze response patterns in our bodies are missed or misdiagnosed in health care.
 
Myofascial Release frees these powerful, structural restrictions that place enormous pressure upon sensitive structures that produce pain, headaches and restrictions of motion. And Myofascial Unwinding (the motion facilitation component of the Myofascial Release Approach) guides the patient into significant positions of past traumas.
 
In the safety of the therapeutic environment, the therapist gently holds the patient in these significant positions of past trauma. In these therapeutic positions, the patient's tissue memory releases the instinctual bracing patterns. The "freeze response" is then deactivated, which allows for continued structural release and elimination of symptoms.
The release of tissue memory creates awareness to return the patient to conscious choice and control of his or her destiny. The patient can then progress toward the ultimate goal of healing and health.
©John F Barnes, PT is the owner of the Myofascial Release Treatment Centres in Sedona, Arizona and in Paoli, Pennsylvania.
 
Ruth Duncan is an Advanced Myofascial Release practitioner in the UK who has trained with John Barnes in the US. For further information on Myofascial Release Treatments and for Myofascial Release Therapy training in the UK and Ireland visit www.myofascialrelease.co.uk or call 0141 942 9600
 
Reference: Levine, Peter, Waking the Tiger Healing Trauma; North Atlantic Books., Berkeley 1997
 
 
 
 
 
 
Assists in the release of low back (up slip), sacroiliac joint pain, pelvic imbalance and compensatory twists with in the body. Patient side lying with the affected short (hip hiked) side upwards. Place their upper leg straight supported by their bent lower leg using a pillow for support. Also place a pillow under their hips to open up the affected side. Place one hand on the lower end of the thoracic cage and the other just above the iliac crest with the fingers contacting the upper attachments of the Gluteal muscles. Sink into the tissue and pick up the slack in all dimensions. The intention is to open up the space between the hips and ribs eliminating the hip hike that prevents the pelvis from maintaining balance.
 
Contraindications
Contraindications such as malignancy, aneurysm and acute rheumatoid arthritis may be considered absolute, while others such as Hematoma, open wounds, healing fractures, etc. may be regional.
1 Malignancy
2 Open wounds
3 Cellulitis
4 Sutures Febrile State
5 Hematoma
6 Systemic or localised infection
7 Healing fracture
8 Acute circulatory condition
9 Osteomyelitis
10 Degenerative Changes
11 Aneursym
12 Anticoagulant Therapy
13 Obstructive Oedema
14 Advanced Diabetes
15 Acute Rheumatoid arthritis
16 Skin hypersensitivity
 
Always perform a thorough patient history and always refer the patient back to their GP/Doctor if you are in any doubt as to contraindications for MFR treatment and also if their condition persists. Please refer to your own code of practice.
 
JFB MFR is very different to traditional MFR or soft tissue mobilisation. Ruth and Mary teach an integration of the MFR approach pioneered by John F Barnes with traditional MFR and Soft Tissue techniques. By adding these valuable fascial release skills to your treatments you will change the way you view, feel and assess your patients. You will also create structural change that is both measurable and functional.
 
All text and images are copyright©. Ruth Duncan.
MYOFASCIAL RELEASE TRAINING IN THE UK AND IRELAND
 
For further information on UK & Ireland Integrated Myofascial Therapy (iMFT)
Tel: 0141 942 9600
www.thenaturaltherapycentre.co.uk
www.myofascialrelease.co.uk
 
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