Massage Before or After Chiropractic?

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Today's question is: "Is it better to get a massage before or after my visit to the chiropractor?"

Well, some of that depends on your chiropractor. Or more specifically, what kind of chiropractor you go to...

You see, generally speaking, it's better to get a massage prior to a chiropractic adjustment. This allows the soft tissues, like muscle, tendons, ligaments, and fascia, to loosen up and relax, making it easier for the chiropractor to adjust the spine.

Don't forget, the vertebrae of the spine aren't just freestanding. They are connected to a whole series of muscles and ligaments that help keep them in place. The multifidus and the rotatares muscles connect each vertebra like a small truss system. The erector spinae muscles run the full length of the spine, keeping the spine erect, just as their Latin name implies. The trapezius and rhomboids also have attachments to the spine.

So, you can see that if any of these muscles are 'locked down', it will be harder for the chiropractor to adjust you. On the other hand, get the back muscles relaxed and loose, and things slip back into alignment much easier.

But, having said that, sometimes it's better to get a massage after a chiropractic adjustment, especially if your chiropractor is a little ... shall we say .... rough!

I mean, let's face it - there are chiropractors whose touch is anything but gentle. They grab and twist and bend and yank, making things pop that you didn't even know you had! And while it is good to realign the body's skeletal structures, the trauma they create in the process can cause the attached muscles to spasm, causing a rebound effect.

And that's not good.

A spasm in, let's say, the rhomboids, can pull a freshly adjusted cervical vertebra right back out of alignment .. sometimes even worse than before the adjustment, which is not only uncomfortable, but a waste of your money!

(So, for this reason, i try to discourage my clients from using chiropractors that are too rough. There is just no reason for subjecting the body to that much concentrated force.)

But, if that's the kind of chiropractor you go to, and are content with results he or she gives you, then a massage afterward is not a bad idea. Getting muscles that have just been traumatized to open up and relax will get you more bang for your buck, ' chiropractially' speaking. The important thing is to find which combination works best for you.

Obviously, you'll want to stay away from deep work right after an adjustment. Broad-based, steady pressure would be the way to go, moving slowly up and down both sides of the spine.

So, whether before or after ... by combining massage with your chiropractic adjustments, you are now taking care of the full structure, which, in my mind, is a more complete way of dealing with an injury.

Until we meet again by way of radio, this is Bill Bryan, reminding you that you are fearfully and wonderfully made!

To make an appointment with Bill, or ask him further questions, just call: 484-798-8029

Can Massage Help High Blood Pressure?

Okay... I had a client this week ask me if I thought massage would help with their high blood pressure. My answer: absolutely!

Think about it ... The components of your circulatory system, namely your veins and arteries, run through and around your skeletal muscles. In fact, it's your skeletal muscles that help return blood to the heart.

Inside each of your veins are little one-way valves that allow your blood to move in a forward direction towards the heart. When your muscles contract, they squeeze the veins, pushing the oxygen depleted blood back to the heart to get re-oxygenated. (Which is another reason to lead a more physically active lifestyle!)

But getting back to our subject, when muscles are contracted for prolonged periods of time, they "squeeze down" so to speak, on all the little veins and arteries, increasing the pressure within them. It would be like taking a garden hose and pinching off the end just a little. What happens? The water inside the house builds up pressure, enabling you to spray your spouse all the way on the other side of the drive-way! Anyway, you get the idea...!

The same thing happens to your blood vessels. When a person's body is under too much stress, their muscles remain in a state of contraction, which then constricts the blood vessels, which then raises the pressure within.

So, what does massage do? Well, one of the goals of massage therapy is to get skeletal muscle to relax and open up. This, in turn, relieves some of the pressure placed on the veins and arteries, thus lowering the pressure within them.

Now it's important to note that certain massage techniques are not suitable for clients with high blood pressure. For instance, stay away from deep tissue work. Deep tissue work requires a lot of pressure, and can actually raise blood pressure... so, obviously, you don't want to go there.

But a good medium pressure massage using Swedish techniques can do wonders to help bring high blood pressure under control.

As always, consult your physician, and see what they say. Most of them, more than you might think, are open to the idea of using massage therapy for managing high blood pressure. In fact, I've even had a few doctors refer their patients to me for that very reason!

To make an appointment with Bill Bryan, call 484-798-8029

What Exactly is Chair Massage?

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Q: What exactly is 'chair massage'?

A: Chair massage, also known as 'on-site massage', was started by a guy named David Palmer in 1986. Since then, its popularity has increased, bringing it to corporate offices, shopping malls, sporting events and fundraising activities.

Basically, it's a massage done with the client seated in a specially designed chair with kneelers, a place to rest your arms, and a face cradle to rest your head. Once the client is seated and comfortable, the therapist has access to the scalp, neck, shoulders, upper and lower back, arms, hands, and fingers.

Chair massage is done fully clothed and without oils or lotion, so it's very convenient for the office or work place. Sessions normally last about 15 to 20 minutes, which, again, makes it very convenient for people with time constraints while at work.

There are many benefits to 'on-site' or 'seated massage'.

It's a short session, so it's easier to find time for, and it doesn't cost as much. It also focuses primarily on the areas that bother people the most, especially while at work, namely the back of the neck and shoulders. A lot of folks hold stress in these two areas, and a little relief during the work day can make all the difference to someone pushing to meet a deadline!

I guess the two things I like most about chair massage are:

1) It encourages people who are nervous about getting undressed and lying on a massage table to get much needed bodywork done.

I mean, let's face it, there are a lot of people out there suffering needlessly with aches and pains, because the thought of committing themselves to a full-body table massage is just too overwhelming. But with chair massage, they're only committing themselves to 15 or 20 minutes, without having to remove any of their clothes. This is what makes chair massage a great introduction to bodywork! Once a new client gets used to having someone touch them in a professional and caring manner, they're more likely to 'convert', so to speak, to table work.

2) The second thing I like about on-site or seated massage is that it encourages people with chronic pain to get more regular massages.

Often times, in order to make a chronic condition subside, several sessions are needed. This can be time consuming and expensive. But with chair massage, you can go two, even three times a week, and lose no more than an hour's worth of time, and spend no more than $40 to $60 total! This, I believe, encourages the client to 'chip away' at the problem little-by-little, which is the best way to approach a chronic injury.

For several years I spent every Friday in a large corporation doing chair massage. I would see 15, maybe 20 clients. I can't tell you the benefit that my hands brought to those 'cubicle dwellers'! I helped with their headaches and migraines, their carpal tunnel and repetitive work injuries, not to mention controlling their stress levels, both emotional and physical. Just 20 minutes a week made all the difference to those folks. In fact, many of those clients still come to see me in my new office. Some want table work, but some still request 'The Chair'!

If you have business and would like to show your employees how much you appreciate their efforts, call me. A day of 'on-site' massage in your workplace or office can do amazing things for morale and productivity!

Until we meet again by way of radio, have a great day, and stay out of the news!

Bill can be reached by calling 484-798-8029.

Do I Do Energy Work?

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Someone asked me the other day if I do 'energy work'.

Quite frankly, I didn't quite know how to answer them. Not because I don't know what it is that I do ... but because I have no idea what people mean by 'energy' anymore.

It's become a term so overused within the holistic health movement that I don't think anyone has a clear understanding of what it is they're describing.

Feng shui 'experts' have us rearranging our furniture to redirect 'energy' around the room; Reiki 'masters' clam to be channeling 'universal energy' through themselves to their clients; yoga instructors, guide their students through meditation rituals in the hope of balancing 'energy chakras' within the body.

And my personal favorite: these guys that show up at holistic health expos with their aura simulation cameras, charging people $20 a pop for a photo with blotchy colors around it, which is supposed to be their 'energy field'! (I can assure you that the only 'energy' being transferred in these situations is from your wallet to theirs!)

So, here's a few energy guidelines for consideration:

First of all, 'energy' is not a substance! Or, better put, it is not an entity. It's not something that you can store in a box, or cup in your hand. Neither is it some huge cosmic cloud that dominates the universe.

Simply put ... energy is a law.

It is a law that governs actions and reactions. As such, it is expressed in terms of potential or kinetic, and measured in terms of force, momentum, or precision. It plays a role in the production of heat, speed, light, or any number of transactions involving material interface. But it is not a substance in and of itself!

For example, when you unplug an electrical cord from a wall outlet, do you need to shake the excess energy out of the cord before you can safely touch the metal prongs? Of course not! When you unplug the cord from the wall, the flow of copper electrons stops. There's no additional substance in the cord. Just copper atoms behaving according to the laws of energy.

Another thing to keep in mind about energy is this: It is neither omnipresent, omniscient, nor omnipotent! These are attributes reserved for Deity, and should not be applied to energy (or the universe, for that matter!). Only the Creator is Omniscient, Omnipotent, and Omnipresent.

Neither should the term 'energy' be used interchangeably with the term 'spirit'.

A person's energy is not the same as their spirit. Mixing these two terms leads only to confusion and, quite frankly, a weak philosophy of healing. Energy, like we said, is a LAW. Spirit, on the other hand, is that part of your being breathed into you by the Creator, accounting for one third of your SOUL - beyond, not subject to - the laws of Time, Mass, and Energy.

So.... do I do energy work? Sure! But not the kind you might think!

 Bill Bryan can be reached for an appointment by calling 484-798-8029

Workout After a Massage?

Q: How long should I wait after a massage to workout or exercise?

A: Well, the answer to that question depends on what type of massage you've received.

For instance, if you've just received what I call a froo-froo massage ... you know, a massage that doesn't really get too far below the surface of the skin ... you're probably not going to experience any problems going from the massage table to the weight bench.

But, if you've received a deep-tissue massage, which means your therapist has been working on those layers of tissue located beneath the superficial muscles, then you'd be better off waiting at least four hours before throwing yourself into any strenuous activity.

The reason for this is because deep tissue work, in a way, re-injures the muscles. Or, maybe a better way to put it ... is that deep tissue re-opens old injuries in order to re-activate the healing process. This process of revisiting an old injury places the soft tissue in a particularly vulnerable state.

It would be similar to .. if you had an old kitchen chair that needed repairing. And let's say someone tried to repair it before, but didn't do a very good job, so now the wood-joint is starting to open again and the chair is becoming wobbly.

In order to fix the problem, first you have to clean out all the old glue and duct-tape. Then you re-glue the surface an refit the joint, clamping it until the glue dries.

But what would happen if you sat down on the chair before the glue is fully cured? It would break, and you would quickly find yourself sitting on the floor surrounded by chair parts! Simply put, the new repair was not ready yet to handle the work load.

The same principle applies to skeletal, muscle and other soft-tissues.

When I go into deep-massage-mode, I'm breaking up an old injury that maybe didn't heal quite properly. Then, with a series of techniques and stretches, I 're-assemble' the area. But that doesn't mean it's ready for a work-load yet! The area has to be given time to settle and heal. Sometimes, depending on the injury, a full day is required after the massage. And, it's important to allow the body the time to heal. (You may think of it as down-time, but the truth is, your body is busy finishing repairing itself.)

Again, not all massages have this effect.

In fact, some massage techniques are quite helpful just prior to an athletic event or workout. Light vigorous work with lots of tapotement and surface vibration brings blood to an area and loosens up the body, making for an improved cario-vascular function.

As always, it's better to err on the side of caution. Ask your therapist questions, and after that, listen to what your body has to say.

This is Bill Bryan, and you've been listening to a 'Massage Moment'!

Need more info or want to schedule an appointment? Call Bill at 484-798-8029