There is nothing more important than taking care of your body. Pain, whether it be minor or chronic, affects not only your body movements but your brain function too. Body pain can happen at any time from a variety of ways, whether you pull a muscle at the gym or you have prolonged back pain from hunching over your desk at work. This is why it is crucial to ensure any pain you feel is taken care of as soon as possible.
What is Clinical Myotherapy?
Myotherapy is a relatively new profession. Having been properly established as a medical practice in the 1970’s, it is a specialised form of physical therapy that aims to relieve muscle and myofascial pain.
There are different levels to myotherapy, each level working on specific areas of musculoskeletal concern. Clinical myotherapy in particular is a branch of myotherapy that specialises in the assessment, preventment, treatment, and rehabilitation of musculoskeletal pain and dysfunction. They use a variety of techniques to diagnose and treat conditions such as:
- Muscle tension and pain: including conditions like neck pain, back pain, and headaches.
- Sports injuries: Strains, sprains, dislocations, tendinitis, and any other injuries people get during physical activity.
- Postural issues: Things that signal a poor posture like a slouch or pelvic tilt can lead to severe pain and discomfort.
- Repetitive strain injuries: Conditions like carpal tunnel syndrome or tennis elbow that are caused by repetitive movements.
As a clinical myotherapist, their goal is to restore and maintain the integrity of the body’s muscles, ligaments, and tendons.
When overuse or injury happens, the muscles in our body can become “knotted”, affecting our soft tissue and/or joint mobility. This can create significant problems in other areas of the body. For instance, a knot in your upper back, shoulder, or neck can cause tension headaches. In myotherapy, these knots are called trigger points that can be caused by any of the above, including emotional stress, office ergonomics, and disease.
What Techniques do Clinical Myotherapists Use?
There are a range of techniques that a clinical myotherapist might employ to fix issues that people can develop, such as (but not limited to):
- Deep tissue massage: Including sports and remedial techniques, a clinical myotherapist offers deep tissue massages through slow, deep strokes to release muscle tension and soreness and improve flexibility.
- Myofascial stretching: By applying gentle pressure to the fascia, it aims to prevent tension in the joints and trigger points in the muscles, typically through massage, stretching, or tools like foam rollers.
- Heat or cold therapy: Hot therapy is often used to promote blow flow and muscle relaxation, while cold therapy used to reduce inflammation by reducing blood flow.
- Trascutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) therapy: Non-invasive pain relief that uses a small battery-powered device to deliver electrical currents by electrodes placed on the skin, helping to block pain signals, stimulate endorphin release, and relax muscles.
- Trigger point therapy: Myotherapists first identify the most sensitive spots in muscles and then put sustained, direct pressure either through their hands, elbows, or other tools, holding for a few seconds until the muscles start to release, reducing referred pain and restoring muscle function.
- Dry needling (acupressure): This is a technique that involves inserting fine, sterile needles into trigger points to release tension and improve blood flow. This sometimes makes the muscles twitch, which helps to relieve pain and tightness.
- Joint mobilisation: A clinical myotherapist might use this method to test the joint’s range of motion to identify any limits or pain. It helps to reduce joint stiffness, reduce inflammation and nerve irritation, and improves range of motion by increasing mobility.
Clinical Vs. Advanced Myotherapy?
The key difference between clinical and advanced myotherapy is that clinical offers a much more broad or comprehensive assessment. There is a much wider scope of practice for clinical myotherapy, whereas advanced myotherapy is much more specialised, focussing on specific conditions and techniques.
Here at My Recovery Lounge, our advanced myotherapist Brett has worked for various sports groups throughout his career. He has always had a vested interest in improving and maintaining performance in his clients, as well as keeping them free from pain and injury. He has kept himself up to date on all the new techniques and practices in Myotherapy to benefit his clients.
With a specific focus on myofascial pain, Brett works with clients to reduce muscle and joint pain and promote flexibility. With a vested interest in making sure your muscles are relaxed and pain-free, you can rest assured you will be in Brett’s capable hands.
Book a myotherapy session with us now in Melbourne and we can work to improve your overall muscle health.
