Comments | brickhousewench: State of the Back - Part 1

brickhousewench

State of the Back - Part 1 - New Massage Dude

Oct 28, 2013 07:13

So I’ve been going to the local chain massage place. Because it’s ridiculously close to the office, and it’s cheap, and it gives me a guilt-free excuse to rotate massage therapists until I find someone that I like and feel like I can settle down with ( Read more... )

oh my aching back

Comments 7

guy_todd October 28 2013, 13:16:06 UTC

And who doesn't admire a really tight piriformis? ;-)

malterre October 28 2013, 19:12:44 UTC

It's nice to be acknowledged that you know your own body!

allgudallthetim October 28 2013, 22:49:00 UTC

wow! he sounds like a keeper, for sure! :D

willowbard October 29 2013, 01:47:40 UTC

I don't think I've ever found a client that didn't have a tight piriformis. :)
Glad you've found a happy-maker.

Did you have an MRI?

kass_rants October 29 2013, 13:09:22 UTC

I'm so happy for you! You probably remember my leg/knee issues. I went to physical therapy and all kinds of stuff, and all people said was "Your IT band is tight." It took my friend who is a massage therapist who actually thinks and solves problems to tell me that you can't loosen an IT band by massaging it because it's whatchacallit -- the stuff that doesn't loosen. In five minutes he completely relieved the pain I was feeling because my IT band was too tight. What did he do? Press on the little muscle in my hip that represents the beginning of the IT band. That muscle can be loosened, unlike the IT band. He literally leaned on this muscle for five minutes and MONTHS of pain just stopped. STOPPED! It was incredible. Physical therapists and even MDs couldn't help me. But a guy relatively new to massage opened up him anatomy book and did the logical thing.

It hardly ever happens now. But when it does, I just press on that muscle for a few minutes and it stops hurting completely.

Anyway. SO happy for you!

brickhousewench October 29 2013, 17:26:54 UTC

Yeah, pretty much the reason why I started with massage and not going to the doctor is that I know if you find the right therapist, they just have way more experience with backs and tension and how to relieve it. I think it was my second or third trip to the massage place and one of the therapists did the sort of thing you're describing. He put his thumbs into my hip joint and moved my leg around and BAM, it was the first time I'd been pain free in like a week. It eventually wore off and I was all knotted up again several days later. But right after that massage I was so happy. You don't realize how much pain and depression are linked until you're suddenly not in pain anymore.

kass_rants October 29 2013, 17:38:36 UTC

Oh yeah. TOTALLY! Now that my arthritis has gone away, I have so many fewer depressed days. You don't quite realise it's the pain when you in the middle of it.

The next step is to figure out what you're doing -- the way you're sitting at work, the shoes you're wearing, whatever -- that makes that hip get knotted up in the first place. And if you can't avoid the thing that causes the problem, at least you'll be able to find ways to change the situation so you'll be in pain less often or at least in less pain.

So much of what hurt me was how I was sitting at my desk. You wouldn't believe how a small difference has helped my elbow. And my elbow has permanent damage from a fall when I was 14 so it's not like it can be cured, but sitting differently at the computer means I can kayak without pain now. =)