Myofascial therapy for greater well-being in Oswego, Aurora, Plainfield, Naperville, Yorkville, Batavia and Geneva (IL)
Many who have managed a mental health condition are likely aware of physical symptoms that can accompany it, such as:
Our mental and physical health are bidirectional, each affecting the other in powerful ways.
When our body is ailing, the physical changes can impact our mood. When our mind is struggling, our body can become trapped in a tense fight-or-flight state. This can release excess hormones and neurotransmitters that create psychosomatic symptoms.
Cases of chronic pain can often be linked to past trauma. One study found that up to 90% of women with fibromyalgia and up to 60% of arthritis patients reported having had trauma at some stage in their lives.
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs likewise identifies that it is common for people with Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) to have chronic pain.
The connection between mental and physical health is clear. As one saying goes, our issues get stuck in our tissues.
Fascia is a thin, strong and flexible connective tissue that covers and supports nearly every body component, including our muscles, bones, tendons, ligaments, organs and blood vessels.
Made mainly of collagen kept smooth with the body’s water, fascia creates a protective sheath that serves us as a living, vigilant guard against infection. We can think of it as a network of membranes of differing thicknesses that transmit messages between the body and mind.
Fascia also factors into our central nervous system through the dural tube that surrounds and protects the spinal cord and spinal nerves within the vertebral column.
While fascia is typically tough, resistant and pliable, the internal tension caused by stress or an ailment will restrict it and alter the messages it sends.
Restricted fascia can lead to diverse problems such as chronic pain, exhaustion, inflammation and weakened immunity. It can interfere with respiration and heart circulation as well.
Although fascia under duress can complicate our well-being, it also can be soothed back to health to serve and unite the mind and body again.
Myofascial therapy is the release of restricted fascia that has become stuck and dehydrated. It addresses the individual person’s full fascial system according to their specific circumstances.
Myofascial release massage differs notably from other standard massage types that emphasize rubbing, pinning and stretching muscle tissue through rhythmic pushing pressure.
With myofascial therapy, we use sustained gentle pressure that slowly softens and lengthens the restricted fascia by "hooking into" it. This helps to melt and rehydrate the restriction. By helping restore fascial elasticity and widen the spaces between the connective-tissue fibers, myofascial release techniques make the fascia mobile again.
Therapy also can include what we refer to as myofascial massage (without a specific reference to "release"). Less clinical in its approach, it still aims to loosen tight fascia but applies additional pressure such as that used with other deep-tissue massage types.
Myofascial massage differs from myofascial release therapy in that it feels more like a regular massage and less like therapeutic stretching or gentle traction.
Some instances in which you might engage myofascial massage instead of myofascial therapy might include:
soothing treatment with a light therapeutic benefit (e.g. having rounded shoulders from working at a desk all week)
relaxation without a diagnosed injury or chronic pain (e.g. mild back tightness)
pre-therapeutic introduction to bodywork (our term for hands-on therapy with a full-body focus)
whole-body maintenance that supports muscle/tissue recovery without a more-intense clinical approach (e.g. an athlete keeping muscles supple)
Because the body has its own memory beyond the mind’s, myofascial therapy can reach deeply embedded memories or emotions that even dedicated talk therapy alone may not always be able to.
This is significant in that internally stored trauma will often cause the body to adopt the primary positions and movements from when the trauma(s) occurred. By slowly nudging into, holding and lengthening the fascia’s restricting barrier, myofascial release massage invites the body to soften rather than respond to a force.
As the tension lessens, the nervous system transitions from high alert back into a state of restful repair. The myofascial release techniques help return the calming sense that the body is at peace and able to protect itself, which quiets the mind.
When the originating source of distress is a physical ailment, myofascial release therapy can provide comforting relief for conditions such as:
When the discomfort begins with mental or emotional stress, the body will be tightening up while the fascia becomes compromised. Together, myofascial release therapy and talk therapy for a condition such as depression, anxiety, ADHD or substance abuse can help return the body to balance by treating mental health and removing restricted fascia.
For individuals in Oswego, Aurora, Plainfield, Naperville, Yorkville, Batavia and Geneva, the benefits of myofascial therapy can be as diverse as they are profound. The unifying thread is that it helps create deeper emotional shifts through physical touch.
Because the body is softening, mental space is opened and cleared. The energy that was being used to hold oneself together becomes available once again to think and feel.
Just a few sensations people often describe from myofascial release therapy can be:
Depression can be a particularly debilitating mental health condition. A recent Gallup poll identifies that the U.S. depression rate remains historically high, with more than 18% of U.S. adults (almost 48 million) reporting having been treated. The poll further cites 28.5% of adults as having been diagnosed with depression at some point in their lives.
While the emotional components of depression alone can be devastating, the condition also can be driven by physical factors such as chronic pain.
Clinical studies have noted the benefits of myofascial release therapy for depression and chronic pain, notably as they pertain to reducing pain intensity. As manifestations of pain recede, so can depressive symptoms. Conversely, as mental depression is calmed, somatic symptoms such as aches, tightness and headaches can dissipate.
Empowered Life Therapy believes in living as the authentic self with balance, hope and resilience. If you would like to talk more about how myofascial release massage can contribute to meaningful mind-body care for individuals from Oswego, Aurora, Plainfield, Naperville, Yorkville, Batavia and Geneva (IL), contact us today at (630) 842-6585.
Kasey Huff
