Ask a Massage Therapist

Yeah... thats right people... im a massage therapist, and im sure there are people that have lots of questions concerning muscle type issues, back problems, headaches, migraines, spasms, shin splints... blah, blah, blah

i hope that there are other professions that will follow thru and start their own thread as well.

If i cant answer yur questions then i'll point u in the right direction... or at least try to.

 

Good idea here.

 

OOOO OOO I'll start!

In January I had surgery on my shoulder. Once I stated physical therapy, I have had huge and pretty sore knots in my upper back/shoulder blades. They are not really painful, just annoyingly tight and just barely sore enough to be uncomfortable. Every PT session she would give me a painful massage to try and get rid of the knots. She also told me to have my girlfriend do that, or to put a tennis ball in an athletic sock and use the wall to give it a self massage.

Anyway, nothing seems to be helping! any advice?

 

First off, a PT isnt a massage therapist. they only do what they can do in their scope of practice. as far as the painful massage she gave u, thats the best yur gonna get from her bc she doesnt know how to manipulate the muscle like we do.

If u can find a therapist locally, find one that specializes in MEDICAL MASSAGE. They will do deeper work on the area u need it.

dependin on when u had surgery last also depends on the limit to how far yur shoulder & surroundin muscles can be pushed or worked on. we wont work on someone until 6 months after surgery and u are out of the acute pain stage. im sure u are past that gatherin the info u gave me.

the tennis ball trick is somethin i tell my clients. it works, but u have to almost push the limits on the pain level if its as bad as u say. its kinda like gettin a deep tissue massage and havin it hurt but feel good at the same time.

but like i said, find a MEDICAL Massage Therapist. talk with them over the phone and ask them what they specialize in. if they cant help u ask them to refer u to someone that can.

 

It was painful because she was taking on a "seek and destroy" mentality with them. She would locate them easily and then press very hard centered on the not for 30-60 seconds. Sometimes the muscle would try and make one last contraction (as she said) and it would spasm.

My surgery was (2 days shy of) 5 months ago. The surgeon cleared me to lift weights again, play rugby and do anything except throw. The only thing I Would get out of PT now is strengthening the small muscles (the ones in the shoulder blade that stabilize). I am supposed to finish rehabbing it with minor throwing a few times a week to get those muscle back.

I have a very high tolerance to pain, but the soreness caused by the muscles is more annoying than painful. I once had my foot operated on without numbing it (when I was 6) then later had skin on my chest removed without numbing it haha.

I am in college and don't think I could afford a specialist to medically massage it so is there anything I can do on my own, or any techniques I can try?

 

most places are gonna charge $1/mn. u could just get 30mn if yur short on cash.

another option is to find a massage therapy school and get them to practice on u. otherwise they will have Clinics and u pay way less for a student to work on u.

u can get yur gf to try some of the techniques that the PT suggested, but make sure she paid attention to the details.

look up anatomy for the muscles surrounding the shoulder area. tell yur gf to run her fingers thru the muscles as if going with the striations on the pic. without seein yur shoulder in person its kinda hard to tell her which way to work the muscles.

i would suggest (lets pretend its yur right shoulder) gettin her to rub from the part of the shoulder closest to the back and work her way to the shoulder/arm joint. this should help stretch the muscle back to its normal status. make sure she takes her time, gets pretty deep to where it hurts but still feels good & use lotion unless yur like me and actually like the odd pain from skin bein pulled

as far as light throwin goes, be careful, stretch stretch stretch, & always use ice if it gets inflammed.

BIOFREEZE is a really good product to use as a form of ice therapy in case u dont have time to apply ice. most chiropractor offices sell it and usually have samples u can grab & use

 

Will do. I never thought about seeing if my college has a massage therapy program! Excellent suggestions and thank you very much. I just posted my fitness tracking page as well!

 

let me know how the search goes. good luck

 

Medical information dosed on a car website... really?

 

Notice what she told me. She isn't diagnosing anyone, just providing sound advice. She advised I find a local specialist to get specialized attention.

And apparently he has no idea what a car website can have...

 

Please excuse me from before. I apologize.

 

Not a problem man. I definitely see where you are coming from with the post. It is a little strange but hopefully you will stick around and become part of the community that allows us to trust each other enough to take advice!

 

haha speaking of, my girlfriend is in spain, and they have people that walk around the beaches giving massages. Americans don't realize that you arent supposed to tip, and when they do, the masseuse's hands begin to wonder

 

I have a pinch cyatic (dont knwo if that is spelled right) nerve.. and a stiff back in my lumbar area... are these fixable through massage or Chriopractics..