Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1299745
Benefits of Combining Massage and Movement Therapies In this article, I spoke of client benefits when combining the two worlds of manual and movement therapy into one cohesive world. But what about the massage therapist? Would there be a benefit for the therapist? I believe there would be many. One benefit would be an increase in business from having more skills to treat our clients with—and from the improved results we attain with more comprehensive care. Another benefit would be direct and more personal for the therapist: By entering and becoming involved in the world of movement therapy, the manual therapist's mindset and philosophy will temper in the direction of incorporating movement therapy into their own lives, with the same improved health that their clients will enjoy. And being in better shape will more likely ensure career longevity, which is challenging in a field as physically stressful as massage therapy. These same advantages could be stated for movement professionals. The advantage to the movement professional's personal health is especially true for fitness trainers who often deviate excessively toward strength and away from flexibility. Entering the world of manual therapy would raise their awareness of the value of manual therapy and would likely result in them having manual therapy treatment more often for their own bodies. Manual or Movement Therapy: Which Comes First? If you do possess both manual and movement therapy skills, the question might be how to choose which skill to employ first. There is not an exact recipe for what is best for every client, but when a client presents with a musculoskeletal pathology, I believe manual therapy should generally be done first to remove the painful pathology and restore the tissue integrity. This is because all manual and movement therapy by definition places a stress into the tissues. If a tissue does not have proper integrity, then it is best to minimize this physical stress force in the initial stages of treatment. Generally, movement therapy—and strength training in particular—tends to place a greater stress into the tissues. For this reason, I generally recommend that manual therapy should be done first to lessen pain and restore tissue integrity, then the movement therapy strength training can be commenced for long-term stability and health. 60 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k n o v e m b e r / d e c e m b e r 2 0 2 0 Instead of dividing the world into many separate fields of manual and movement therapies—with each field denying the others the right to perform what they feel is their proprietary technique— why not combine them together in one inclusive world? " "