Massage & Bodywork

MAY | JUNE 2017

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62 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k m a y / j u n e 2 0 1 7 Back pain and injury come primarily from operating through strain, instead of through ease and grace. By taking special efforts to reduce that strain in our movements, we can prevent the discomfort and injuries that result from daily use. I would like to share with you a handful of simple things bodyworkers can do to prevent, or at least reduce, the strain on their bodies. It is possible to come away from a long day of administering bodywork feeling refreshed—not achy and tired. These tips and exercises are especially useful for bodyworkers, but everyone can benefit from their efficacy and simplicity. ISOLATE THE MOVEMENT In my new book, Awakening the Power of Self-Healing (Self-Healing Press, 2017), I describe how people who use their hands for fine activities more than others tend to have more shoulder and back pain. Massage therapists, musicians, and sign- language interpreters are known to develop repetitive strain injuries, or repetitive use syndrome, related to the use of their hands. I am now in my 60s, and I can tell you that in nearly 45 years of practice, I have not had one day of soreness in my hands. At times, my client load has been greater than 15 hours a day. One of the principles that has kept me in good condition for all these years is "dividing the muscles," or muscle isolation. When we work on clients (or at a computer), we typically use much more effort than is required. Nearly all of us hold tension throughout our bodies as we use our hands. Over time, that tension accumulates and restricts blood flow, pinches nerves, and results in the back, shoulder, arm, and neck pain to which we are so accustomed. There are two main ways to deal with this tension: by becoming more flexible and by using only the necessary muscles for any given task. Exercises to Separate the Movements At my School for Self-Healing in San Francisco, I remind my students to always think about separating their fingers from their wrists, their wrists from their elbows, and their elbows from their shoulders when working on clients. We imagine that our fingers are moving themselves. The relaxation that happens when you create separation between your fingers and wrists gives the hands new life when they massage, and keeps tension from building in the shoulders and upper back. We visualize that our heads stretch all the way up to the ceiling, maybe to the sky. We imagine that one shoulder stretches to one side of the world; the other one stretches to the other side of the world, creating space in our joints and vertebrae. Now, you try the same. Notice how you feel lighter, more relaxed, and less strained. 62 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k m a y / j u n e 2 0 1 7

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