What is Structural Integration Massage?

Structural Integration works to balance and align the body’s structure until the entire system is a smoothly functioning coordinated whole. For example, the legs are aligned to the hips,  the body is positioned over the feet, and then all of these joints and related tissue are

integrated to one another. Some of the benefits people have experienced are reduced pain, increased flexibility, an enhanced sense of body awareness, and improved posture.

During the Structural Integration process changes in posture and structure are achieved by manipulating the body's myofascial system. The focus of Structural Integration is on the fascia rather than on the muscles (as in massage). The fascia is a protective layer of connective tissue that surrounds each muscle and muscle fiber. Fascia gives muscles and bodies their shape and support .

Structural Integration practitioners use a range of techniques to lengthen and reposition the fascia and the body. The amount of pressure used and techniques applied varies. Your practitioner may use slow, deep, stretching movements, or constant applied pressure. You may also be asked to move as pressure is applied or to stand and move during a session.

As tissue is being released, you may experience a variety of sensations ranging from warm and pleasant to uncomfortable. Your practitioner will apply appropriate pressure during the session based on your feedback so the pace of the session is under your control. Sometimes, as the tissue is released and balanced, clients experience the release of emotions, memories or traumas that have been stored in the fascial tissue. Such releases can create the opportunity for change and/or resolution surrounding the issues presented.

Movement education may also be a part of your Structural Integration series. Your practitioner can help you become aware of your habitual and inhibiting movement patterns and help you change these patterns to achieve more fluid movement. Movement education can affect your level of daily functioning by helping to change unhealthy patterns in common activities such as sitting, walking and breathing.

Structural Integration is typically performed in a series of ten to thirteen sessions to systematically release the myofascial tissue. Each session builds upon the last, addressing layers of tissue throughout the process. The series is designed to balance your body in segments, with each session addressing a different aspect of your structure and movement. Though the Structural Integration series is designed to work in sequence, your practitioner will often recognize your unique needs and use their skills and experience to address those appropriately.

At the beginning of a series, your practitioner will often spend some time discussing your health and personal history. It is important that your practitioner know any information that has affected your physical structure, including major accidents, traumas, surgeries, conditions and diseases as well as any current medications.

Typically, sessions are done with the client in shorts or a bathing suit. Your practitioner will observe you standing and moving to assess balance, alignment, mobility and movement patterns. In some cases, if appropriate, photographs may be taken for the benefit of you and your practitioner.

How Organs Can Contribute to Pain and Dysfunction

Your body is made up of many interrelated parts such as muscles, bones, nerves, a thin connective tissue called fascia, as well as the internal organs (viscera). Did you know your organs are in perpetual motion? When you breathe, walk and stretch, your organs move in

your chest and abdomen. For example, when you take a breath, your kidneys move one inch; and with deep inhalation, they move 4 inches. In a day, they move a little over ½ mile. That's around 19,000 miles in a lifetime In addition your liver moves the length of a football field 6 times in the course of the day. That is a lot of movement! When you are healthy, all the structures move with a very rhythmic, fluid-type movement. Optimum health relies on a harmonious relationship between the motions of the organs and other structures of the body.

There are many reasons for an organ to lose its mobility: physical traumas, surgeries, sedentary lifestyle, infections, pollution, bad diet, poor posture and pregnancy/delivery. When an organ is no longer freely mobile but is fixed to another structure, the body is forced to compensate. This disharmony creates fixed, abnormal points of tension and the chronic irritation that gives way to functional and structural problems throughout the body – musculoskeletal, vascular, nervous, urinary, respiratory and digestive, to name a few.

Imagine scar tissue around the lungs. Because of the pull of the adhesion, with every breath, the movement patterns of the nearby structures would be altered. This could shift rib motion creating pulls on the spine. These restrictions might then show up as mid-back and neck pain, as well as limited motion in the shoulder. This scenario highlights just one of hundreds of possible ramifications of a small dysfunction - magnified by thousands of repetitions each day. This also explains how pain can often be far removed from the actual cause.

This is where Visceral Therapy can help. Contact us at AdvancedHealthClinic for more information.

Farmington Utah Massage Therapist participates in Barral Institute's Continuing Education Workshop

Jackson Hole, WY - Lisa Larson, LMT, of Farmington, Utah recently participated in the Neuromeningeal Manipulation: An Integrated Approach to Trauma Workshop offered by the Barral Institute, a health resource center that presents continuing education courses to healthcare professionals worldwide.

The Visceral Manipulation Curriculum was developed by French Osteopath, Jean-Pierre Barral who has taught the techniques worldwide, as well as trained and certified Instructors to teach for The Barral Institute. Visceral Manipulation is a manual therapy in which light, specifically placed pressure encourages normal mobility, tone and tissue motion of the internal organs and their connective tissue. These gentle manipulations have the potential to affect the physiological function and the structural integrity of the entire body.

Lisa Larson, LMT, has been a massage therapist for over 20 years and specializes in Visceral Manipulation, Manual Lymph Drainage, and Medical Massage. Lisa works at Advanced Health Clinic,  one of largest Holistic and Integrative Wellness Clinics located in Utah.

To schedule for therapy, or learn more about Lisa, please visit www.AdvancedHealthClinic.com
For more information on Visceral Manipulation or the Barral Institute, visit www.barralinstitute.com

Body Sense Summer

Did you know that  smartphones may be causing chronic symptoms such as “Smartphone Neck Syndrome” and “Blackberry Thumb,” and that massage can help.

Are you interested in discovering the important principles of proper stretching. 

If so, I encourage you to take a look at

Body Sense Summer Magazine 

and discover the healing power of touch!

The Power of Healing Touch

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The Benefits of Massage

The Benefits Of MassageWhat exactly are the benefits of receiving massage or bodywork treatments? Useful for all of the conditions listed below and more, massage can:

• Alleviate low-back pain and improve range of motion.
• Assist with shorter, easier labor for expectant mothers and shorten maternity hospital stays.
• Ease medication dependence.
• Enhance immunity by stimulating lymph flow—the body’s natural defense system.
• Exercise and stretch weak, tight, or atrophied muscles.
• Help athletes of any level prepare for, and recover from, strenuous workouts.
• Improve the condition of the body’s largest organ—the skin.
• Increase joint flexibility.
• Lessen depression and anxiety.
• Promote tissue regeneration, reducing scar tissue and stretch marks.
• Pump oxygen and nutrients into tissues and vital organs, improving circulation.
• Reduce postsurgery adhesions and swelling.
• Reduce spasms and cramping.
• Relax and soften injured, tired, and overused muscles.
• Release endorphins—amino acids that work as the body’s natural painkiller.
• Relieve migraine pain.

A Powerful AllyThere’s no denying the power of bodywork. Regardless of the adjectives we assign to it (pampering, rejuvenating, therapeutic) or the reasons we seek it out (a luxurious treat, stress relief, pain management), massage therapy can be a powerful ally in your healthcare regimen.

Experts estimate that upwards of ninety percent of disease is stress related. And perhaps nothing ages us faster, internally and externally, than high stress. While eliminating anxiety and pressure altogether in this fast-paced world may be idealistic, massage can, without a doubt, help manage stress. This translates into:

• Decreased anxiety.
• Enhanced sleep quality.
• Greater energy.
• Improved concentration.
• Increased circulation.
• Reduced fatigue.

Furthermore, clients often report a sense of perspective and clarity after receiving a massage. The emotional balance bodywork provides can often be just as vital and valuable as the more tangible physical benefits.

Profound EffectsIn response to massage, specific physiological and chemical changes cascade throughout the body, with profound effects. Research shows that with massage:

• Arthritis sufferers note fewer aches and less stiffness and pain.
• Asthmatic children show better pulmonary function and increased peak air flow.
• Burn injury patients report reduced pain, itching, and anxiety.
• High blood pressure patients demonstrate lower diastolic blood pressure, anxiety, and stress hormones.
• Premenstrual syndrome sufferers have decreased water retention and cramping.
• Preterm infants have improved weight gain.

Research continues to show the enormous benefits of touch—which range from treating chronic diseases, neurological disorders, and injuries, to alleviating the tensions of modern lifestyles. Consequently, the medical community is actively embracing bodywork, and massage is becoming an integral part of hospice care and neonatal intensive care units. Many hospitals are also incorporating on-site massage practitioners and even spas to treat postsurgery or pain patients as part of the recovery process.

Increase the Benefits with Frequent VisitsGetting a massage can do you a world of good. And getting massage frequently can do even more. This is the beauty of bodywork. Taking part in this form of regularly scheduled self-care can play a huge part in how healthy you’ll be and how youthful you’ll remain with each passing year. Budgeting time and money for bodywork at consistent intervals is truly an investment in your health. And remember: just because massage feels like a pampering treat doesn’t mean it is any less therapeutic. Consider massage appointments a necessary piece of your health and wellness plan, and work with your practitioner to establish a treatment schedule that best meets your needs.