Massage therapies including Bowen Therapy and myofascial release

[Unable]

The Perrin technique is discussed here: Perrin Technique
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I came across this article this morning. The link was from a canine massage therapist, but the article is about human massage. Apparently, it is a myth that massage disperses lactic acid from muscles after exercise, and that in fact massage has other anti-inflammatory effects. I thought this might be interesting for ME peeps.

https://nohandsmassage.com/myth-lactic-acid/

Certainly, I find taking ibuprofen helps reduce my PEM effects if I’ve walked more than usual. Here they suggest a massage would be more beneficial (and more costly too):

“It turns out vigorous exercise causes tiny tears in muscle fibres, leading to an immune reaction — inflammation — as the body gets to work repairing the injured cells. So the researchers screened the tissue from the massaged and unmassaged legs to compare their repair processes, and find out what difference massage would make. They found that massage reduced the production of compounds called cytokines, which play a critical role in inflammation. Massage also stimulated mitochondria, the tiny powerhouses inside cells that convert glucose into the energy essential for cell function and repair. “The bottom line is that there appears to be a suppression of pathways in inflammation and an increase in mitochondrial biogenesis, helping the muscle adapt to the demands of increased exercise”, said the senior author, Dr. Mark A. Tarnopolsky.”

So now I’m craving a massage! LOL!

PS More detail on the research behind this here: https://nohandsmassage.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/10/THE-MYTH-OF-LACTIC-ACID.pdf

 

[Mithriel]

Massage moves the muscles so some people with ME can't take it. However, I have been having massage every 3 weeks for many years now. It has helped keep my muscles soft as they keep wanting to go into spasm. I can't manage to do anything with them myself but mechanically moving them makes a difference.

It also feels as if the touching reinforces the message to the nerves. I get stuck and can't move but my husband touches my arms and it seems to waken them up! The massage of my back and limbs makes movement easier.

 

[feeb]

Paul Ingraham of painscience.com was a massage therapist and he has a very interesting review of the current state of the literature on his website here that you might enjoy: https://www.painscience.com/articles/does-massage-work.php

He also mentions the lactic acid myth. He's very critical of the efficacy of massage generally, but does still recommend it (for some people, in some circumstances).

 

[Trish]

It turns out vigorous exercise causes tiny tears in muscle fibres,

So now I’m craving a massage! LOL!

I quite fancy being able to do the vigorous exercise bit. Never mind the massage!

 

[Sly Saint]

Moved post

Bowen Therapy, all given unofficial endorsement by the MEA

We don't appear to have a thread on this; it just came up in a search

Treatment for M.E. (Myalgic Encephalomyelitis)
M.E. or Myalgic Encephalomyelitis is a complex disorder characterised by profound fatigue. M.E. can cause many uncomfortable symptoms; sufferers have found relief with Bowen Therapy. Symptoms can include fatigue, muscle pain, joint pain, clumsiness, headaches, temperature control issues and much more.

I have treated many people who suffer from M.E with both Reiki and the Bowen Technique. They are both ideal therapies for M.E because they are so gentle and non invasive. I also often combine reiki and Bowen together in a treatment so I'm very gently working on the physical and also energetically.

https://www.feelbowen.com/treatments/treatment-for-me-myalgic-encephalomyelitis

it sounds very similar to Perrin technique

How Bowen Works
The Bowen Technique does not focus on a single symptom but on the body as a whole, restoring balance via the autonomic nervous system (ANS). The ANS controls over 80% of the body’s functions and is heavily influenced by external stressors. The ‘bowen move’ communicates through the ANS in such a way that it triggers a rebalancing process for muscle, nerves, lymph and fascia (connective tissue). The ANS is divided into two areas, sympathetic (fight, flight, freeze) and the para-sympathetic (rest, relax, and repair mode).

Due to the stresses of everyday life a huge majority of people live in the high alert sympatheitic mode, contributing and even causing many imbalances in the mind and body (knotty and tight muscles, physical and mental tension, anxiety, insomnia, high blood pressure, heart conditions, cancer, stroke, and so on).

The Bowen Technique helps to trigger the para sympathetic nervous system to over-ride the sympathetic nervous system, and therefore allowing the body to run in a balanced way, calming everything down and becoming able to cope with the everyday stresses, potentially alleviating the a fore mentioned conditions.

The Bowen ‘move’ and How It Works
The Bowen ‘move’ although extremely simple works in a very dynamic way. It has a dramatic (but gentle) effect on the muscle, connective tissue (fascia), nervous system, lymphatic system, and the circulation, in fact every single single area of the human body.

The first part of the bowen move draws the skin slack back and then applies a gentle pressure on the skin, fascia, nerve and muscle, this ‘hold’ is the first signal to the ANS to stop, pay attention, and then re start in the para sympathetic mode.

The next part of the bowen move gently rolls over the muscle, tendon, ligament, and nerves which sends a ripple through the tissue. This ripple is like a mini shock wave which excites the cells of these tissues. As a consequence of this movement the muscle tissue loosens becoming softer and the toxins in the tissue become freer and are gradually carried away by the increase of blood circulation. These toxins are carried to the lymphatic system (which is also now working to a greater potential) and taken via the lymphatics to the kidneys to then be excreted out of the body.

Tightness or congestion in the connective tissue (fascia) can have a huge detrimental effect on the body causing many problems, including having a detrimental effect on the muscle, circulation of blood and lymph, and nerve endings.

The gentle bowen move pushes the skin over the muscle which creates a sliding effect on the connective tissue (which lies between the skin and muscle). This movement creates a lot of energy and subtle movement in the fascia tissue, freeing toxins, and increasing oxygenated blood and allows the fascia to be restored to its correct state.

With the muscle tissue and connective tissue being loosened through the bowen move it allows for fresh blood to be carried into these areas by the circulation. This oxygenated blood feeds these tissues like a ’breath of life’ and in turn the muscle tissue becomes fuller and stronger and healthier allowing the body to be in a much better state of balance.

As the bowen move is gently rolling over the muscle it is also very gently rolling over nerve endings which are located in the muscle tissue. These nerves travel all the way to the central nervous system (up the spine and into the brain). This very gentle stimulation is where the ANS stops and starts up again in the para sympathetic mode and nervous system imbalances start to be corrected.

Bowen moves are often in key lymphatic areas where there are bundles of lymph nodes. The rolling movement of the bowen move is great at stimulating these lymph nodes and freeing off congested tissue in the area that had become compromised to the sluggishness of the lymphatic system.

Drinking plenty of water and doing walking is crucial after a bowen treatment because it helps the lymphatic system to carry toxins to the kidneys so they can be expelled from the body.

https://www.feelbowen.com/what-is-the-bowen-technique/how-bowen-works

 

[Hutan]

Paul Ingraham of painscience.com was a massage therapist and he has a very interesting review of the current state of the literature on his website here that you might enjoy: https://www.painscience.com/articles/does-massage-work.php

Also by pain science.com:
'Poisoned by Massage
Rather than being DE-toxifying, deep tissue massage may actually cause a toxic situation'

Sometimes we feel a bit cruddy and sore after a massage, like it was a big workout. Post-massage soreness and malaise (PMSM) is embraced as a minor side effect and hand-waved away by almost everyone as some kind of no-pain-no-gain thing — as if it actually just like post-exercise soreness.

But it can be much harsher. It needs explaining.

Massage is not “detoxifying” in any way (that’s pseudoscientific nonsense). But it might be the opposite, ironically: PMSM may be caused by mild rhabdomyolysis, a kind of poisoning related to injury. True rhabdo is a medical emergency in which the kidneys are gummed up by myoglobin from crushed muscle. But tamer rhabdo can be caused by physical stress, even just intense exercise (that’s a medical reality, see exertional or “white collar” rhabdo) … and quite possibly “deep tissue” massage as well, which is still just a hypothesis.

Weirdly, it’s common to feel a bit gross after a massage… and sometimes very gross. People routinely suffer from varying degrees of soreness and malaise following firmer massage therapy, a phenomenon known as post-massage soreness & malaise, or PMSM.23 The worst cases feel like a full-blown flu, except it doesn’t last nearly as long.

Severe PMSM is really unpleasant, even serious, and so it’s probably safe to assume that something goes wrong, a significant and poorly understood side effect of massage. Most of this article is about the worst cases, which are much harder to explain than the milder ones, but I devote a section below to exploring the causes of milder cases as well.

There are some other confirmed cases of post-massage rhabdo. Another weird, extreme example is from 2009: an awful experience with a reaction to infrared heat and regular massage over several days.massage gun,” an extremely popular type of product right now.11

About a year ago I had a particularly rough massage therapy session and the next day at work I started feeling super sick so I went home (I never get sick, ever) so I layed on the couch whatever went to bed but when I woke up the next morning I literally felt like I had been hit by a bus. I called in sick to work as I could barely get out of bed. The body aches I was experiencing were like nothing I’ve experienced before, I could barely walk! I felt like someone was stabbing tiny knives all through out my major muscles. I stayed in the couch all day and was in so much pain I started googling to see if I could find out what was wrong and I came across rhabdo. My pee was dark brown and I had all of the other symptoms. I was in so much pain I was crying on the couch and so I called the nurses line to see if they could give me any advice. They didn’t believe it was rhabdo but said even if it was all they do is give fluids (and I’m scared of needles) so I didn’t end up going to the hospital but instead took a ton of vitamins and drank an outrageous amount of water and electrolytes to try and help.

It took almost two weeks for the body aches to subside 100%. I’ve seriously never experienced anything like this in my entire life.

 

[Hutan]

I have mentioned elsewhere that when I first got ME/CFS, I bought 10 massages in a package deal, thinking that they might help me recover. But, I kept finding that I would end up in bed for three days after each massage, feeling terribly sick (i.e. PEM). I only used maybe six of the massages. I couldn't believe it, which is why I kept trying, but a massage reliably caused what I now call PEM.

I've since noticed that my urine does go brown when I'm feeling bad. I think the release of myoglobin could be part of my illness.

I thought it was interesting that the description of post-massage malaise sounded so much like what it feels like to have PEM.

I have had massages before becoming ill with ME/CFS, even quite intense ones that were painful, usually when travelling for work, and I can't recall not being able to work the next day, so I'm pretty sure that this response came after ME/CFS onset.

 

[Arnie Pye]

I've since noticed that my urine does go brown when I'm feeling bad

That sounds like a symptom of rhabdomyolysis. I wonder if the kidneys always recover completely after you get this symptom.