I had chronic pain for a number of years, and like many sufferers went to different massage therapists, a chiropractor, a regular doctor, physical therapist, and other holistic practitioners. There was often a sinking feeling and disappointment when I couldn't quite resolve all of my pain issues. Then, during a workshop on advanced massage therapy in San Francisco, I encountered a massage instructor who praised the benefits of a strengthening and stretching program for people in pain who aren't responding to different therapies. While I'm not sure how the strengthening and stretching program I embarked on was any different from the physical therapy I had had in the past, I can say that it worked when I tried it. My pain issues resolved. I simply purchased a book with a physical routine in it that I could follow to stretch out and strengthen my muscles. While I might not recommend this kind of cavalier self-help approach, it did work for me.
Pain is sometimes associated with certain favorite activities, in my case playing the piano, which induced repetitive motion injuries. I liked to speed around the keyboard at a million miles an hour for a couple hours a day learning complex music at one point in my life. This was not an activity my body was saying yes to, but rather my body responded by breaking down. I do believe there may have been a psychological or spiritual component to this phenomenon. In my case, I came to think that I was probably not, in my heart of hearts, although I loved music, engaging in quite the right activity for me. I later discovered a different musical outlet of writing children's music and more non-competitive outlets for my artistic interests that were even more fulfilling, and didn't strain my poor forearm tendons and muscles. In some way, I believe the life or the universe of my inner self was communicating to me through the body, basically saying no to this over ambitious piano regimen. My spirit was telling me in other words that I had better and other things to do! I do think it's worth spending some time asking myself: "What is my spirit trying to tell me through my body. Am I headed in the wrong direction here?"
In addition to benefitting from the stretching and strengthening program, I also benefitted from activity and lifestyle changes. I didn't work for me to go in for acupuncture for my arms for example and then go right back and return to the piano. The body does need time to heal, and as they say, the body doesn't lie. So stopping and/or reducing or modifying any piano playing was a key in overcoming the pain issues. In addition, I had had a prior repetitive motion injury in my arms from a job doing simple repetitive labor so the arms were a weak spot in my body prone to re-injury.
Pain is a big market, and many health practitioners seek to serve or go after that market, including me, because I have had good success and sincerely feel I have something to offer as a massage therapist in Denver treating pain, tension and stress issues. However, it's probably not true that our answers are always outside of us, with someone out there who can fix us. For example, during one bout of pain, I decided to try to use a self-help Healing Touch energy work technique on the issue. Interestingly, it worked! It was a fairly simple fix too. Healing Touch energy work requires the practitioner to access a very centered state, and from this stillness, modulate the human energy field, and thus possibly influence symptoms of body, mind and/or spirit. The ache in my arms left after starting to do 20 minute treatments on myself each day.
Sometimes the power is within me to heal, through using something like Healing Touch. Sometimes the power is there through taking myself through something mundane like a stretching and strengthening program. Sometimes the power is in listening to my spirit for course correction because something in my lifestyle is amiss: my body doesn't want to do something I am asking it to do. I was quite unhappy going from one practitioner to another in search of relief of chronic pain to the point that I stopped going and gave up and decided I couldn't fix the problem. I am delighted I did find some answers to chronic pain eventually and resumed a pain-free life.
Pain is sometimes associated with certain favorite activities, in my case playing the piano, which induced repetitive motion injuries. I liked to speed around the keyboard at a million miles an hour for a couple hours a day learning complex music at one point in my life. This was not an activity my body was saying yes to, but rather my body responded by breaking down. I do believe there may have been a psychological or spiritual component to this phenomenon. In my case, I came to think that I was probably not, in my heart of hearts, although I loved music, engaging in quite the right activity for me. I later discovered a different musical outlet of writing children's music and more non-competitive outlets for my artistic interests that were even more fulfilling, and didn't strain my poor forearm tendons and muscles. In some way, I believe the life or the universe of my inner self was communicating to me through the body, basically saying no to this over ambitious piano regimen. My spirit was telling me in other words that I had better and other things to do! I do think it's worth spending some time asking myself: "What is my spirit trying to tell me through my body. Am I headed in the wrong direction here?"
In addition to benefitting from the stretching and strengthening program, I also benefitted from activity and lifestyle changes. I didn't work for me to go in for acupuncture for my arms for example and then go right back and return to the piano. The body does need time to heal, and as they say, the body doesn't lie. So stopping and/or reducing or modifying any piano playing was a key in overcoming the pain issues. In addition, I had had a prior repetitive motion injury in my arms from a job doing simple repetitive labor so the arms were a weak spot in my body prone to re-injury.
Pain is a big market, and many health practitioners seek to serve or go after that market, including me, because I have had good success and sincerely feel I have something to offer as a massage therapist in Denver treating pain, tension and stress issues. However, it's probably not true that our answers are always outside of us, with someone out there who can fix us. For example, during one bout of pain, I decided to try to use a self-help Healing Touch energy work technique on the issue. Interestingly, it worked! It was a fairly simple fix too. Healing Touch energy work requires the practitioner to access a very centered state, and from this stillness, modulate the human energy field, and thus possibly influence symptoms of body, mind and/or spirit. The ache in my arms left after starting to do 20 minute treatments on myself each day.
Sometimes the power is within me to heal, through using something like Healing Touch. Sometimes the power is there through taking myself through something mundane like a stretching and strengthening program. Sometimes the power is in listening to my spirit for course correction because something in my lifestyle is amiss: my body doesn't want to do something I am asking it to do. I was quite unhappy going from one practitioner to another in search of relief of chronic pain to the point that I stopped going and gave up and decided I couldn't fix the problem. I am delighted I did find some answers to chronic pain eventually and resumed a pain-free life.
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