[fern]

I got approval for some PT as I still have a monster headache 4.5 wks post-op. I think the TOS and cervical stuff was irritated simply by the position during surgery and the inability to do my usual routines since then. The approval is for my neck and spine with some thrown in for my new elbow/arm pain. (Medicare only approves PT for non-chronic pain...new probs).

I am wondering what type of PT to try as I haven't done much of anything besides Peter Edgelow style and normal myofascial.

I'm looking to mainly relieve the neck and spine. ok the arm too.

so what about ART or Hellerwork or Trigger Point or .....
I'm sure there are other threads but can anyone make suggestions that have helped them please.

I'm also going to see about the possiblilty of chiari malformation that was prev recommended on a diff thread

[JAMY]

I have been seeing a chiro who does ART and I can not get over the difference I have seen in my recovery. I can do in with an aching neck and by the next day feel a million times better! The way that he is able to stretch out the muscles (in ways obviously I can't on my own) definitely loosens everything up!!! I have had many more headaches/neck pain since my rib removal surgery 8 months ago, and while I still get them, my treatments are definitely helping...

Hope this helps!

[Jomar]

Jamy can you describe a little about the ART?
Is it positions where he does the stretches or deep fascia pressure/massage type of thing?
or combo

just curious if you can't type that much I'll look it up-
Oh I'll look it up anyway now that it popped into my mind LOL.

[Jomar]

ART info-
[HOW CAN ART HELP ME?

What is Active Release Technique (ART)?

ART is a patented, state of the art soft tissue system/movement based massage technique that treats problems with muscles, tendons, ligaments, fascia and nerves. Headaches, back pain, carpal tunnel syndrome, shin splints, shoulder pain, sciatica, plantar fasciitis, knee problems, and tennis elbow are just a few of the many conditions that can be resolved quickly and permanently with ART. These conditions all have one important thing in common: they are often a result of overused muscles.

How do overuse conditions occur?

Over-used muscles (and other soft tissues) change in three important ways:

* acute conditions (pulls, tears, collisions, etc),
* accumulation of small tears (micro-trauma)
* not getting enough oxygen (hypoxia).

Each of these factors can cause your body to produce tough, dense scar tissue in the affected area. This scar tissue binds up and ties down tissues that need to move freely. As scar tissue builds up, muscles become shorter and weaker, tension on tendons causes tendonitis, and nerves can become trapped. This can cause reduced range of motion, loss of strength, and pain. If a nerve is trapped you may also feel tingling, numbness, and weakness.

What is an ART treatment like?

Every ART session is actually a combination of examination and treatment. The ART provider uses his or her hands to evaluate the texture, tightness and movement of muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and nerves. Abnormal tissues are treated by combining precisely directed tension with very specific patient movements.

These treatment protocols - over 500 specific moves - are unique to ART. They allow providers to identify and correct the specific problems that are affecting each individual patient. ART is not a cookie-cutter approach.

What is the history of Active Release Techniques?

ART has been developed, refined, and patented by P. Michael Leahy, DC, CCSP. Dr. Leahy noticed that his patients’ symptoms seemed to be related to changes in their soft tissue that could be felt by hand. By observing how muscles, fascia, tendons, ligaments and nerves responded to different types of work, Dr. Leahy was able to consistently resolve over 90% of his patients’ problems. He now teaches and certifies health care providers all over the world to use ART.]
http://www.activerelease.com/about.asp

and the Google list results -
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q...e+&btnG=Search

[astern]

My Feldenkrais sessions

This helped me a great deal.

[johannakat]

My feldenkrais is also helping me make some real, permenenat feeling progress, However, it took a while (2mo?) for me to see any, and it is still just a glimpse of what could be. Medicare may not let you get PT for that long.

Cranio-sacral is very good for headaches. I saw significant improvement with 1 treatment.

GOod luck to you

Johanna

[MelissaLH]

Fern, while I have not tried Active Release Technique for my own neck problems, I did for a foot injury a couple of years ago and it was amazing on it. I did have to go 2 or 3 times a week for about four months, tapering down to once every week or two at the end. It's similar to myofascial release, except that adhesions within the muscles, tendons, and nerves are broken down as well, and it's an active motion, meaning the affected joint is often moved during the process, as described above.

My only concern would be if your pain is coming solely from your cervical spine, but perhaps ART has a protocol for that, too. Mostly chiropractors do it, and I do believe there are a fair number around the Twin Cities. You might want to try more than one practitioner; I saw one in Minnesota and another while out-of-state, and must say the difference between them was amazing. One guy was a relative beginner, the other an expert! The expert did in two sessions what the other guy had been trying to do for three months!

I agree that Feldenkrais would be something to try, too. If anything, it'll relax you!

[finz]

myofascial release was key for me

[fern]

good suggestions everyone; thank you.

i guess i hadn't realised that i am not a novice to PT. I have done the myo-fascial, the Edgelow and also cranial sacral, feldenkreis, osteophpathic and several others incl a nameless one invented and taught to my PT by a non-english speaking wmn in China who does the PT/massage primarily w/her feet. Oh, and then the one w/the asian bone doctor in SanFr chinatown, but that was more like a hard driving, pouncing massage--he'd stand on a chair above you and drop down on you and also pull my arms and hands out saying he was addressing the nerve problem of TOS, and then follow the massge for nerve pain with plasters of very smelly stuff --sorry I digress. (no appts but an interesting wait at the drop-in clinic filled w/no other Caucasians but hopefully an occasional bi-lingual person to help communicate). iAnd I've been looking for the name of one type of PT massage that worked for so-called tendonitus a long time ago but I never found a name. In this case the PT worked out adhesions in my arm in a painful way travelling up and down my arm while he had me rotate my wrist in various directions; that type gave me a few years of good results until the next bout of disfunction came along.

I did see an excellent Chiro 4 yrs ago who had his own really cool massage/PT technique but the appts were only a few minutes long. (Hendrickson method - hendricksonmethod.com). Then you could pay addl for a massage therapist to provide a longer treatment but the cost was quite high for all of it. And after being away from work for so long high out-of-pocket is a big drag.


My Qs are this: I'm on a Medicare plan and they allow only manipulation from a Chiropractor (no Xrays or other treatments). Do you think I'd find a PT who does ART or another solution?

I went to my initial 1st appt w/a traditional PT (trigger points, ...) and after something new to me hands-on massage like treatment she had me do something that seemed like a Feldenkreis lesson--stabilizing/strenthening the neck by having me look 20-25% of my limit in each direction and returning connected to breathwork. She also showed me a subtle core-strenthener exercise after she iced inside mouth at the jaw -- which reminded me of another type of PT/massage I had that comes from Florida (something like St John's if I recall). AND She provided some hands-on during the 1st visit which is good; often they limit the 1st visit to eval.

I was thinking I'd try this PT for the rest of the year as it's almost December and I haven't had ANY PT yet. What's good: I can get into see her easily; I have all my Medicare dollars to spend (1,700); and best of all this facility has only 3 PTs and the appts are always w/the same one and they are always 1 full HOUR. I've seen PT places changing over the years and no matter what the technique, I think that 1 HR hands on is worth a lot! It's too soon to eval the effectiveness but my headache went away for a few minutes before I flared and felt naeseous for a bit(typical for me to flare at first). What's bad is that Medicare only allows PT for new or acute conditions, the patient is s... OutOfLuck for chronic conditions.

so, thanks and more insights appreciated.