Myofascial Release

Recently I spent some more time at The Jing Institute in Brighton, adding Myofascial Release to the therapies I can offer you...but what on Earth is fascia?! Well, to start with, Jing themselves describe it as follows...

"The fascia of the body is the tough connective tissue that holds us together - if you eat meat, the fascia is the white membrane like substance that surrounds the juicy bits you are trying to get at. Fascia has been described as a 3 dimensional body stocking that envelops each and every structure of the

body; the tiniest nerve has its own fascial sheath, as does the largest bone. If a magical substance existed that could dissolve everything in the body with the exception of the fascia, what would remain would be a complete representation of the body right down to the expression on the face."

How incredible is that?! Fascia is made of a mixture of Collagen, Elastin, and "ground substance" which is mostly water, and among other things it allows a slip and glide for all the structures throughout our body. But sometimes, without movement, the fascia can become stuck.

When fascia sticks it creates adhesions, and it prevents proper movement of the muscles. If the muscles can't move properly they will find another way to work, often putting stress onto different muscles, overworking them. So now we have a mixture of stuck fascia, misfiring muscles, and overworked muscles..!

So you can see how only working the muscles isn't the ideal way to help get you moving properly and reduce your pain! We need to include fascial work too...

But what does fascial work feel like?!

Well, there are 2 methods; Direct and Indirect...and both are wonderful to receive!

Indirect Fascial Work is very subtle, gentle, and slow. In order to sink into the fascial layers we need to concentrate and set our intention properly...after a few seconds your therapist may be able to feel your fascia moving and twisting...for me it feels like my hands are being pulled by magnets! Very bizarre and really cool! Once I've held your fascia in a gently stretched position for long enough we will feel a subtle "release" - it can feel like butter melting, or a warm rushing sensation in the area...or you'll naturally sigh, or visibly relax more.

Direct Fascial work is equally lovely to receive, but a totally different experience. Rather than waiting for the fascia to move, I work directly on your skin without any massage oil or wax, and force it to move. This can take the form of skin rolling, stretching, or "Rolfing" movements, and in some places may feel "rippy-burny" on the skin! Its usually a satisfying feeling, and makes a big difference to how you feel by the end!

Both of these techniques will usually be incorporated into your Jing massage sessions, in order to address your pain problems in the most comprehensive way possible. By treating the fascia as well as the muscles, and including a few different techniques, we have the best chance of making a marked difference to your pain patterns.