Massage Warsaw- Massage Therapy – Warsaw Acupuncture

Category: Acupuncture

  • Acupuncture in the Western World

    I just wrote a comment on a blog regarding acupuncture.  The author of the blog was arguing that oriental medicine is turning into a fad whereby people are turning to it and trusting that it works without looking into any evidence supporting it.  That people are becoming leery of western medicine simply because it is western.  I wrote back the following words and wasn’t sure if it would be published so I figured I should at least put them in here.  If you would like to see the blog article to which I am referring, click here.

    Yes, there is a trend or a fad that people are seeking out oriental medicine and accepting its effectiveness without due diligence, but remember that for the past 100+ years there has been a trend or a fad of people only accepting western medicine without any due diligence.  But perhaps this excitement over this new fad is just part of a natural order of things.  The excitement that occurs when people’s eyes have been opened.  When people can see the great possibilities that didn’t exist before.

    As for the effectiveness of oriental medicine.  Let’s first start off with understanding that the WHO, the National Institute of Health and the British Medical Association all endorse acupuncture as an effective form of treatment.  I hope you believe that these organizations are swayed more by research than emotion.

    Remember also that acupuncture has only been researched for the past 2 decades.  Also important is the lack of money being poured into acupuncture research.  Truth is that studies proving that acupuncture works don’t make anybody rich, unlike studies regarding pharmaceuticals.

    Lastly, my hope is not that oriental medicine replace “modern” medicine, but rather that MD’s and the rest of the medical establishment learn to play nice and work together with other health care practitioners.  A patient that has a wider range of treatment available is surely more likely to find health.

    Ken

  • The Beauty of Combining Massage & Acupuncture

    My favourite method of treating is becoming the combination massage & acupuncture session.  From what I have seen, it gives a better chance of success for relieving chronic or acute pain and also gives a more pain free, comfortable release compared to massage therapy alone.

    In a typical combination Acupuncture & Massage session, I do a half hour acupuncture treatment followed by a half hour massage.  There are some real benefits to this such as:

    1. An Easier, Gentler Treatment Experience. This sounds counter-intuitive.  How can poking somebody with needles be gentler than massaging?  I start with acupuncture because it does a great job of setting the tone for the treatment.  The acupuncture treatment triggers a chain reaction that releases endorphins, analgesics and anti inflammatories into the problem areas.  After the needles are out, typically the client is more relaxed, the pain is lessened, the inflammation is reduced and the muscles have decreased spasm.  At this point, the client will not feel as much pain and discomfort from the massage.  After the needles have done the bulk of the work lessening the acuteness of the pain, the massage can be gentler focusing on flushing out toxins and stretching the muscles back to their normal length.
    2. The client benefits from each technique’s unique strengths. There is no one approach or technique that does all for all people.  Massage is excellent for  increasing circulation to an area.  Stretching techniques are great for returning short muscles back to their normal length.  Fascial techniques are perfect for getting rid of fascial restrictions or scar tissue.  Reflexive neurological techniques are wonderful for releasing stubborn muscle spasms. And acupuncture is great at reducing inflammation, speeding up the healing process, decreasing pain and working deep muscles that are difficult to access.  Through a combined approach, the client has the best chance of achieving health.
    3. Acupuncture decreases inflammation. When a client is in acute pain there is usually some  inflammation in the area.  The inflammatory response releases neuro transmitter chemicals which heighten any pain response.  This means that the painful area can be tricked into feeling extreme pain from even a light touch, which makes it difficult with massage to get at the root of the problem until later treatments.  Acupuncture, on the other hand, goes deep directly to the problem area and starts reducing the inflammation right away allowing the massage treatment more freedom in targeting the problem areas.
    4. The combination approach allows me the freedom to give the most effective treatment that I can. I have found a few different approaches that are absolutely ideal for treating certain conditions.  For example, in acute pain between shoulder blades caused by rhomboid muscle spasm, a 3 minute application of reflexive stretching techniques can resolve most of the acute pain almost immediately.  Likewise, directed acupuncture techniques can often cause an immediate decrease in acute pain in certain types of SI joint dysfunction.
    5. Acupuncture can induce profound relaxation and stress relief. I have found that more people fall asleep on my table during acupuncture sessions vs massage sessions.  Acupuncture initiates a strong release of endorphins in most people causing deep relaxation and stess relief.  There are specific points I can target for stress relief sessions that bring about a very peaceful feeling and sets the stage perfectly for the massage session.
    6. Affordable.  The price of a 1  hour treatment of combined acupuncture & massage is $80 including GST.  The average for Toronto for those services separately is around $110.  As an RMT, I can bill any modality or treatment that falls under my scope of practice as “massage”.  Typically I bill combination treatments as massage therapy, which can be helpful for people that have extended health benefits for massage but not acupupuncture.  This practise is endorsed by the CMTO and insurance companies.

  • What is fascia?

    What is fascia?  If you’ve ever cooked chicken, you’ve probably noticed it. The thin, transparent, filmy material that covers the chicken meat.  Our muscles are covered in fascia.  Fascia covers every muscle and keeps the muscle together.  Fascia covers and protects every single muscle bundle or fascicle that makes up the muscle.  Fascia also covers every single muscle fibre or muscle cell that makes up the bundle,  It is like the framework or scaffolding that the muscle operates within.  Fascia holds and supports the muscle together giving it shape, form and function.  It also helps the muscles slide over each other with less friction.  The body is made up of over 600 muscles that layer over each other and criss cross each other.  Each muscle needs to slide over, under or beside its surrounding muscles without interference in order to function properly.

    Fascia has a few interesting properties too.

    • It is pound for pound stronger than steel.  In other words, unless you know how to treat it correctly it can and will be very difficult to get it to release.
    • Fascia is also the material that makes up tendons and ligaments.
    • It is not contractile.  That is, it doesn’t contract or relax the way a muscle does.
    • It can shrink or expand but we have little control over that.  It also seems to be emotional.  In times of emotional stress, fascia contracts and tightens around the muscle it is trying to protect.
    • When a muscle is hurt, as in a car accident or athletic injury, the muscle and fascia often tears.  This tear eventually heals the same way that a skin cut can heal.  However, the same way that the skin can be left with a thick, inflexible, sensitive scar, the muscle and fascia can also scar.

    The last point is why fascial work can be so important to healing sports injuries and traumatic injuries.  An inflexible scar in a muscle can do a few things:

    • It can remain short, tight and inflexible causing pain whenever the muscle tries to stretch to its full strength.  You might even notice a sharp almost tearing feeling when you try to stretch.
    • The scar can become adhesed or glued to the fascia of surrounding muscles.  This acts as a monkey wrench in the system.  None of the muscles that are adhesed can function pain free in their normal ranges with this.  For example, if a scar forms between your quads and your adductor/groin muscles you might notice that you don’t have the same strength or flexibility with either quad exercises or adductor exercises.  The reason is that those muscles are essentially glued together and pulling on each other each time you use them.

    So now we know that fascia is everywhere; it’s stronger than steel; it can scar; it can become glued to other muscles.  And for many people, it is the key to solving chronic pain from old injuries. I’ll have posts in the future about how I can treat fascial restricitons with active fascial release, rolfing, myofascial release technique and acupuncture.

  • Tingling or Numbness in Your Fingers

    tingling in handTingling (paresthesia) or numbness in your fingers is a common symptom that many don’t take seriously.  It may seem mildly annoying or even funny at times.  Most people at some time have experienced that sensation when we wake up in an odd position and find that our arm is numb, dead or lifeless.  We can flail it around it and it moves as if it weren’t a part of our body anymore.  We can smack it against the wall and still, we don’t feel any pain.   In this situation, we are experiencing a nerve impingement from lying in a way that almost all nerve signals to the arm are being blocked.  Luckily, this happens rarely for most people and disappears as soon as we wake up and start moving around.   The tingling or numbness we may feel in our fingertips on cold days or possibly every day is a less severe but more permanent type of nerve impingement that many of us suffer from.

    To understand how this works, think of a nerve as a garden hose.  Its job is to carry nerve signals or water to the muscles or garden.  If we step on the hose with all of our weight, we can cut off the water or nerve supply completely.  If we step on it a little bit, we can cut off a percentage of the water or nerve supply.  Consider that our garden needs water and that completely cutting off the water supply for a long period of time will kill everything that grows in the garden.  By the same token, restricting the water supply by 50% would have effects as well.  It may take more time, but eventually the plants may grow smaller than normal, or some may die off.

    Our bodies are similar. If the nerve supply to our arm is restricted or pinched for a long period of time we may notice that the affected arm has less strength, its muscles seem smaller, and it is more prone to injury or pain than the unaffected arm.  Often people with nerve impingements may develop tendonitis (ie. tennis elbow, golfer’s elbow) before they ever notice any serious tingling or numbness.

    I can perform some simple orthopedic tests to see if you are suffering from a nerve impingement and offer a treatment plan of massage, acupuncture and postural re-education to help relieve impingements such as carpal tunnel syndrome or thoracic outlet syndrome and restore normal nerve functioning.

  • Warsaw Massage Therapy and Acupuncture

    Warsaw Massage Therapy

    Massage Therapy or acupuncture can help relieve your chronic pain and give you a solitary moment of peace,  relieving “Warsaw stress”. Registered Massage Therapy, acupuncture and cosmetic acupuncture work by using the body’s own natural healing powers to leave you feeling healthier.

    As a Registered Massage Therapist (RMT), my focus is on therapeutic massage with  noticeable results.  I offer a variety of techniques including Swedish Massage, Acupuncture, Thai Massage, Sports Massage, Muscle Energy Technique, Rolfing, Myofascial Release Technique, Cranio Sacral and Visceral Techniques.

    Specialties:

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    Massage Therapy & Acupuncture Clinic in Central Warsaw

    Massage therapy or acupuncture sessions take place in a comfortable, safe environment where your health and well being is always put first. I am available for house calls to any location in central Warsaw that is near the subway . Click here to book an appointment.

    In the meantime, be sure to browse the Warsaw Massage Therapy Resource Centre located in the margin.   There are lots of exercise videos, and healthy tips for you.  Some of my newest articles and updates are listed in my massage blog below.

    Ken Shim, HBBA, RMT, CAMA