At Personal Best we have a team of physio’s and remedial massage therapists with different skills, experience and interest areas. We recognise each other’s strengths and work together to get the best results for our patients. Sometimes your physio may recommend remedial massage as part of your treatment plan so I thought it may be helpful to explain how that helps you!
Often (but not always) your physio treatment involves 2 or 3 stages or phases. The first phase is usually reducing pain and inflammation and involves restoring movement to the sore or injured area. This requires safe exercises and specific hands-on techniques, identifying tight or stiff structures and working on those. Remedial Massage complements physio well here because your physio might be focusing on getting a stiff and sore joint moving, and your massage therapist on finding the stiff or tight muscles, fascia or other soft tissues. These things go hand in hand.
The second phase of recovery usually involves restoring strength and function – you are usually working through a graded strengthening or activity program where you are doing a little bit more each week. An example of this would be a shoulder patient moving from 1, to 2 ,to 3kg in their shoulder exercise, or a knee patient moving from step ups, to adding weight, to a higher step. In stage 2 the intensity of your exercises increase each week and it is not unusual to get some muscles stiffness and soreness associated with this. This is a normal part of the recovery process and remedial massage is great for relieving this sort of soreness and stiffness.
The third phase of recovery involves return to normal activities and for most patients this means doing more variety of activities. At this stage you are usually feeling pretty good and wondering why you have a follow-up appointment booked – it is extremely important that you attend your follow-up massage appointment as this is what keeps you pain-free (along with your exercise program). Often your remedial massage therapist can identify and treat minor problems before they turn into acute pain that sends you back to your physio!
If you are looking for a Remedial Massage Therapist to help keep you out of pain, call Mary at our front desk on 6056 6616 and make an appointment for a day and time that works for you! We have appointments Monday through to Friday with either Rachelle or Emma to help get you moving better and back on your feet in no time!
