Taking Responsibility For Your Health Through Myofascial Release (MFR)

Our last three articles explained the groundwork of how the fascia system works in our bodies, how MFR can help your specific problems and the emotional component of our physical restrictions.

Fascia is very densely woven covering, which interpenetrates every muscle, bone, nerve, artery and vein as well as all of our internal organs including the heart, lungs, brain and spinal cord. …  It is actually one structure that exists from head to foot without interruption. …  Fascia also plays an important role in the support of our bodies since it surrounds and attaches to all structures. These structures would not be able to provide the stability without the constant pull of the fascial system. …   [from John F. Barnes, P.T.]

I’m sure you have all heard the phrases “muscle memory” and “tissue memory” sometime during the past several years.  We are learning more and more about the science of the mind-body connection and even medical doctors are becoming supportive of this correlation.

So, it only seems logical that more and more people are turning toward the healing modalities that address both the physical body and the emotional body, such as Craniosacral therapy, Essential Oil Therapy, Energy Work, Myofasical Trigger Point Therapy and Myofasical Release.

Any of these types of therapies can address the emotional body, but only if we are willing take responsibility for our own healing.

Most people are used to going to a spa or having someone come to their house to “massage” them and work out the tight muscles.  We are used to lying on a massage table and allowing the therapist to manipulate our bodies and we can sink into a quiet and blissful space.  The massage is over in an hour (or longer) and we feel restful, calm and ready to go back into our crazy world.

Sounds heavenly, right? 

However, the next day, our bodies are back to their same stressed-out state, and not much has changed, except maybe our bank account is a little smaller.

So, you are thinking maybe there is something else out there.  You have some nagging suspicion that you are missing something important about your health.  Well, you are correct.  What is missing - is YOU - you and your capacity to heal yourself. 

Yes, of course, if we break our leg – we go to the hospital for a cast.  Be practical about your injuries.  But, if you remember the last MFR article about the emotional component of our traumas and injures, you will recall that the emotions that were present during each and every trauma and injury, are stored in the fascia.  At each moment of impact or trauma, the fascia remembers the exact pattern of our bodies as we experienced that trauma.  Then, over time, these patterns of trauma stored in our fascia, create their own dysfunction patterns of walking, standing, sitting, sleeping and just “being”.  Hence, we end up with our current health conditions and illnesses.

When we are finally serious about releasing these patterns, we must first acknowledge our responsibility in our own health, healing and recovery.  Once we acknowledge that we can have a say-so in our wellness, then we can approach our mind, body and spirit as one and take steps to heal them as a unit. 

When you choose Myofasical Release as one of your healing modalities, you take an active role in the session, instead of just laying there.  You will learn to recognize the signals from your body when it needs to shake, twitch, vibrate, move (unwind) and most importantly, get in touch with the emotion that is holding a pattern of dysfunction.  Once you learn to allow your body to do what it needs to do to heal, your sessions will assist your healing by leaps and bounds.

However, please remember that participating in MFR work is like peeling an onion.  As you release the outer layers, there are plenty of layers underneath to work with.  It is the journey, not the destination.

If you would like to find a Myofascial Release Therapist in the Los Angeles area, please visit my website listed below.  If you would like to find a Myofascial Release Therapist outside the Los Angeles area, please visit John F. Barnes, RPT ‘s website: www.myofascialrelease.com and go to “therapists”.  

Frances Nicolais, LMT
MFR Therapist and Instructor
www.kneadedexperience-la.com