In my ten years of giving massages, I have met many clients who have been dissatisfied with other massage therapists in regards to deep tissue work. I realize that people form and shape their beliefs about massage due to their past experiences. I feel that it is necessary for me to explain why and how I use deep tissue massage in my practice. I have heard many horror stories from people who have been badly bruised after a massage with other therapists. Deep tissue massage therapy is nothing more than the use of any number of massage techniques to effect the superficial and deeper muscles of the body. A therapist may use varying amounts of pressure with the thumbs, fists, forearms, and/or elbows and may move with, against, or perpendicular to the direction of a particular muscles fibers that are being worked on. Deep tissue work is supposed to be selected to release muscle knots or adhesions. My approach to deep tissue massage is to use it accurately. I feel for the knots and don't just blindly dig into people. I keep my movements slow and deliberate. I make sure to tell my clients that if they can not breath normally through my pressure or find themselves flinching from anything I do, it means the pressure is too much and they should verbalize their discomfort. Flinching and tensing are counter-active to what we are trying to accomplish, which is to relax and release tight bands of muscle. I will not simply drag my elbows over every square inch of someones back or grind them around someones hamstrings and call that a deep tissue massage. Deeper pressure is only used where I feel tightness or specific knots. I may also use some techniques where I compress a muscle knot with my fist or fingers and then move the associated joint through its range of motion, this is called myofascial release. Some people who like deep tissue massage have a high pain threshold. They may have some knots that do not hurt or are not actively bothering them and they are essentially numb to any amount of pressure. They will insist that deeper is better and expect to always be sore after a massage in order to call it effective. I assure those types of clients that this is not true. I can translate my entire body weight through the small surface area of my fingers or my bony elbow. This may remove the offending knot, but care must be taken not to buise the surrounding healthy tissue. My goal is only to work on the knot. Some people will bruise before they even perceive the pressure as being "too much," and sometimes not even then. Deep tissue massage therapy in my practice is about combining accuracy with increased pressure. I also employ other muscle movement techniques. I feel that Massage should never used to intentionally push people past their pain threshold or cause discomfort in the name of claiming a session to be effective. There may occasionally be some soreness after a massage but, it is not a goal of the session. Used judiciously deep-tissue massage can be effective in releasing knots or adhesions and be relaxing and enjoyable with minimal discomfort. Knots are areas of muscle that are tighter than surrounding fibers. They may also be referred to as trigger points. Adhesions are bands of scar tissue that bind two tissues together that should remain separate. They can be caused by trauma from injury or occur in recovery from surgery. |
| My Philosophy of Deep Tissue |
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