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The ACT has three levels of education for massage:
- A certificate IV in Massage Therapy (these therapists are trained to perform relaxation massage only);
- A diploma in Remedial Massage (these therapists are trained to assess and treat basic aches and pains); and
- An advanced diploma of Soft Tissue Therapy - exclusive higher education to Canberra. These therapists are highly trained to assess, treat and manage your aches, pains AND injuries – sporting or workplace. They have extensive assessment and treatment skills in all forms of injury. And if they don’t have the necessary skills to treat you, they have the referral skills to send you to someone who can.
People who present with their complaint are assessed via the most appropriate tests according to the person’s presentation. This may include posture, biomechanical, range of movement, neural and other tests that help identify the most likely cause of pain or injury.
If the assessment is consistent with pain or injury that is better dealt with other health professionals (sports physicians, podiatrists, etc) then we will refer you to the most appropriate person. Otherwise we will treat accordingly.
Depending on the pain or injury, a number of modalities may be utilised. Most commonly the techniques will be hands on massage type techniques.
- Trigger point therapy for the alleviation of trigger points
- Myofascial (muscle and fascia) therapy for flexibility/mobility of the connective tissues of our body, or for alleviating fibrous adhesions and decreasing the severity of scars
- Broad handed techniques for reducing swelling or inflammation
- Frictions for the ridding of adhesions between fascial layers, muscles, compartments and the like. Frictions also promote healing in tendon pathologies as well as decreasing pain perception.
- Sustained pressure (digital pressures) to alleviate hypertonic (tight)areas within muscle and fascia
- Other techniques such as ART (Active Release Techniques), Myofascial Release and deep tissue massage are all derivatives of the techniques above. They are NOT unique techniques with unique results.
- Numerous stretching techniques may be employed. During a treatment session, therapists may use static stretches to alleviate an area assessed as excessively tight.
- Therapists may use PNF stretches (proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation) to decrease the tone in a muscle or muscle group that is assessed as being too ‘tight’.
- Dynamic stretches may be utilised to alleviate symptoms of DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness), the soreness felt one to two days after excessive, new or eccentric exercise
- Muscle Energy Technique (MET) is now a common technique used by a number of therapies. The Osteopaths designed the technique some 100 years ago but like many techniques these days, it is used by many therapies. MET is the use of light contractions by the client in very specific directions to alter joint restriction and range by altering the resting length of local musculature
Depending on assessment findings, some people will be given certain exercises to increase strength or simply to ‘wake up’ particular muscles that may be weak or simply not being used well by the person. Clinic 88 has two Exercise Scientists to assist in difficult cases.
Functional Fascial Taping®
is a technique designed by Ron alexander who worked with the Australian Ballet for 10 years. It is a technique that utilises tape to alter pain perception and muscle firing patterns.See this website for further details - http://www.fft.net.au/
Probably the most important part of any treatment plan is the advice given to the client. Within each treatment a treatment plan will be suggested to the client. This may range from a single treatment to a referral to the suggestion of a few treatments.
To book an appointment for soft tissue therapy, you can use our online booking form
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