Remarkable changes in students at Fascial Stretch Therapy™ workshops
September 30th, 2010Posted by chris @ 8:15 pm | No Comments
Neal (name changed to protect identity) was an Olympic bobsledder and is now a highly trained strength and conditioning coach and acupuncturist. He came to our Fascial Stretch Therapy Level I Lower Body workshop earlier this week on 9/24/10 in Toronto because highly respected colleagues told him “just go”. Neal never knew that by registering for this course, his personal and professional life was about to change for the better, in ways he never thought possible, forever.
When I asked for a volunteer to do a “body read” (aka static and dynamic postural eval), Neal stepped forward and I immediately knew that this athletic warrior would be a great choice. His history was complex:
- 1987 right hamstring tear: undiagnosed, untreated; chronic tweaks at mid-belly; now 3/10 pain.
- 20 yrs chronic bilateral (now right 6/10 pain; left 3/10 just standing) plantar fasciitis; “orthotics don’t work”
- “Many yrs ago” right shoulder dislocated, was treated and was told had labral tear.
- Chronic Concussion Syndrome (CCS) x 20 yrs: short term memory dysfunction, headaches, sleep deprivation, irritable bowel, etc.
- poor hydration
A brief summary of significant findings I observed in front of Neal’s classmates was:
- externally rotated feet & increased weight bearing bilaterally on the forefoot (left>right)
- atrophy right thigh and lower leg
- bilateral hyperextended knees
- short right lateral line (high iliac crest, low shoulder)
- anterior pelvic tilt
- right lateral tilt of neck & right rotated head
- squat: (+) “butt squint”; loses pelvic neutral at 90 degrees; decreased foot width
- gross spinal AROM decreased 75% forward bend due to right hamstring pain; 25-50% decreased other ranges due to stiffness.
After giving Neal the correct verbal cues and visual imagery for a more balanced posture, he stated that his plantar pain decreased to a 1/10 and was no loner “burning”. That corrected his hyperextended knees and pelvic tilt. After Ann Frederick did the lower body Fascial Stretch Therapy protocol on him and I had him bend forward again, his range increased an additional 50% with the right hamstring being pain-free and only limited by tightness. He said that his plantar fasciae were pain-free and just a little tight and that he couldn’t wait to see how and if he would sleep better. The next morning when he came in smiling he said “I haven’t slept that good in 20 years” and the following day he told me that his chronic daily morning diarrhea was gone.
Naturally Neal was not only extremely delighted with what had occurred in his body but also for the increased potential in helping his clients. Needless to say, he’s coming back this weekend to finish his upper body training for certification.
I told the class that because of Neal’s CCS and all of his associated symptoms, his central nervous system is a fundamental part of the problem that was being addressed. We were able to help stimulate his parasympathetic system, remove all the unnecessary guarding associated with his pain and stiffness, improve oxygenation of his deprived tissue, improve daily function by eliminating pain in gait and bending over and get him to start the process of healing with restful sleep after a 20 year deficit.
These are the kinds of amazing things that happen in every single one of our workshops – personal and professional transformation. For more information, please go to http://www.stretchtowin.com/stretchtowininstitute.
By Chris Frederick, PT, PSI
Courses: www.stwinstitute.com
http://budurl.com/STWIFacebook
http://twitter.com/ChrisAndAnn
http://www.LinkedIn.com/in/chrisfrederickstretchtowin
New graduates: Level I Certified Fascial Stretch Therapists – Toronto, Canada Sept. 27, 2010
