Orthopedic Massage Therapy Dover, NH

Orthopedic massage is a systematic and multidisciplinary approach to bringing the body into balance.  This can be used as a maintenance tool (very similar to a high end sports massage) or, where my passion lies, used as a specific set of tools to address specific problems with a person’s body.

In the maintenance or wellness model, the massage therapist starts by checking certain boney landmarks in the body to see if they are equal to the opposite side,  parallel or perpendicular in relation to the spine.  If the client started face up on the table, the therapist would check the feet to see if they were even, the hips at the asis,(anterior superior iliac spine) the top of the rib cage, the collar bone and the top two cervical vertebrae.  If discrepancies were found, the therapist would first address for facial adhesions then get more specific by checking individual muscles, tendons, ligaments and make sure the joints were moving appropriately by performing a range of motion. 

If the client came in with carpal tunnel, the therapist would check for shoulder height, as well as evenness of the cervical spine.  If any discrepancies were found, we would address first the fascia then the muscles and tendons to the neck and shoulders from where they begin to its ending point,  then work our  way down the arm in a similar format looking for imbalances in the fascia, muscles and tendons making sure the elbow is moving correctly.  Then we address the forearm,  carpal bones, and hands.  This clears a pathway to assure any restrictions in the nerve or blood supply are cleared before addressing the sight where the symptoms occur.  We have used this same approach for a host of different conditions with great success over the past decade.