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Is A Tight Muscle Just A Tight Muscle?
by Korina Felkers, CMT, Reiki Master

Often, massage therapy clients arrive wanting to find respite from painful muscular conditions. A good massage can give a person tremendous relief; yet sometimes the original condition can return. To experience real recovery usually involves investigating the myriad of influences that act upon our lives.

Ideal physical health could be described as a feeling that your body is relaxed, strong, flexible, responsive, vibrant, and full of energy. In this ideal state, we move easily, we are able to do the things we love to do without being hampered by pain or dysfunction, and we just generally feel good.

If we are experiencing pain, limited movement, bad posture, aches, stiffness, injuries, tingling and numbness and other interference, massage therapy can be of great benefit. However, it is also important to look beyond the "tight muscle". What caused the "tight muscle", and how long has the symptom(s) been evident? It could be anything from being dehydrated for a period of time, to a specific injury occurrence, to the mental/emotional stress of losing a loved one. Usually it is a combination of elements that weave in and out of our lives in complex patterns. I work with clients to help them identify the variety of things that could be contributing to their discomfort. This holistic approach means the massage is more effective as well.

The body has a marvelous capacity for self-healing and transformation. We need only to create the right conditions for positive change to take place.