Connective tissue manipulation helping your body relax into a healthier state
Connective Tissue Manipulation.
Is performed by the Physiotherapist with the soft surface of the fingers to shift one level of skin on the layer underneath. This movement causes a quick, quick, stretch reflex, creating an impulse, which spreads out along the connective tissue. The individuals brain interpretes this reaction as if it were a ‘cut’ or a ‘abrasion’. The tighter the connective tissue the bigger the flex reflex and therefore the more intense the ‘cut’ feels to the patient. The reaction is a small reaction which passes through the fluid in the connective tissue and eases tension.
The lessening in tension surrounding the blood vessel walls lets more blood to flow into the injured area and so lessens the inflammation. Connective tissue manipulation helps in softening the connective tissue helps allow more motion to occur without causing irritation and therefore pain. Treatment often starts at a distance from the injured part slowly working towards the starting place of the damage. The benefits of Connective Tissue Manipulation are cumulative. Once the tension has been reduced by manipulation the reduction is sustained. Further reduction in connective tissue tension happens with every extra treatment.
The degree to which the reduction in connective tissue tension is held at is dependant upon the amount of stress added to the body by the patient’s lifestyle. Connective Tissue Manipulation is a skill learnt at postgraduate level in the United Kingdom and because of this it hasn’t travelled very quickly around the land. At the last calculation, there were only two dozen Physiotherapists in the United Kingdom actively carrying out Connective Tissue Manipulation.
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