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You are knocked out on the bed because of a hard day’s work.
Most likely, nothing can awaken you, not even the noisy barking of your
neighbor's dog or the chilly breeze caressing your skin. However, you wake up to
those pins and needles sensation on your right hand.
It is actually a typical situation especially for those with carpal tunnel
syndrome (CTS). The carpal
tunnel of your wrist contains the median nerve that has been compressed
while your have flexed your wrist. If you have a condition that leads to
swelling, the swelling may in turn pinch the median nerve and thereby bring
about CTS.
Over time there have been several treatments for the carpal tunnel syndrome.
A lot of people may want to resort to surgery because of the quick remedy it
offers. However, medical practitioners would advise that choosing
conventional methods is better for many reasons.
Here are some of the best carpal tunnel massage techniques for relief and
relaxation:
NEUROMUSCULAR MASSAGE is a form of carpal tunnel massage that is applied to
individual muscles. It is used to increase blood flow, reduce pain and
release pressure on nerves caused by injuries to muscles and other soft
tissue. Neuromuscular massage helps release trigger points, intense knots of
tense muscle can also "refer" pain to other parts of the body. Relieving a
tense trigger point in your back, for example, could help ease pain in your
shoulder or reduce headaches.
ROLFING seeks to re-educate your body about posture. When posture is poor,
it can be reflected in a number of health problems, such as backaches,
headaches and joint pain. This type of carpal tunnel massage
seeks to realign and straighten your body by working the myofascia, the
connective tissue that surrounds your muscles and helps hold your body
together. The ten-session, head-to-toe Rolfing program used to be rather
painful, but new techniques that employ a therapist's hands and elbows are
quite tolerable and just as effective at improving your posture.
HELLERWORK is an offshoot of Rolfing that adds both mental and movement
re-education to the physical work. In a series of 11 sessions from this type
of carpal tunnel massage, you get instruction on how to break bad posture
habits and you also get a massage that focuses on returning your muscles and
other tissue to their proper positions. The results can be dramatic.
SWEDISH MASSAGE uses soothing, tapping and kneading strokes to work the
entire body, relieving muscle tension and loosening sore joints. Therapists
of this carpal tunnel massage use five basic strokes, which anyone can learn
and use on themselves and others. They are effleurage (stroking);
petrissage (muscles are lightly grabbed and lifted); friction (thumbs and
fingertips work in deep circles into the thickest part of muscles;
tapotement (chopping, beating, and tapping strokes); and vibration (fingers
are pressed or flattened firmly on a muscle, then the area is shaken rapidly
for a few seconds).
CRANIOSACRAL THERAPY focuses on the skull and spinal column. Therapists use
very gently pressure no more than the weight of a nickel to massage the
bones, membranes and fluids that support and bathe your skull and spinal
column. The theory is that these manipulations will reduce tension and counteract any physical trauma you may have
experienced to your head over the years.
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