tory medications, possibly followed by or including physical therapy and a neck collar. You may have gone some other route – bed rest, massage, chiropractic, for instance. If you were lucky, some or all of that, combined with the hormones that are so available in the younger body, brought about sufficient healing of the fascial tissue so that the neck pain resolved. Not, you’ll notice, because the fascia was intention- ally engaged by the practitioner, but be- cause there was enough relaxation going on around the affected tissue that it could heal itself. Meanwhile, other pelvic muscles compensated for the compromised erector
attachments by elongating or shortening sufficiently to keep you upright, albeit with a slight tilt that might be noticeable to you as a shorter leg, or to a keen observer who’d see the small limp. You didn’t notice the pain in that area, because of the com- pensation. The constriction remained, but other muscles, not just on the pelvis but throughout the body contributed some of their resiliency to make up for the constric- tion.
The Glitch Arises So the situation remained for twenty
years or more. Over time, the entire mus- culature of the body adjusted — formed
many new dynamic movement patterns – to that original pelvic constriction, and is now protecting those patterns as the “right” patterns – the ones that work. Now, when you have decided to take on your workout program, the compromise shows up, because you’re demanding that all of your muscles, including that compromised area, give their fullest production. That lower erector spinae portion is called upon to extend, and it can’t because it’s still extended as far as it can go, so it sends up a signal: “I’m hurting! I’m giving all I’ve got! Stop! ”
So, What Then? All the exercise in the world, all the
adroit workouts will most likely only ex- acerbate the situation, certainly not im- prove it. What’s necessary is to address the fascial tissue in a way that effectively shifts the state from gel to sol, where it’s needed all over the body. It does no good to free up one area while all the rest are hung up while the body’s protecting the compensa- tory patterns. We know of four therapeutic ap-
proaches that do this. One is Bowen Therapy, a gentle method of manipulating the fascial state, designed with protocols that address the whole body. This is our therapy of choice. Another is Ortho-Bion- omy,® which works, but in our experience, works significantly more slowly. A third is Rolfing®, in which the skill of the practi- tioner is paramount, because he or she must actively deduce where and when to apply pressure – how long, how deep, for how many repeats. Finally, there is Relaxercise®, a form
of movement that you do yourself, a move- ment that, to be successful – and it is, very – demands no stretching, no pain, fine focus and a dedicated commitment on your part. It may be slower than the practitioner-administered methods, but it puts the power in your hands, not those of the practitioner.
By Kent McKeithan, McKeithan Pain Treat- ment Center, 1169 Edgebrook Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27106. McKeithan Pain Treatment Center (336-761-0501) is offering Relaxercise® classes, beginning at the Fulton Family YMCA in Winston-Salem, expanding soon into other areas. Visit www.
mckeithanptc.com.
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