It is your birthright to live a pain free and active life without limitations -Pete Egoscue
The Posture Therapy we use is simple and the results are amazing!
We are certified by the Egoscue University:
Our therapy is based on The Egoscue Method of Posture Therapy. Founded by Pete Egoscue (pronounced E-gos-cue) in 1978, The method uses a series of gentle exercises and stretches to correct misalignments and reintroduce proper body mechanics. Through performing an individually designed Egoscue exercise (e-cise) menu daily, clients take personal responsibility during their road to recovery. And, once postural deviations are corrected (by strengthening weak muscles and elongating tight or atrophied muscles) Postural Alignment Therapy permanently relieves chronic pain as muscles learn to perform their proper functions and to hold the body in a posturally-sound position. A reduction in pain is often felt after just one session; however, a client’s full recovery is dependent on adherence to one’s daily exercise menu.
Understanding how we stop your pain:
The Postural Alignment Therapy that we use recognizes that fundamental anatomical, physiological and biomechanical principles govern the human musculoskeletal system. With only very rare exceptions, each person is born with certain core design characteristics that serve as a strong, resilient and efficient operational platform. By using a blueprint of this extraordinary platform as a guide, the goal of the Method is to eliminate disparities that can occur when injuries or negative lifestyle conditions affect the way the musculoskeletal system actually moves as opposed to its underlying structural parameters. By restoring muscular balance, skeletal alignment and the harmonious interplay of internal systems, the body takes a quantum leap in healing power, stamina and physical capability. The Postural Alignment Therapy is not a form of treatment that chases after short term, symptomatic relief. Rather, symptoms provide a common sense starting point, a working frame of reference based on each individual’s unique combination of strengths and limitations. Our primary objective applies to everyone we seek to help—to eliminate musculoskeletal system disparities and the resulting postural dysfunctions that interfere with pain-free living.
A key part of the “blueprint” we refer to is familiar to all health professionals—it is known as the standing normal anatomical position. Without being overly technical the hip, knee and ankle joints are aligned vertically in paired stacks, each of which is subdivided by three horizontal parallel planes that extend through the joint pairs, creating what amounts to a partial dynamic load-bearing grid. The grid’s structure is completed by the shoulder joints which are in a functional interactive relationship with the major joints below instead of being aligned vertically like the others, although they too (the shoulders) operate individually and as a pair on a fourth parallel horizontal plane.Topped by the head, placed over the S-curved central spine that links the hips and shoulders, the grid allows upright posture and bipedal motion capable of a great range of movement. In addition, there is only temporary incidental rotation in the pelvis, legs, knees and ankles. (Think of rotation this way: Looking straight down on your upright body from above, draw a imaginary clock face with your head in the center facing twelve o’clock. In design position a straight line runs from hip joint to hip joint starting at nine o’clock and extending through the other hip joint, exiting at three o’clock. In such a configuration, there is no rotation, but if the lines depart from nine and three, say ten and four, rotation is present as the hips move off the design plane. This analogy works for the other load-bearing joints and the big leg bones. It is not unusual to find left-to-right pelvis rotation and right-to-left shoulder rotation.) The body is intended to rotate by twisting and turning, ascending and descending, in reaction to variations in the terrain and other temporary situations and then return to vertical alignment. When it remains stuck in rotation the integrity of the structure can be compromised
As you probably have concluded by now, the load-bearing grid we have just described means that vertical and horizontal alignment is all-important to both the musculoskeletal system’s structural integrity, smooth functioning and full, pain-free capability.
An individual whose body deviates from this design must do so for a reason. That reason is, (in cases that do not reflect past injuries), a muscular imbalance in strength and/or flexibility. An individual’s standing, static posture provides essential information to our therapists in predicting what the body will do as it moves. These predictions can be confirmed and often reinforced by observing the client’s gait, the way he or she strides forward, turns and executes other routine maneuvers. In the process, changes in muscle tension/length may be detected, along with atrophy of underutilized muscles or damage to over-used muscles that results when one group of muscles is repeatedly substituted for another that is more appropriate to the task. Such postural anomalies, we describe them in general as “dysfunctions,” directly impact joint mechanics.
The impact of postural changes affects individuals in different ways and at different rates. A person’s age, activity level, occupation and weight are just some of the factors that will help determine where and to what extent a person will be affected anatomically. What is certain is that a given individual is highly susceptible to specific symptoms. The process begins with an alteration of normal joint mechanics. This alteration, or compensation, leads to a decrease in performance. That decrease in performance could be expressed in the way you deliver a curve ball to a person having difficulty rising from a chair. Often these changes go unnoticed because the body unknowingly avoids the pain stimulus or the extra muscular demand. The mechanical changes eventually manifest themselves into a variety of pathologies and disorders if allowed to continue. These can include, but are not limited to, inflammatory responses to overstressed tendons and bursa, non-congruency of joints surfaces, unequal loading of the intervertebral discs, laxity of ligaments, muscle pain and ischemia.
These problems are not limited to the musculoskeletal system. As the foundation of the body is removed from its most efficiently functioning position, the nervous, circulatory, respiratory and digestive systems can all be affected. The internal organs can become misarranged or compressed, neural pathways are disrupted or impinged and venous and arterial blood flow can be compromised. Any one or a combination of these scenarios can contribute to a multitude of medical problems.
How we are different than anything you’ve tried:
Here at CT Pain Free, when we are presented with a symptomatic client, our initial assessment is markedly different than that of an orthopedist or physical therapist. Conventional procedure would entail evaluation of exactly which structures are involved and then developments of a plan to provide symptomatic relief through all available modalities (i.e. drugs, electric stimulation, therapeutic exercise, massage, etc.) Then a plan for rehabilitation would focus specifically on the affected area and, if applicable, the joints above and below. Our assessment is to ignore the symptom as it relates to the cause of the pain. As mentioned previously the symptom never dictates our approach to therapy, but it is instead a temporary limitation. The body is a highly integrated structure. By focusing on an area of pain or abnormality (i.e. edema, muscle tension), we are ignoring the rest of the factors in a very large equation. The compensation that has occurred as a result of the individual’s dysfunction has appeared as a symptom in another area of the body. It is possible that the cause of a particular symptom is a structural/mechanical problem on the other side of the body.
As well as being a highly integrated structure, the body has a tremendous capacity for self-healing. To effectively facilitate that healing, we must first remove the noxious stimulus that has disrupted normal function. This is a major premise of Postural Alignment Therapy.
An individual who has experienced either some sort of trauma or who has had surgery or both is not beyond benefit from Postural Alignment Therapy. This individual has had some external dysfunction placed upon their existing dysfunction. The combinations of the layers of dysfunction can seriously impede the healing process. Cases in which surgery is performed to accommodate a chronic symptom will have the same outcome as therapy performed with the same goal. It will not impact the cause of the symptom and therefore the symptom will return. Traditional rehabilitation following trauma or surgery following trauma is often much slower than expected and both client and doctor are unhappy with the recovery. This is because although the trauma created the symptom, or accelerated its appearance, the body’s structural/mechanical dysfunction will not allow it to heal optimally.
The noxious stimulus is never removed. Even if a person has been physically altered due to surgery or trauma, the rest of the body is not relieved of its responsibility to execute its function. A body that lacks one of its components (i.e. meniscus, fused vertebrae), now more than ever needs the rest of the body to function as efficiently as possible to minimize the deficiency imposed upon it.
We must then return to our “blueprint”. The individual is visually evaluated with the aid of a plumb line and background grid. The therapist who is highly trained to recognize structural and mechanical deviations of the body as a whole and does so without the use of diagnostic machines or specific manual muscle tests. Based on the client’s self reported history and the therapist’s observations, a series of functional demand exercises are developed. These exercises are designed to address the muscular imbalances and dysfunction leading to this individual’s structural deviations.
The exercises emphasize the deeper muscles of the axial skeleton and pelvis as well as the more superficial muscles. They require no special equipment and are designed to strengthen the body functionally. Our primary source of resistance is the person’s body weight and the force of gravity. Our therapists do not administer “hands on” therapy. The client is instructed in a series of personalized exercises and then is expected to continue them on their own at home. Modifications are readily made whenever necessary. The home program prevents the client from developing a dependency on someone else while pursuing their own well being. Instead, they assume responsibility for their own health. This is another major premise of Postural Alignment Therapy.
The exercises alone are not the sole determining factor in improving structural/mechanical function. There are three primary components:
1. The application of specific exercises to a given individual’s dysfunction. We have a catalog of over 400 different exercises.
Only those exercises that apply to that individual will be of benefit.
2. The sequencing of the exercises within a given routine is critical. Each therapy session has a given objective. That objective can only be reached through a properly designed menu. The exercises must be sequenced such that one exercise prepares the body for the next and that a successive exercise does not negate a prior exercise.
3. The exercises are performed for an average of seven days. At this point we re-evaluate the client and redesign the routine accordingly. Often the exercises are of low demand and as the neuromuscular efficiency improves, the exercises become less effective. Therefore, the body must be put under an increased or varied demand to adjust to the changes that has occurred as a result of the prior routine. This provides the means to continued progress. Clients on the average are seen once a week for eight weeks.
Postural Alignment Therapy has had enormous success in helping people overcome their physical ailments. It is a technique that is attractive to many people because it is a common sense approach to the human body. The individual can see and feel the physical changes that take place as a result of their efforts. Associated with that is an increased feeling of confidence that accompanies the improved health that he or she is responsible for. A major concern of health care today is that of reduced costs and prevention. Therapy requires no special equipment or dependency on anyone other than you. Because we do not treat the symptom, but instead look to restore optimum function to the body, the implications toward prevention are obvious and very serious.
We truly welcome the opportunity to help you get your life back!
YOU CAN BE PAIN FREE!
CALL TODAY: (203) 378-5501
