by Heather Sabin Bryan PTA #15701 LMT #79159 MM #35592 | Jan 26, 2018 | Craniosacral Fascial Therapy, Myofascial Release
What Makes a New Years Resolution Fail? As the New Year is approaching and everyone begins to make their resolutions, lets think about making them today. Why wait? Isn’t any day just as good of a start as another? Why not begin now? Personally I do like to start something new on a Monday never a Friday. Why not sure, but what I do know is that I like to challenge myself to set new goals, dreams or aspirations anytime but certainly never on New Year’s Eve. I have always been one to not color inside of the lines in certain regards and this is one of them. Too much hype in what we are expected to do I suppose. This is a main aspect of Myofascial Release as well. There are no rules except never force, never lead. Setting a resolution on New Years’ eve seems forced to me and I was never able to maintain whatever resolution I had set for myself. This of course would lead to a path of self-disappointment and a sense of failure and definitely form restrictions with in myself and reinforce a dysfunctional belief systems. The main theme is to feel that there is something that no longer serves us, you, me and to make a resolution with one’s self to release it and make room, make space for something new.
I know that as I am so blessed to be an active member of a new way of life both personally and professionally through Myofascial Release. Myofascial Release (MFR) has benefited my life in more than just physical ways but in an entire approach to how I deal with life in general. So I made my first “resolution” last month to resume faithfully participation in not only self-treating but with a physical wellness program. Myofascial Release is not only an inward journey but external as well. The container that carries the core of who I am internally, needs to be physically able to carry such precious cargo, my heart and soul, my essence, my fascial system! I also have realized that the physical exercise that I place upon myself needs to come from wanting to FEEL better and NOT to look better! Hard truth is that I spent years upon years, hours upon countless hours of placing my body and fascia into harms way all in an effort to look at certain way. A way that was a belief system that reinforce aesthetics at any cost and not what was actually good for my body and all its systems. This type of belief system that was not in my best interest nor our childrens but we see time and time again repeat itself. So I am reinforcing a better way, a new belief system to me, for me, for my health and one that suites my fascia the best.
I would wish that maybe everyone make any time, any day, a day of new revelations and resolutions. If Tuesdays are your favorite days of the week then let it begin on Tuesday. If half way on your way to your resolution you realize that its not right, then modify it,change it. That is the beauty of not only the statement but another facet of the Myofascial Release principles. Make the resolution more fitting to becoming a way of life verses an absolute black or white, succeed or fail, right or wrong. Just like healing is not linear but is progressive, so are resolutions. Resolutions should be progressive and because we are not human and not perfect but are all daring to be great, they don’t have to be anything other than supportive verses restrictive and cause further harm to the fascial system of your life.
With love and hope much success and peace now and through all the New Years to come!
Heather Bryan, PTA, LMT
Myofascial Release and Wellness of Tampa Bay
Homepage
https://www.massagemag.com/therapeutic-insight-the-myofascial-release-perspectivewhat-makes-a-new-years-resolution-fail-6608/
by Heather Sabin Bryan PTA #15701 LMT #79159 MM #35592 | Dec 4, 2016 | Craniosacral Fascial Therapy, Myofascial Release |
CranioSacral Fascial Therapy Unites with MFR
CranioSacral Fascial Therapy unites with Myofascial Release and Wellness of Tampa Bay. I am blessed to be able to expand my knowledge, taking my training and therapeutic approach to treating clients young and not so young alike to a newer and deeper level, a whole new dimension. I am very excited to get to immerse myself into the best of both worlds with learning CranioSacral Fascial Therapy by Dr. Barry Gillespie D.M.D., M.S.D., L.M.T. whom has been trained himself by John F Barnes and John Upledger and combining with my trainings in Myofascial Release (the Barnes method). Dr. Gillespie has taken his skills and knowledge in Dentistry and combined it with training in Myofascial Release and Craniosacral Therapies which has resulted in the creation and development of CranioSacral Fascial Therapy. This hands on approach is safe, effective and treats both adults, pediatrics and infants including new born babies.
A Realization of Deeper Levels within the Fascial Web
A realization has been presenting more and more through my treatments of newborn babies that their little fascial systems which have restrictions just like adults do but the difference is the length of time they have been present and many times correct rather easily or do not take as much time as lets say an adult with a restriction that began at birth. I have begun to see how the restrictions of adults can and most times do begin as far back as in the womb and birth. The systems of these infants are in most cases easily in corrected or released from symptoms and dysfunction. When I began to look for further knowledge and to deepen my skills time and time again Dr. Gillespie and his approach came to the top of the list.
Beliefs and Philosophies for the Future of Healthcare
CranioSacral Fascial Therapy (CSFT or CFT) revolves around the belief that the newborn work redefines the global infant standard of care by resulting in:
Healthier Babies: This work significantly decreases the incidence of at least 15 diseases.
Smarter Babies: This work optimizes the function of the brain and spinal cord.
Stronger Babies: This work creates a “structural immunity” for active and growing children.
Happier Babies: Everyone on the planet loves a happy baby. We are the happy baby people. https://gillespieapproach.com/
I love that his philosophy that CFT therapist is “holding the Light for the unborn billions” as this philosophy falls in line with my belief that through traditional authentic Myofascial Release, lives can be changed and both CFT and MFR should be the way in which healthcare is delivered and not by forcing a system that cannot be forced and allowing the body to self correct. I along with many other MFR therapist hold the Light for the Future of all of Health Care not only in this country but the world.
by Heather Sabin Bryan PTA #15701 LMT #79159 MM #35592 | Jul 5, 2016 | Myofascial Release |
Myofascial Release Treats The Whole Person
Whole Healing Myofascial Release – Healing into Wholeness with Myofascial Release
Whole healing and healing into wholeness through myofascial release is not only possible but necessary. Whole Healing beyond just the part of you that hurts, beyond that one spot. Many times in life past and present we are viewed upon and treated by the traditional medical system based upon a specific pieces or part of ourselves. We see this doctor for this symptom, that doctor for that symptom, this other doctor or therapist for this other symptom and so on and so forth. This is a very myopic view point and we ourselves are conditioned to think of ourselves as such. “My Shoulder hurts” “I have a Head-ache” Maybe they are related. or “My Right Low Back Hurts” and “My Left Knee Hurts”, Maybe there are related. They very well could be related and there is hope, there is light at the end of the tunnel, the horizon looks bright. In the not too distance future there is a shift occurring from the traditional approach of treating the body from myopic parts and transitioning into treating the whole person. Fortunate for me and ultimately you, the shift that is happening comes in the form of Myofascial Release and comes to you from a Barnes trained specialist like myself.
The “Golden“ Standard of Myofascial Release
Myofascial Release is a broad term that describes many different types of manual therapy. Through both personal and professional experience, as well as the countless success stories heard and witnessed world wide, undoubtedly the Barnes Myofascial Release approach effectively and successfully treats the whole person, heals the whole person including the symptom . The John F Barnes Myofascial Release approach as taught by John F Barnes is a hands-on soft tissue technique that facilities the movement and healing of the fascial system as a whole. The “myofascial” or “fascial” system is a continuous 3-D web of connective tissue that surrounds, infiltrates, and connects every tissue, organ, and cell of our body from head to toe, skin to spine and all areas in between. The ultimate goal of Myofascial Release (MFR) is to help release fascial restrictions (e.g. scars, tissue damage, stress, trauma, birth injuries etc.) gently and over time to allow your body to properly realign and heal naturally, thus returning you and your body to normal function, movement and sensation. Fascia’s function is to provide support and structure to the body as well as work as a bracing mechanism from injuries much like a shock absorber.
For more information on Fascia and further information as to the specifics of (MFR) please visit https://www.mfroftampabay.com/about-myofascial-release/
The Golden Missing Piece of The Puzzle
The Barnes approach to Myofascial Release is not only the Golden Standard in (MFR) but it is the Golden Missing Piece in all of traditional approaches to healthcare. Fascia is a continuous web that responds to tensions in other areas of the body. It can be difficult to visualize the impact and importance of this beautiful tissue. An easier c
comparison is a bowl of jello with pieces of fruit floating in it. Each piece of fruit within the bowl of jello represents all the various muscles, bones and organs, while the jello represents fascia. Visualize the jello being jiggled or compressed which causes the whole bowl of jello to move and be affected as well. This is just how fascia responds and because of this very fact, we as Barnes trained Myofascial Release Therapist are treating and assisting the entire system to heal. One simply cannot treat only one aspect of the body, one piece without affecting the whole system, the whole person. You are more than parts, you are so much more and deserve to be treated as a whole person, body, mind and spirit.
Fascia is as Unique as Your Finger Prints
Myofascial Release 
treats the whole person, not just the parts, not just the symptoms. Traditional healthcare identifies with parts, with pieces, with symptoms and then places “Labels” upon them and then society wants to define you, me, us accordingly. We are more than a label! By definition, a “label” aka a “diagnosis” is a term for a collection of symptoms. Many times symptoms like pain, weakness, fatigue etc are the commonality between the various “Labels”. The label is then determined by the number or type of symptoms that you present with. I don’t know but in my most humble opinion the only label that I have is either my name, my gender and my species. I am not my neck pain, my shoulder pain, my whatever “fill in the blank”. Fascia is unique just like our finger prints. We all have finger prints and there are no two finger prints alike and so is the resulting restriction that occurs when the Fascia becomes injured or in a state of dis-ease and this is where symptoms begin to manifest. We both can have shoulder pain but the cause can arise from two totally different reasons or areas within the body that have responded to an event causing distortion. Please note this is not by any means to disregards any systemic illnesses or disease processes. This is an attempt to bring back a whole person approach to treating each of us. I want us all to broaden the views of our selves and our symptoms to a more global view, a whole system vantage point. It is when we begin to see the bigger picture of ourselves and what is going on within our bodies and begin to trust what we feel on the inside verses what the label describes us as.
You do have parts and you do have symptoms but they do not define you!
I would like to examine the various symptoms that are often felt in the various parts of the body but lets first examine the word Disease. Disease is a given name or label for a collection of symptoms. Many times we have to have a certain number of symptoms in order to qualify to earn the label of a given illness or disease. Did you know that most all diseases or “Label” have the same or very similar symptoms? Each disease, ilness or “Label” then has as a specific variant or two that might distinguish it from the others. As technology advances and the minds and views of the medical community broaden, Fascia and the manner in which the body is treated is the Barnes Approach to Myofascial Release is being accept solution to treatment and is “alternative no more“. So many “Labels” and/or symptoms are effortlessly released and melted away with the gentle sustained pressure used with Myofascial Release. This fact is why a Barnes trained therapist might be releasing your hips when you in fact came for the nagging left shoulder pain. We treat the whole person, at that includes the symptoms and looking and feeling further into the fascial system for the other areas of restriction or the root cause.
Treating the Whole You
Below is just a small comparison of some known symptoms associated with some of the more common Labels, Diseases. In addition, I am not stating that you should not seek out medical advice and intervention, I am just attempting to show how treating the whole person and not just a particular symptoms is going to provide some lasting relief for the whole you. Myofascial release if nothing else provides the body a way to release stresses and strains and bring an ease to the body, mind and spirit. I have looked at the symptoms of pain, numbness, tingling, weakness, loss of function, joint aches, muscle aches, swelling, fatigue, memory/brain difficulties, bladder and bowel difficulties, stomach difficulties, vertigo, visual difficulties, sleeping difficulties, respiratory difficulties, cardiac issues, emotional changes, and difficulty with movement. Fibromyalgia, Chronic Fatigue, Myofascial Pain Syndrome, Polymyalgia, MS, and Lyme all have all if not most of the same symptomologies of each other. Myofascial Release looks beyond the label or the symptom, we look at how you and your body mind and spirit are moving and feeling and by using the techniques taught to us by my mentor and friend, John Barnes, many symptoms melt away or are certainly diminished in severity. Many times I can have any number of the symptoms above but I am without a disease, illness or label, I am simply a grateful therapist assisting others in gently finding and releasing their symptomatic fascial restrictions away.
For more information on how to see and feel Myofascial Release and its endless benefits that it has to offer and provide you, your body, mind and spirit please visit https://www.mfroftampabay.com/. For further articles of interest https://www.mfroftampabay.com/resources/
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by Heather Sabin Bryan PTA #15701 LMT #79159 MM #35592 | Jun 25, 2016 | Myofascial Release |
The Myofascial Release Stork Has Graciously Accepted a Landing
Myofascial Release Stork Landing
Myofascial Release Treats Tongue-Tie and…..
Birthing
Tongue Tie
Pediatric Myofascial Release can and does produce consistent results in treating infants, toddlers, children and even adults suffering from tongue and lip tie that has been treated and was left untreated. It also is most effective in treating digestive problems, reflux, elimination difficulties, sleeping difficulties, positioning difficulties (only tolerating being held), orthopedic problems, scoliosis, birthing injuries known or undiagnosed, head trauma, cerebral palsy, speech and swallowing difficulties, torticollis and other neurological and movement dysfunctions. Myofascial release is safe, effective and designed to be utilized with appropriate modalities, mobilization, exercise and flexibility programs, and neurodevelopmental treatment (NDT), along with sensory integration and movement therapy.
Torticollis
Myofascial Release for Nursing and Breast Care
Self Treatment
Myofascial release if very effective at treating the duct/ lactation system of the breast of mothers as well and can be used to assist in making the initial period of discomfort of nursing much less and increase and maintain proper flow of milk and thereby decrease the amount of effort, force and pull of the suckling baby. Is your baby suddenly having to suck harder than usual and on one side more than the other?Myofascial release is also safe and effective and designed to treat women’s health issues as well both pre and post-delivery and even during delivery. Myofascial release has been helpful in treating women sufferend from endometriosis, pelvic pain, menstrual cramps and pain, frequency, urgency and incontinence. Myofascial release actually has also been very successful in treating ovarian and breast cysts, benign and malignant.
Myofascial Release – Scars
Myofascial Release for Surgical Scars
Myofascial Release (Pediatric and Adult) is safe and effective and should always, if possible, be received by everyone, adults and infants, pre and post any type of surgical procedure whether laser or scalpel. Any time tissues within the body are cut or injured, the body reaction is by the inflammation response. This is where the body floods the area with fluid which brings in all the necessary components of the healing and repair stage which includes cells to laydown scar tissue. Scar tissue acts to bind and bring two areas together and further acts to restrict the said region that is being released due to its inability to have the proper amount of movement and function. Myofascial Release is most appropriate in the prevention of further scar tissue and re-attachments. Scars in general all need Myofascial Release including abdominal/pelvic surgery, caesareans, trauma or episiotomy. Scars can also create havoc in the pelvic area, causing menstrual dysfunction, pelvic pain, painful intercourse, constipation, diarrhea and/or hemorrhoids.
Myofascial Release for Pelvic and Low Back Pain During Pregnancy and After
Low Back Pain is one of the top 10 forms of pain that Americans suffer from and is relieved effectively with Myofascial Release. However as it pertains more specifically to the pregnancy and spine, Myofascial Release treats another very common problem encountered by pregnant mothers which is coccygeal disorders from trauma, pelvic torsion and childbirth. When the tailbone (coccyx) becomes maligned it can cause a multitude of problems in the pelvic area, including some of those just mentioned, as well as back and neck pain, and/or headaches due to the influence of the dural tube. “Typical symptoms of a sacro-coccygeal lesion in a female client are the inability to sit for long periods of time, declining quality of sexual relationships and cystitis. In addition the coccyx can lead to a general decrease in the motility of the entire body, and it should be checked in people who are devitalized or suffering from general depression,” according to Jean Claude Barral, PT., in his book, Visceral Manipulation. Myofascial release has also helped many women with menstrual and premenstrual symptoms.
Myofascial Release, Gratitude, Love, Green Mommy, Robin, Me, and YOU and the Little One!
love
A family is forming and it is all due to the non-traumatic, gentle nature of the John Barnes method of Myofascial Release which is reassuring in that clients, parents, patients need not worry, since these effective procedures will not worsen clients’ symptoms or cause further harm. A Barnes trained therapist like myself NEVER forces because the fascial system is a system that cannot be forced and deserves to be treated not only with respect but in a loving manner. I am most filled with love and gratitude for the fact that Myofascial Release and Wellness of Tampa Bay has been asked to partner with a local group of providers. The group consisting of a CLC and IBCLC, lactation consultants, (Shannon Green and Robin Booth Watson), Tampa Bay Tongue Tie and Green Mommy, (a local support groups), and by extension their medical providers. I will be able to provide myofascial release on site at Green Mommy Store and Reruns to better assist baby and their mommies for pre and post revision. I am available as always residential services throughout the Greater Tampa Bay Area.
For More Information visit the links
Please visit Green Mommy Facebook page to check each week for the days and times or on my site for when the services will be available on site as well as how to schedule you and your sweet ones session. For more information Lactation please visit the link for Robin listed below. For more information on Myofascial Release, the John Barnes method please visits my site along with Mr. Barnes’s site as well on the links provided below. To read an article written by my friend and mentor himself John Barnes and how Myofascial Release is moving towards truly being the standard form of treatment of all individuals see the select the link “Alternative no more!” Are you not in the Greater Tampa Bay Area? Then follow the link to find a therapist near you.
Below are links to contact me, green mommy, Robin, find a therapist in your state, and more information on Myofascial Release and the endless benefits for all:
https://www.mfroftampabay.com/contact-mfr-therapist/
https://www.facebook.com/mfroftampabay/
https://www.facebook.com/greenmommydiapers/?fref=ts
https://www.facebook.com/robin.boothwatson?fref=ts
alternative no more333
http://www.myofascialrelease.com/find-a-therapist/
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by Heather Sabin Bryan PTA #15701 LMT #79159 MM #35592 | Jun 18, 2016 | Myofascial Release |
Myofascial Release Pictures Shows The Results
A Myofascial Picture is Worth a Thousand Words or 2,000 pounds per square inch of Affirmation!
Disclaimer- original post was cut and pasted by myself. I originally and currently have removed the front view of myself. Myofascial Release does help to return one to optimal mobility and alignment as well as release emotional patterns and belief systems. It has taken an enormous amount of courage on my part to post actual photos of myself but I am still not ready to review what the frontal view looks like. Maybe someday but honestly anyone who knows me knows my goal and belief in being upfront and honest. With Barnes Myofascial Release there is no reason what so ever to attempt to make false claims or proven false pictures. I am just a therapist who became a patient who learned how to be a better therapist to assist my clients to actually have lasting results. With honestly, authenticity and compassion, Heather Bryan, PTA, LMT, JFB MFR Therapist.
Initial Evaluation
Myofascial pictures shows the undeniable results that are possible when treated with Myofascia
l Release and not just any form of Myofascial Release, but the John F Barnes Approach and by someone who has been trained specifically in this method. There is not another thing like it! If they break out the oil or are not waiting for the melt and the stretch of taffy, then you are not experiencing authenticity.
I was trained originally in what I thought was myofascial release in PTA school and then again in LMT school but never in a trillion years could any of those forms of it take me and my body to the level of healing that this approach has. I never knew what fascia really was. I never knew that my body looked this far off kilter. Sure I had enormous amounts of pain but I did not realize the depth of magnitude of what what causing it. I had pain in this spot or that and I just had to use as much force as humanly possibly to stretch it, pull it, twist it, rub it, traction it, pull it, ultrasound it, ice it and heat it to the point of giving myself burns (actually did). I only got worse and even to the point where it felt like my body was now attacking and squeezing the life out of me and it was!
My Desperation of Pain and Pressure
My pain was driving me to the point of madness and desperation. I was in agony, most likely depressed because I could not fix myself with what I knew how to do and had used day in and day out with my own patients and ultimately I was losing my ability to perform my job. As I was nearing time for my license renewal and in need of the required continuing education, I began to search the web for answers, help and CEUs. I quickly landed on now mentor and friend’s link to what I now know is the answer to so many issues within the body and mine was prime for a new way. However as I look at these pictures I am still in shock at the before view. I will admit that I went for my first intensive therapy for the therapist treatment in February of 2016, a little over a year and a half after my initiation into the actually way the human body works and not what a text book said it should be. See we all have fascia just like we all have finger prints and as we know that no 2 finger prints are alike and they are unique to you and me, well so is our fascia and they way in which is presents when injured. In fact I could sustain the same type of injury at 2 different times in my life and they may not affect my fascial system the same way and there for the pain pattern, restriction pattern, pattern of dysfunction would be different for each.
Finally Time for ME, My T4T ( Therapy for the Therapist)
Therapy on the Rocks
By the time I finally attended my first T4T (Therapy for the Therapist or an Intensive for a non-therapist patient as they are referred to, I had been getting treated at least monthly if not a bit more for sometime. Even though I was originally brought to this work due to my own injury, once I realized that I could myself learn to become a “Myofascial Release” therapist and provide MFR to my clients, I began to take as many classes as possible, enrolled in LMT school, did internships etc. In my mind I was justifying seeking my own treatment which felt selfish in a way when there were so many others worse of than me. Is this not true of so many of us out there that but others before ourselves? I can only shutter at the thought of what the picture would have revealed if my T4T was sooner rather than later, but the point is I took the leap. Obviously by the looks of the before picture I was already in position to take off.
Sooner Rather Than Later But Never IS NOT an Option!
Moral and point of my story is that whatever path gets each of us there to an intensive or simply onto the treatment table of a John Barnes trained therapist, make it sooner rather than later. So many therapist themselves that experience the true and authentic lasting results that are readily and easily provided to assist to healing often themselves end up becoming practitioners of this work. Hard to call it work though! I do not think in terms of should have or why didn’t I but wow thank the stars above I did. Let me give you the numbers why. On Day 1 we all have an initial evaluation. Generally speaking this is more for documentation purposed because as Barnes Myofascial Therapist we deal in Feelings and Results! So Day 1 here were some of the numbers: I was informed I was 5’5″, I am actually 5’7.5″. I was some 55 degrees forward head of my base of support (feet). After 20-21 sessions I gained back 1.4″ in vertical height, and I returned to have vertical alignment of head over shoulders, over hips over feet and still had slight forward head posture to approximately 7 to 10 degrees at most. I have full active range of motion of my left shoulder, I could walk, I even climb the rocks of Sedona, AZ, I could sneeze fully, and my pain level went to intermittent and 3 at worst. I was able to resume exercising and had my own private mobile MFR practice in the end. However this is not the end of the story for me.
Myofascial Pictures – More MFR Please
I still have work to do both personally and to provide to others professionally. Myofascial Release is about a whole way of seeing the world and our place within it. MFR teaches us how to be gentle with ourselves in all areas of life and activities we do. We do live in a world that wants to deny pain, medicate pain, cut pain out etc. MFR teaches each client who is willing and able how to self treat themselves to be more effective as well as keep cost down. I myself will always strive for getting treated sooner rather than later and will approach me activities and self care following the same principles of gentle sustained pressure, waiting and melting into a release. Just take a look at the picture again that is a representation of the most beneficial, real, gentle and lasting outcomes that myofascial release can provide not just me but you too! Did you know that the astronaut Shepard recently came back from a 2 year stay in outer space and that the news reported he gained 2 inches in verticallity back. The 2 inches came from time spent out of gravity. Gravity pulls each of us this way and that way twisting and bending us into a scrunched up postural mess. I personally witnessed the gains! I gained back almost 1.5 inches in 1 week merely with gentle sustained pressure and a few talented and gifted therapist at the treatment center. When I got into my car at the airport to go home, I had to adjust all my mirrors to the new height I had.
The Next One
My next T4T is scheduled in October of this year and I will most definitely feel the results. Due to the fact of multiple surgeries and falls, a life time of denying the pain, a life time of over stretching and forcing my tissues, and now knowing a better way and sometimes we need a helping hand, sometimes multiple hands. At a T4T there are multiple therapist at a time assisting us to release our restrictions and return us to a fluid state that is as pain-free and active as possible. Even if you cannot get to a T4T, ask your therapist if they have a way to provide a multi- therapist session for you until you yourself can make a leap if you so desire. So we all have a choice and the choice is yours to make. One aspect though is in seeking myofascial release therapy, please make sure it is given by a John Barnes therapist. You deserve the best.
To find more information on how Myofascial Release can help you or to learn how to schedule your appointment please visit https://www.mfroftampabay.com/
To find more information about an intensive therapy program visit http://www.myofascialrelease.com/treatment/patients/comprehensive-treatment.aspx
