Massage and Bodywork

[Jenn]

I recently listened to this podcast of an interview by Bryan Davis of Paleo Osteo (Aussie Osteopath) and thought others may find it interesting, here's a summary of the main points:

• What is Osteopathy? Whole-istic health practitioners. Founded by Andrew Taylor Still in 1874.
• What is fascia- connective tissue surrounds and suspends everything.
• Poor posture and lack of movement and repetitive motions effects on fascia- lays down in response to strain on the area to maintain constant strain.
• Fluid flow throughout the body whether it’s arterial/ lymphatic is reliant on movement, contraction of muscles and recoil of the fascia. Lack of fluid flow leads to disease of all kinds.
• A T Still recommends looking for disease in the fascia first- "This connecting substance must be free at all parts to receive and discharge all fluids, and use them in sustaining animal life, and eject all impurities, that health may not be impaired by dead and poisonous fluids.” and “By its action we live and by its failure we die.”
• Discussed dentistry- neck pain/ shoulder pain often related to missing teeth. Teeth need oppositional forces- need to occlude onto something at the right time. Eg. Top and bottom molars should touch when the mouth is closed. If a tooth Is smaller or missing the body grows the other one taller to look for oppositional force, thereby changing skull architecture and creating an imbalance, throwing TMJ joint out of whack. Neural innervation facilitation activated and muscle hypertrophy.
• Dummies/ pacifiers not good for babies because they’re supposed to simulate a nipple but they are too hard and plasticky. The action of squeezing the dummy into the roof of the mouth pushes the hard palate (roof of the mouth) up, making it narrow, he referenced to Weston Price's research on low and broad palettes being best. The dummy can lead to a narrow facial structure and crowded teeth, which affects breathing and skull architecture.
• Pureed foods for babies bad- don’t allow for the occlusive force. The shape of teeth from a young age determine how the posture will be later in life, teeth are sensory organs. Overbite of jaw can lead to forward projecting head
• Importance of treating the feet during osteopathy/ bodywork– feet are foundations of body, issues here can lead to back pain etc. Feet are springs and shock absorbers
• Foot arches are of vital importance, we develop them through walking as children- Ida Rolf talks about this too. We don’t need arch supports- unnatural and can cause more harm. Bridges we build don’t need support underneath- neither do our feet. See here: Objective:Health - Are We Born to Run... Barefoot?
• Plantar fasciitis can be relieved by decreasing inflammation as a whole, and learning to use feet properly. Pooling of inflammation due to gravity. Foot should work as a pump. If there is a weak foot (no arch support) isn’t pumping fluid + systemic inflammation pooling furthest place from heart = plantar fasciitis
• The importance of the diaphragm as a pump for sufficient fluid flow, the idea of four diaphragms- the arch of the foot, the pelvic flaw, the thoracic diaphragm, and where vocal cords are- working in sync.
• Prague school of rehabilitation- info on stability. Dynamic neuromuscular stabilization. Developmental kinesiology- a child goes in and out of certain positions/movements in first 12 months of life- pre-programmed in central nervous system (CNS), happens across all cultures. We may need to re-learn these to reprogramme CNS to reduce pain, improve posture.