Thanksgiving and Holiday Greetings Everyone!
Seems like Thanksgiving is early this year. Already, my clients are talking about presents, shopping, cooking and holiday parties. Remember to make sure you slow down as things around you become more hectic. I find that during the holidays, the simplest and most effective advice is to remember to breathe. Sounds easy, but see how many times a day you catch yourself breathing shallow or holding your breath.

Note that I will be out of the office over Thanksgiving and Christmas. I will be out of the office November 23 – 28, and again on December 22 – January 2. I will be able to get gift certificates to you through December 21st, and you will be able to order online again this season.

My holiday gift certificate specials are enclosed, and I will be taking orders via phone, email and online, so if you need to, forward this to family members to give them a hint of what you’d like for Christmas. This month I’m explaining physical therapy, what it is and how it blends well with massage in rehabilitation from surgery, injuries or chronic pain. The minute massage section deals with November Holiday Traumas, and the More on Massage section has been replaced with my gift certificate specials.

Have a great Thanksgiving!

- heather wibbels (615.294-6672)

When muscular injury or chronic pain strikes, massage is often the first treatment in mind. Massage doesn’t require a trip to the doctor’s office or a physician’s note. Because it does not require a physician’s prescription or management, massage is known as a self-referral field. Like acupuncture and other alternative measures, you may contact and book treatment with the therapists without going through a physician first. Physical therapy, a type of treatment often covered by insurance, works on rehabilitating the musculoskeletal system to reduce chronic pain or reduce injury symptoms, is another treatment to consider when massage, medications and surgery fail.

What is physical therapy?
Physical therapy is a form of treatment where a specialist works to improve strength, flexibility and range of motion after surgery or an injury. The goal of an orthopedic physical therapist is to re-balance muscle strength and flexibility in order to reduce pain and bring the patient back to his/her normal functionality.

How does it work?
Physical therapists start their work evaluating muscle strength, flexibility, response, posture, reflexes and balance. In an initial session, the physical therapist performs muscle tests and analyzes the physical restrictions or conditions contributing to the injury or activity compensation patterns. During physical therapy sessions, the body goes through a series of exercises – both stretches and strengthening exercises to increase range of motion and improve muscle strength and response. The idea behind physical therapy is to rehabilitate the musculoskeletal system by strengthening weak muscles, and improving flexibility in tight ones.

What does it treat?
Commonly, physical therapy rehabilitates injuries to the musculoskeletal system. It’s often necessary for recovery from surgery, reduction of chronic pain, or increase of functionality. It’s commonly used for sports injuries, and often goes hand in hand with sports massage. Some issues like incontinence, pelvic floor dysfunction and neurological disorders that may not seem at first glance to be injury-type issues may benefit from physical therapy sessions. In some cases, physical therapy may be able to treat issues without the need for additional medication or surgical procedures, and evaluation by a physical therapist can be a helpful tool in communicating a full treatment plan with your primary healthcare provider.

How does massage complement physical therapy?
Often, part of a physical therapy session includes manual therapy or massage of the soft tissues. When done in conjunction with a massage therapist, a physical therapist may be able to direct the massage therapist to focus on relaxing and stretching certain areas or to work on range of motion restrictions in a certain area to improve function. While a massage therapist focuses on manipulation of tissues, the physical therapist has a broader range of treatment options available that includes strengthening and stretching exercises, ultrasound or biofeedback that a massage therapist may not be able to perform.

Why self-referral?
Although the state of Tennessee requires physical therapists obtain a doctor’s prescription in order to treat patients, an initial consultation and evaluation with a physical therapist through self-referral can help build a case for a series of physical therapy treatments with your healthcare physician. Insurance companies often cover all or some of the cost of physical therapy sessions. Self-referral to a physical therapist increases the chance that the patient may be able to get through rehabilitation faster and with less reliance on surgical and pharmaceutical means of improvement.

What happens in a physical therapy session?
Generally, physical therapists propose a treatment plan that includes periodic sessions and exercises for strengthening and stretching at home between sessions. Sessions may be once or twice a week, or more frequent, depending on the injury and the proposed treatment plan. Regular reports on progress or findings during the physical therapy sessions are sent back to the primary healthcare provider of the patient so that the physician is aware of the progress of the physical therapy plan. Sessions often include strengthening exercises, stretches, ultrasound, manual therapy, biofeedback or electrical stimulation. At the beginning and end of each session, the therapist takes notes on changes in flexibility, strength and pain levels.

When dealing with chronic pain or muscular injury, consider asking for a prescription for physical therapy from your physician. There are many muscular/soft tissue causes of chronic pain in the body, and a physical therapist assist the patient in reducing pain levels and restoring functionality without masking symptoms through medication.

For more information, see:

• About Orthopedics
• About Physical Therapy
• American Physical Therapy Association
• Physical Therapist.com

Holiday Specials!!

Gift Certificate Packages

• 3 45-min was $165 NOW $155
• 3 65-min was $195 NOW $185
• 3 90-min was $270 NOW $260

• 5 45-min was $275 NOW $250
• 5 60-min was $325 NOW $300
• 5 90-min was $450 NOW $425

• 10 45-min $550
• 10 60-min $650
• 10 90-min $900

Gift Tip: A clever way to give massage gift certificates is to take the gift certificate and wrap it in a small box with a scented candle, some lotions or essential oils.

Take advantage of these package rates through November and December. They are only good through December 31, 2005. Any gift certificates needed by Christmas must be ordered by December 21.

About Ordering Online:
Rest assured that your transactions are secure - I'm using PayPal as my online order vendor. Make sure you enter your phone number when going through the checkout process. I will be calling the number you enter within 24 hours to confirm the delivery method, the address and the pick-up time if you are coming to the office to retrieve the gift certificate. If you need to pick up the gift certificate within one or two days, please call me at 615.294-6672 after you send in your order to arrange a pick up time. Please note that since I'm using PayPal, a surcharge is added to the order to cover credit card processing fees from the vendor.