Massage Works Dandenong Ranges

26/10/2025

Plantar Fasciitis, Achilles Tendonitis, Hamstring and Gluteal Dysfunction, Sciatic Pain - Underlying Causation from Energetic Qi Flow Blockage at the Pelvis

Plantar Fasciitis is a thickening and tightening of the connective tissue in the bottom of the foot causing pain about the Calcaneus at the heel. It is not always debilitating and may waft and wane as activity levels vary. Acute stage Plantar Fasciitis is excruciatingly painful preventing normal activity and walking and can escalate to catastrophic injury where the periosteum, the fascial layer tears off the bone and heel spurs develop. While there can be other contributory factors, every case of Plantar Fasciitis I have sighted is accompanied by structural leg length discrepancy that distorts the pelvis and lumbro-sacral region generating strain blocking energetic Qi flow. I describe this as an outcome of a prominent Left or Right Lower Limb Mechanism generated by Short Right Leg Syndrome.

https://www.massageworksdandenongranges.com.au/srls

The fundamental underlying principle is that a proximal energetic block at the hip has a distal effect in the limb. Where energetic Qi flow is blocked, a subtle thickening and tightening occurs in the connective tissue. The soft tissue taking on a gristle like quality down to the bone readily felt by the therapist. Under loading and other influencing factors this can escalate to pain, dysfunction and injury. This plays out along the backline of the lower limb from gluteals through to the plantar fascia. It is a contributory factor in Plantar Fasciitis, Achilles Tendonitis, Hamstring and Gluteal Dysfunction, and Sciatic Pain.

Left sided cases are typically due to anterior rotation of the left hip about the SIJ in the Sagittal plane which is an anatomic adjustment pulling up the longer leg. The tightly bound SIJ has a blocking effect down the backline of the left lower limb.

https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/first-cardinal-sign
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/left-lower-limb-mechanism

Right sided cases are more complex being a combination of gait issues from the short right leg causing rigidity through the right hip and SIJ, and pelvic tilt straining the right lumbar region blocking circulation of energetic Qi flow to the back line of the right lower limb.

https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/second-cardinal-sign
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/right-lower-limb-mechanism

Where energetic Qi flow is blocked and the subtle thickening and tightening of the connective tissue has escalated to an acute condition, direct treatment to the foot or leg provides limited, temporary relief. Poor treatment outcomes for this condition with conventional therapy are common. This can be turned around when energetic Qi flow blockage at the hip is attended to.

Flexibility at the pelvis is preventative. Remedial therapy and rehab exercise to normalise left hip position releasing tightness in lower back, activate and strengthen weakness in the glutes and abdominals, stretch hip flexors, and use of a small adjusting heel lift under the short leg can rapidly relieve the symptoms of left sided Plantar Fasciitis...generally within days in the absence of acute symptoms associated with heel spurs or catastrophic arch collapse. These acute scenarios will be improved but considerable rehab and treatment may be necessary for full recovery.
Right sided cases where the lumbar spine’s integrity may be compromised can take longer to respond to treatment. The presence of pelvic and lumbro-sacral dysfunction and injury can prove problematic, thwarting treatment attempts until they are resolved.

Some have difficulty getting their head around the idea the problem is at the hips and lumbro-sacral region and not in the feet. I do not blame them. It is much the same with the majority of therapeutic practitioners. They do not connect the dots between a seemingly unrelated innocuous condition at the pelvis and lumbro-sacral region and an acute condition in the bottom of the foot.

Yes, there are sceptics and that is OK. I do not expect those who have not undergone the lengthy training to become sensitised to the presence of Qi through Eastern breath and movement practices to understand. It is an experiential thing, not a mere intellectual insight. Full knowledge does not come about until experienced first hand. My observations and the treatment outcomes cannot be denied regardless of the explanation one chooses.

Note: In relation to heel spurs, I have heard accounts from two Traditional Chinese Medical practitioners of a TCM treatment for resolving them. I have no first hand experience with the procedure but few patients will think it credible nor have the fortitude or patience to attempt what is a painful and slow treatment. Like it is rare for me to encounter a Carpal Tunnel case that has not had the surgical procedure, it is probable the majority of patients might choose the option to have the heel spur surgically shaved off. I can only comment, it is worth trying the non-invasive approach first in conjunction with treatment I advocate for correcting the effects from structural leg length discrepancy on the backline of the lower limbs.

15/10/2025

Remedial Therapy Fusing East and West

A fundamental energetic principle in physical therapy is that a proximal block at hip or shoulder has a distal effect in the limb.

Raised as a youth in the Orient and the son of an engineer, I was surrounded by and immersed in science. Ironically, the paradigm reversed in early adulthood when disoriented by culture shock being thrust back into the West, I received guidance from a Grandmaster martial artist and Chinese medical practitioner of high esteem. He brought a semblance of balance to the disturbed young man. Years of martial and meditative training imparted a directly palpable insight to Eastern philosophy.

Later exposed to the fundamentals of Physiotherapy through the diploma of Remedial Massage, it became apparent the concept of energetic Qi flow relates directly to a vast array of poorly understood symptoms of pain and suffering sighted in clinical practice. Simply put, if energy flow is blocked, thickening and tightening occurs through connective tissue leading to pain and dysfunction.

Clearing these blockages requires knowledge of the underlying cause. Merely massaging tightness can be ineffective as evidenced, for instance, by the multitudes of long term sufferers of Plantar Fasciitis in the foot or Repetitive Strain Injury to the forearm. Direct treatment to the foot and calf or forearm and wrist give limited short term relief but rarely resolve the condition. Focusing on correcting postural anomalies, releasing tightness at the hip and shoulder can be the missing key to a successful treatment with rapid and dramatic outcome.

08/10/2025

The following is a frequent recommendation in the Remedial Therapy Reports prepared for clients following initial consultation...

➤ Consideration for consulting a TCM doctor for assessment and, if required, herbal treatment. Below are details of Dr Kevin Duong who is a third generation practitioner trained at university in Australia and China who maintains a TCM dispensary of over 600 herbs. Use of herbal medicine is considered the pinnacle of TCM practice. Acupuncture available on request for acute injury and disease.

07/10/2025

I see some clients who have travelled long distance for assessment and treatment of their condition and a resolution of their symptoms. The expectation is often for a quick ready adjustment that will improve their condition. In some respects that is achievable. Use of an adjusting heel lift, massage treatment, fascial release and joint distraction through the hips and pelvis combined with deep Chinese Cupping to draw out stagnation can have a dramatic beneficial result. Nevertheless, addressing the full condition is a process that can take time and effort to resolve.

The concept of and the effects from rigidity through our structure is not fully appreciated. Often not noted nor considered, it can be the cause of little niggles that escalate into acute injury. Distortion and strain from a minor postural anomaly like leg length discrepancy blocks energetic Qi flow causing a thickening and tightening through connective tissue restricting movement and circulation leading to reduced flexibility, increased rigidity and tissues that rupture rather than give and move under impact. It is like rigidity begets more rigidity.

Left sided and right sided influences through the hips differ considerably and are described by the First and Second Cardinal Signs of Short Right Leg Syndrome and corresponding Left and Right Lower Limb Mechanisms. The right side becomes rigid. This might play out as a jammed SIJ, tweaking in the quads close to their origin at the front of the hip, the hip flexor psoas deep in the abdomen becoming overactive and tight, spasm through the glutes and piriformis accompanied by sciatic pain, a thickening and tightening down the entire backline of the leg from gluteal region to plantar fascia non-responsive to direct treatment, and ultimately damage to the femoro-acetabular joint, possibly accompanied by right sided lumbar disk bulging varying from sub-acute to catastrophic encouraged by the dropped right hip opening disk spacing creating a geometric wedge pushing out lumbar disks and accompanied by tightness through the QL’s. I have sighted all these in conjunction with the effects of the Second Cardinal Sign of SRLS and the Right Lower Limb Mechanism.

Surgical procedures to repair catastrophic injury do not relieve the strain from distortion leg length discrepancy generates. If anything, surgical invasion compounds this aspect of the condition and extra effort is necessary to clear the rigidity. Prospect for recovery is improved by addressing the short leg condition and actively increasing flexibility and mobility through the lumbro-sacral region and pelvis. Interestingly, leg length discrepancy is not included in medical examination even in the event of lumbar injury where it is a primary contributory element. At the core is the sacrum which is structural ground zero.

https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/structural-vs-functional-leg-length-discrepancy
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/insights-to-energetic-qi
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/concept-of-energetic-blockage
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/sacrum-is-structural-ground-zero
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/second-cardinal-sign
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/right-lower-limb-mechanism
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/right-sided-disk-bulging
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/right-lower-limb-mechanism-and-fascial-release

This is important…

https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/.../importance-of-flexibility

That some cases demonstrate high levels of rigidity through the pelvis is unsurprising considering heavy training loads as runners combined with a working life on their feet many hours a day. This is part of the story for those who work on their feet. Managing the effects from the dominant genetic trait of a structurally short right leg are necessary as we age beyond the life expectancy of our prehistoric ancestors.

Bottom line...where one has spent a lot of time on their feet, their structure is uneven (a short right leg is dominant genetic trait), perhaps done much heavy athletic training or physical work, the resulting distortion, strain and rigidity that goes to the core generates dysfunction, pain and injury. Cracking the back or a bit of rubbing or an acupuncture needle or two does not resolve this. Energetic healing treatments can have miraculous effect but they do not last until the physical structural anomaly is addressed. While exercise and rehab treatment can manage the condition, casual Yoga practice does not. Dedicated daily practice for months or years mobilising lumbar spine, SIJ's and sacrum, use of an adjusting heel lift, and remedial release work is what it takes to unwind the effects of years of distortion and strain. There will be a limit to how much adjustment the body will accept initially. This can be increased as condition improves and the body responds. This is my experience.

https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/spinal-rotation-exercise
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/sacral-mobilisation-exercise
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/heel-lift-instructions
https://critsvcs.wixsite.com/shortrightleg/short-right-leg-syndrome-treatment-protocol

I am now in the fifth year of self treatment for the effects from Short Right Leg Syndrome that resulted in several lumbar and sacro-iliac joint injuries, knee dysfunction, and afflicted me with a raft of internal health symptoms since my late teenage years from kidney deficiency due to the effects from the Pelvic Block. Inexplicable deterioration of lower limb function and escalating internal health symptoms non-responsive to treatment followed the second and most acute of the lumbar injuries at age 60. When faced with the prospect of retirement from active life at age 65, I commenced treatment addressing structural leg length discrepancy. It has been a long staged process addressing symptoms, unwinding effects of distortion and strain. This might have been accelerated had I known what I know now, yet, it would have still taken months or years to resolve and recover from the effect of six decades under the influence of gravity and structural leg length discrepancy. I do have some confidence I have now drilled down to the core of my disability. Internal health, comfort and mobility is vastly improved.

Outline of treatment protocol for Short Right Leg Syndrome caused by the dominant genetic trait of a structurally short right leg.

29/09/2025

Shed wall grows...

28/09/2025

Gua Sha is a Chinese medical treatment traditionally applied by scraping skin with an ox horn implement. My favoured tool is the ceramic Chinese soup spoon. It is easy to hold and its rounded smooth glazed finish moves well over the skin. It translates as Pushing Sand due to the roughness of the resulting reaction...as though there is sand beneath the skin.

Chinese medical philosophy holds that wind attacking the body externally blocks heat, preventing it's escape from musculature making it hard, tight and painful. The condition is most commonly observed in the upper body about neck & shoulders as heat rises in the body and this area is most frequently exposed directly to the elements. Also too, the condition can be generated by dietary and emotional effects on internal health or chronic postural strain from mild scoliosis or excessive lordosis. Musculature takes on a steel cable like quality with a gristle texture down on the bone.

During transition from winter to warmer spring and summer weather, liver fire attacks causing widespread tightness through the tendons of the upper back and neck. Internal heat that has built up over winter from strong warming foods and spices consumed to keep us warm must be extinguished and cleared. In Chinese tradition they begin preparing the body prior to the change of season through dietary and herbal treatment. If we do not manage this well, excessive internal heat in the liver impacts our tendons. This can escalate to acute pain with clients telling me it feels like there is a knife between their shoulder blades.

Treatment can take three avenues...fasting and liver detoxification will typically clear the condition in several months; TCM herbal and acupuncture treatment will do the same in a few weeks; and, topical Gua Sha treatment at the affected area will do so instantly. Tightness and stabbing pains are alleviated immediately. While the Gua Sha treatment will have a mild affect on the overall underlying metabolism, it is primarily a topical treatment directly targeting the area of tightness and pain.

This tightness is not responsive to massage, stretching, needling, cupping or joint manipulation until the heat is removed. The Gua Sha scraping flushes capillaries down to the bone and a rough red rash we call the "Sha" appears. Heat emanating from the area is clearly felt by both practitioner and client. In severe cases, only three scrapes are sufficient to raise the Sha. More commonly a dozen or more are required. Subsequent treatments in weeks following a strong reaction will elicit a milder reaction...much of the heat will have been cleared in the first session.

Where there is little or no trapped heat, no amount of scraping will raise the Sha and little benefit results. It will merely become slightly pink and no marking occurs.

Unlike Cupping where marks can take several weeks to clear, the Sha will clear in three days. As the pores are opened, special care should be taken to protect treated areas from exposure to cold, damp or wind until the next day.

26/09/2025

Carpal Tunnel Case Study - Remedial Therapy Fusing East and West

I rarely sight Carpal Tunnel cases in clinic that have not already undergone surgical intervention to snip the Carpal Ligament releasing pressure impinging the nerves of the hand. Short of this, conventional medical practitioners and therapists do not have an effective treatment for the condition. Unfortunately, this procedure permanently impairs grip strength. My earliest teacher, Prof Wong Lun OBE OAM, 10th dan Tang So Do, advised surgery should only be considered where it is a matter of life and death. In this instance, there is an effective alternative option once gaining a fuller understanding of the condition and its causes.

This case is a 50 year old female who was previously a self-employed cleaner and now unable to work due to the condition. She had been afflicted by 24/7 numbness in both hands for a period of two years accompanied by shoulder pains shooting down the arms. This was medically diagnosed as Carpal Tunnel. Nerve conduction testing supported the diagnosis and she was now on the Disability Pension. She came to me for treatment of the shoulder/back pain. She needed strong pain killers to sleep at night. She had no expectation Carpal Tunnel symptoms might benefit from treatment.

Resistance testing of shoulder function proved negative. This is good and largely rules out injury. Palpation revealed high degrees of tightness and pain through Middle Traps, Rhomboids, Infraspinatus and Teres musculature of the right shoulder. Muscle tone of back and Costals laterally and through to the front was in a high state of tightness with a gristle like quality down on the bone. Range of motion at the shoulder restricted by tightness through the chest and under the arm.

I advised her the Remedial Therapy I practice with a fusion of Eastern and Western concepts was likely to relieve much of the pain and discomfort she was experiencing and do not be surprised if the Carpal Tunnel symptoms are relieved. Proceeding with treatment to open the chest, warm up the shoulders and loosen the back generally I then carried out the Shoulder Treatment Protocol. Apart from obvious Sports and Swedish Massage technique that might normally come to mind, this Protocol incorporates Indirect Fascial Release, Chinese Cupping and Gua Sha. It is very physical and achieves deep release through shoulder, rib cage and torso. At moments with client in sidelying, I will be using much weight to compress and mobilise upperbody, chest, ribcage and shoulder. Applied with directed breath work, it is a Muscular Energetic Technique (MET) of the most overt nature. By the end of this first treatment session, shooting pain and numbness on the left side was resolved. The right side was unchanged.

She returned for further treatment one week later and advised that while she felt fantastic on the day of treatment, for three days after she experienced high levels of pain through her upper back and chest generally…almost too much to bear. Once it passed, she noticed improvement and decided to continue treatment. I expect clients to feel some degree of pain following Remedial treatment where deep work has been carried out to release chronic soft tissue tightness but I was surprised by this report…I thought I had been moderate and adverse reaction might be limited. I was wrong. Her case was more acute than expected.

A total of four treatment sessions were carried out before pain was entirely cleared from the shoulders and arms. Three days after the final treatment, sensation returned to the right hand. Nerve function can be slow to return after prolonged impingement. She has required no further treatment and I have been advised her condition remains good.

Interestingly, although reporting at the end of the first treatment that she could once again feel with her left hand...the numbness was gone...it did not seem to have pierced her consciousness the Carpal Tunnel symptoms were being resolved. She had consulted Medical Doctors and Specialists who offered no treatment except surgery. While averse to surgery, she had no expectation of an alternative effective treatment. It was not until the condition was cleared in both hands did she fully realise what had happened.

The principal energetic Qi flow effect behind this case is a proximal energetic block at hip or shoulder has an impact distally on the limb. Blocking energetic flow for any reason be it due to overwork, injury, internal health conditions, weather or emotional impact causes a thickening and tightening through the connective tissue. It may be subtle and barely perceived by the subject or under loading and the influence of other factors escalate to acute pain, dysfunction and injury. This thickening and tightening can be mistaken for inflammation but unlike inflammation, on clearing the blockage, the tissues rapidly warm and soften as energetic flow resumes, pain dissipates and function returns to normal. This can occur in a matter of minutes.

Direct treatment at forearm, wrist and hand for Carpal Tunnel or Repetitive Strain Injury rarely provides effective or enduring benefit. The cause of the problem in the arm is most commonly coming from energetic blockage at shoulder and torso thickening the forearm flexors creating pressure under the Carpal Ligament and impinge nerve function in the hand.

It is unfortunate conventional medico’s and therapists are not trained to sense, cultivate and control energy/Qi. In the absence of rupture and injury, they consider biomechanical and neurological effects. This is not the full story. As a result, their treatment outcomes can be poor and resort to unnecessary surgical procedures.

26/09/2025

The Heart Story

"Scans revealed no damage and never will do...scans cannot show a "broken" heart."

​The Heart is all about joy and happiness. When we are joyful, Heart Qi flows full and unhindered. When we have a bad day or lose one close to us or hate our job or any thing that causes unhappiness, the flow of Heart Qi is blocked. I do not necessarily mean pathological depression. Just the ups and downs of everyday life will have this effect. We are all human and affected by this condition to one degree or another.

​When Qi flow is blocked, tightness and pain result. This can occur due to injury, overuse, poor posture, weather, nutritional deficiency or excess and, in this case, emotion. Chinese medical philosophy holds that each organ is associated with an emotion. Fear affects the Kidneys, Grief the Lungs, Worry the Stomach, Anger the Liver and Happiness the Heart.

Blocked Heart Qi results in tightening and thickening of the tissue in the chest directly over the Heart. In turn, this tightness in the chest blocks Qi flow to musculature that inserts to the ribs; Pec Minor and the Scalenes on the left side tighten. It will literally pull the jaw closer to the clavicle.

In most cases, individuals will be unaware of restriction to movement or chest tightness until it is actively demonstrated to them. Simply running a thumb through the thick and tight Pec Major over the heart and contrasting it with the opposite side clearly shows the difference. Flesh over the right side is thin and loose, able to clearly feel each rib, whereas, on the left it is thick with a gristle like quality. The left is tender or painful in comparison to the right. It seems counter intuitive that musculature on the dominant right side is not as dense and tight as the left.

The affect of tightness in the chest on the shoulder and neck extends higher. Craniosacral therapists report the left side of the cranium is rigid in comparison to the right. The amplitude of the Cranial Rhythm on the left being a half or a third of the right. Clients exclaiming the left side of their head feeling it has ballooned after craniosacral release and sensation of numbness relieved.

Unsurprisingly, women are more affected by conditions brought on by the heart story than men...men, by and large, being less emotionally connected. It is a fact more women in their 40’s and 50’s suffer frozen shoulder due to Kidney Qi depletion from childbirth affecting bones & drying joints. Owing to the contribution of blocked Heart Qi, I am willing to bet it is predominantly the left shoulder. Similarly, in my limited experience observing cases of breast cancer and removal of lymph nodes at the axilla under the arm, they are predominantly left sided.

Clearing blocked Heart Qi can have a powerful effect. A sense of weight being lifted off the chest. Tightness in Pec Minor and the Scalenes will be reduced. High levels of relaxation are experienced. Some report being "off with the fairies" for several days after this treatment. Deep therapeutic effect clearing the blackness and heaviness from historic emotional trauma has been reported.

Acute emotional trauma can result in high levels of pain and restriction. I have seen several cases where symptoms affecting the left shoulder and neck had medical practitioners baffled. There was no apparent reason for it, yet patients were experiencing pain and dysfunction. Scans revealed no damage and never will do...scans cannot show a "broken" heart. Massage to clear thickness and tightness in the chest over the heart provides immediate but temporary relief. Until circumstances causing unhappiness are resolved, symptoms will return.

Clinical relevance...

https://www.massageworksdandenongranges.com.au/heart-story-two

19/09/2025

Medial Rotation of the Right Femur, TMJ Dysfunction, Second Cardinal Sign, SRLS - The Question of Dysfunction Working Up or Down the Body

I keep seeing medial rotation of the right femur being used to explain a dropped right hip in a compensating scenario where TMJ dysfunction is attributed for a reaction working down the body. I argue that the dropped right hip is attributed to structural leg length discrepancy working up through the body. Associated with the Second Cardinal Sign of Short Right Leg Syndrome is thickening and tightening through Adductor Magnus due to Kidney deficiency. This is a consequence of impingement of the Bladder meridian in the lumbro-sacral region. Adductor Magnus adducts and medially rotates the femur and its activation in this scenario is initiated by postural distortion from leg length discrepancy impacting energetic Qi flow in the Bladder meridian.

From a practical perspective, both images are uncommon and rare presentations. The first shows perfectly symmetrical alignment with even leg length. The last instance of this sighted in my clinical practice was three years ago. Even leg length is rare. The second presenting an inferior right hip, right convexity through the thoracic, elevated left hip and right shoulder is the most common presentation of SRLS. To be accompanied by high range medial rotation of the right femur is uncommon. This is rarely sighted. What is missing is the more common presentation similar to the second picture with the same right leaning tilt at hips, right convexity through thoracic, etc., without any significant medial rotation of the femur. To argue medial rotation of the femur is the primary cause for the dropped right hip and right leaning tilt of the pelvis completely overlooks the fact the right leg is structurally short in the first place. It is only in more advanced cases where blocked Kidney meridian effects and rigidity about the right hip from the Second Cardinal Sign have escalated combined with other lower limb anomalies are we likely to sight instances of medial rotation of the right femur.

Note: Other contributory factors can be a collapsed arch pronating the foot and/or cartilage wear or damage at the medial meniscus of the knee motivating us to shift loading through the knee to the lateral aspect of the joint.

Examining structural leg length in my clinical practice for over a decade, in the vast majority of cases the right leg is 15mm to 20mm shorter than the left. Even or near even leg length is rare. Short left legs almost never occur...sighting only one natural instance in a decade. Until this is taken into account, the theory a condition is working down from the jaw needs to be reviewed. There is strong evidence it is the other way around and effects are working up the body from the legs. Right leaning pelvic tilt encouraging mild scoliosis with right convexity through thoracic, elevating right shoulder, tilting head to left, straining right TMJ. I have observed an instance where chronic pain at the right TMJ was resolved simply by insertion of a 5mm heel lift under the right foot.

Exception cases of left convexity through the thoracic where the spine flops from rightward to leftward at the juncture of lumbar and thoracic are less common but not rare. These elevate left shoulder and strain left TMJ. Interestingly, these cases still have the short right leg and right leaning tilt through the pelvis. I do not know how proponents of TMJ and neck issues working downwards account for this contrary outcome. If all things were equal, one might expect medial rotation of the left femur in these exception cases where effects are hypothetically working downward. I have not seen that possibility argued because the reality of what happens under the influence of the short right leg is very different at the left hip.

In lieu of rigidity at the Iliac Crest blocking Bladder meridian Qi impacting the Kidney meridian, the left hip rotates in the Sagittal plane about the SIJ, anatomically pulling up the structurally longer left leg, reducing pelvic tilt to some degree, making us feel more comfortable and protecting the lumbar spine. This also binds the left SIJ, shortens the hip flexor Iliacus and is less affected by gait which is responsible for the Bladder/Kidney meridian nexus sighted at the right hip. The most prominent effects at the left hip are tightness in the left hip flexor, dysfunction at the left SIJ and the potential for thickening and tightening through the connective tissue down the backline of the left lower limb. These effects down the backline can be subtle only detected by a therapist with good palpation skills. It can escalate to acute pain and injury under the influence of loading. A tight Adductor Magnus and medial rotation of the femur is not a part of this scenario. This is described by the First Cardinal Sign of SRLS and the Left Lower Limb Mechanism.

Of course, there are instances where injury to jaw and neck do have some degree of downward effect but the number of upward patterns from the feet and legs far outweigh them. My observation of these downward influences are largely restricted to brachial plexus issues impacting neck, shoulder and arm.

The development of acute TMJ symptoms from the upward pattern are not common but the underlying postural alignment I am describing is universal. Similarly, instances of high range internal rotation of the femur due to the tightening of Adductor Magnus may not be common yet its thickening and tightening is present in every case of SRLS examined. This is one aspect of the Second Cardinal Sign of SRLS generating rigidity at the right hip. This rigidity is easily demonstrated tractioning the right lower limb from the ankle in supine. The right hip is wooden while the left is softer and giving.

Examining the mechanism for medial rotation of the femur in the presence of a structurally short right leg. The effects of distortion and strain from this postural anomaly on the convoluted passage of the Bladder meridian through the lumbro-sacral region and hips leads to Kidney deficiency. The Bladder feeds the Kidneys energetically in the TCM model. Hence a common side effect of SRLS is anxiety and other Kidney deficiency symptoms of constipation, insomnia, aching lower back, dry mouth, reduced vitality and endurance. Where energetic Qi flow is blocked, a thickening and tightening through the connective tissue occurs that is not responsive to direct treatment until Qi flow resumes. The degree of blockage is variable and the impact on muscle tone and internal health function will fluctuate in concert with it. Lower range cases may experience intermittent symptoms. Advanced cases demonstrate chronic and acute conditions.

I describe this energetic aspect of the condition as the "Pelvic Block.” When eliminated through treatment improves Kidney, Digestive and Reproductive function. It probably does not stop there. This is supported by TCM theory and known to some TCM practitioners. It is not taught in their university training. Incidentally, should meridian blockage be complete and total, death can be expected within days or weeks. This was employed by assassins who undertook advanced physical and energetic training aided by herbal supplementation to develop the ability to gently touch the chest and insert an energetic barb blocking the Heart meridian. So strongly embedded there was no means of clearing it before the target of the assassination died some days later.

More pertinent to explanations for TMJ dysfunction and associated effects, is the result of the blocked energetic Qi flow in the Bladder meridian on musculature along the energetic pathway of both the Bladder and Kidney meridians in the lower limbs. A characteristic of the Short Right Leg Syndrome I describe as the Second Cardinal Sign is rigidity about the right hip. Primarily due to gait effects from the short leg leading to chronic tightening through the right Iliac Crest. Advanced cases experience pain and tightness at both primary and secondary Bladder meridian choke points descending the backline of the lower limb. Another is tightening through the right Adductor Magnus where energetic Qi flow is blocked and deficient. This is directly related to the blocked descending Bladder meridian having a consequent effect on the ascending Kidney meridian. The Kidney meridian passes through Adductor Magnus which in addition to adduction, also has the action of medial rotation of the femur. Every case examined demonstrates this rigidity about the right hip where the left will be softer and giving under traction. Every case exhibits greater tightness in the right adductors than the left. There are few exceptions to this and they are usually Yoga gurus or dancers able to maintain ultimate flexibility through dedicated practice.

Where medial rotation may be sighted at the right femur because of the Second Cardinal Sign of SRLS impacting Bladder and Kidney meridian energetic Qi flow, the primary underlying contributory factor is leg length discrepancy generating distortion and strain through the pelvis and lumbro-sacral region. The bones of the right leg are structurally shorter than the left and the compensating effects through left and right hips, stance, gait, energetic Qi flow, comfort, mobility and internal health is complex in its entirety. I have read explanations for hip, pelvis, spine and jaw conditions that come to conclusions without considering the input of the structurally short right leg that is present in the majority of cases. It is a dominant genetic trait and must be taken into account.