01/27/2022
Your body is a garden, not a machine!
Many of us tend to take a reductive, mechanistic view of our bodies, and our approach to healthcare reflects that. We expect our bodies to function according to certain specifications and if it’s not performing we attribute it to a malfunction in a certain part, or to the inevitable decline of old age. Doctors create a single label and apply it to countless different people with countless different situations, so long as they all check certain boxes. They treat the body as a machine by isolating parts and looking for the problem in the same area that symptoms occur. But this view doesn’t really account for the complexity of our bodies or of the relationships between different anatomical parts or physiological systems of our body, and leads to numerous erroneous beliefs. One of the largest groups of victims of this mentality is those who suffer from chronic pain conditions. There is an epidemic of chronic physical pain, often unexplained and resistant to standard treatment protocols.
But there is a solution to chronic pain. There is a path to easier movement, and better athletic performance. It is a mistake to assume that you can’t feel better in your body because of old age, past injury, or mysterious chronic pain. It’s completely possible to regain a sense of comfort and ease in the body and return to a pain-free active lifestyle. The keys lie within you.
In ancient China, doctors, philosophers, and mystics conceived of the human body as a garden, a complex confluence of relationships that reflected the relationships of a natural ecosystem, and of the entire cosmos itself. They believed the key to health was cultivating a healthy balance between the various energies and physiological systems of our body and mind. They did not have access to the knowledge and technology that today lets us divide the body into pieces and examine each part separately. Instead, they studied the phenomenology of health and observed connections between various factors that influence our health. Not every idea or technique from classical Chinese medicine holds up to modern scrutiny, but the general philosophy and many of the specific ideas still hold immeasurable value to us today. Integrating the seemingly opposing views of modern Western medicine and classical Chinese medicine allows us to come to a more complete understanding than holding either view to the exclusion of the other.
So while there are some elements in the body that do in fact behave in a mechanistic way such as the proteins and organelles within our cells, the overall picture is much different. The complex relationships between different organs and systems in our body is much more reminiscent of a natural ecological environment. Just like cultivating a garden, we have the ability to cultivate better health with intention, consistent care, and patience. One of the best ways to start is by addressing our myofascial system.
The Myofascial system is a series of interconnected fibers spider-webbing throughout the whole body. It is one unified structure that surrounds and supports every muscle, bone, and organ in the body. It should be supple, springy, and hydrated with fluid so that it’s layers can glide against each other and adapt to the needs of your body in motion, storing and releasing elastic tension during our movements. But it can become dehydrated and restricted, hindering the natural gliding movement of the fascia. Restrictions can cause pressure on sensitive areas, causing inflammatory pain and even impacting organ function. They can also affect our movement patterns in ways that are often impossible to notice until we release the restriction and feel our improved mobility in action.
Some of the best ways to begin to tap into our fascial system and improve fascial health on our own are through mind-body practices like Yoga, QiGong, Tai Chi Chuan, and breathing exercises. For many people, consistently undergoing these practices alone can have a radical transformative effect on one’s body, and indeed, one’s entire life. But they tend to work very slowly, and we all need a helping hand sometimes. Also, for those living in chronic pain, physical activity can be very difficult, and establishing a regular practice may be outright impossible when dealing with flare ups of debilitating pain. There is a great need for therapeutic modalities that can help people release fascial restrictions and bring more awareness into the body to facilitate the process of improving overall health.
Myofascial Release is one such modality. Created by Physical Therapist John F Barnes, Myofascial Release utilizes gentle but powerful manual therapy techniques to enable patients to cultivate better health and return to active, pain-free lifestyles. By holding for a longer amount of time than other modalities, Myofascial Release gives the fascial system the time and gentle support it needs to release restrictions and open up the area for better hydration and blood flow, and increased range of motion. With the care and patience of an experienced gardener, a Myofascial Release therapist guides their patient to a better state of health. Viewing the patient as a whole person rather than a symptom, and assessing the body’s needs in each moment rather than following a prescribed protocol, the therapist creates space for whatever change is necessary to occur in the patient’s mind and body in order to cultivate ease and achieve the patient’s health goals.
