Susan Martin Soft Tissue Therapy

World Heart Day has been celebrated globally on 29th September ever since the year 2000. It is aimed at drawing our attention to heart illness and the range of associated health issues. It encourages individuals and organisations to promote different preventative steps and changes in lifestyle to avoid any cardiovascular diseases like heart attack, stroke, heart failure and vascular dementia.

Many groups do this by organising activities such as sponsored walks, public talks, fitness sessions and exhibitions. Some landmarks and famous buildings also choose to go red on this day as a show of cardiovascular disease awareness.

Any person interested in celebrating this day is advised to do so by being more attentive to their heart health. There are several ways you can do that, including partaking in physical exercise, stopping smoking, reducing alcohol intake and starting eating a healthier diet. Also, getting your heart, blood pressure and cholesterol checked frequently with the doctor.

How can I help?

Massage therapy can help people with cardiac issues to address some of the factors that may be contributing to their condition. It relieves tension in muscles and improves blood flow. This helps to physically and mentally relax you. Touch releases hormones that reduce anxiety and help you to sleep. It can be a great stress reliever and may be used to reduce anxiety before or after surgery. High blood pressure and heart rate are major factors in heart attack risk. Studies have shown that regular massage therapy can reduce blood pressure and heart rate and people who combine massage treatments with doctor-led medicine can experience an increase in energy, relaxation and mental focus. This can all combine to help you recover faster from surgery or avoid a major cardiovascular event.

Many of us suffer from poor sleep quantity and quality. This is likely to be caused by a number of factors with stress, lack of exercise and using screens late in the day often being blamed.
If you wake up feeling tired and irritable and spend most of the day longing for a nap then it is likely that you are not getting enough sleep. Most adults need around 8 hours per night, with children and teenagers needing much more.
After several nights of poor sleep, the mental and physical effects can become more serious. Your brain will be foggy, making it difficult to concentrate and make decisions. You'll start to feel down, and may fall asleep during the day. Your risk of injury and accidents at home, work and on the road also increases.
Lack of sleep has also been shown to have an effect on:
Immunity,
Obesity (due to hormone imbalance),
Mental wellbeing (tired = grumpy),
Diabetes and
Heart Disease (lack of sleep raises blood pressure and heart rate).
Things that may help you to sleep longer and better include:
Taking regular exercise,
Cutting the caffeine in the afternoon,
Turning off phones and computers at least an hour before bed,
Establishing a bedtime routine that includes holidays and weekends,
De-stressing using relaxation techniques, massage, yoga, journaling etc.
If you want to discuss how massage can help you to relax and switch off, then please contact me.

A Hysterectomy is the surgical removal of your Uterus (Womb). This surgery may need to be performed for a number of reasons if all other treatments have been unsuccessful.
Most women who need to have this procedure done are aged 40-50 and it can used to treat a number of gynaecological problems such as very heavy and painful periods, fibroids and some cancers.
A Hysterectomy is a major operation. You can be in hospital for up to 5 days after surgery, and it takes about 6 to 8 weeks to fully recover. This operation can be performed using keyhole or open surgery depending on the size of the Uterus and the condition being treated.
Sometimes, particularly in the case of cancer treatment, other parts of your reproductive system will need to be removed as well. If the ovaries are removed then you will go through a “Surgical Menopause” after your operation. This will affect you, regardless of age and your medical team will help you to manage the symptoms.
After your operation, you will be seen by a Physiotherapist who can help you with your mobility and initial recovery plan. They will probably give you some exercises to do at home that will strengthen your pelvic floor and abdominal muscles. The fitter you are before surgery, the easier your recovery will be.
As with all abdominal surgery, a large number of people will develop internal scar tissue after a Hysterectomy. The risk is less with keyhole surgery, but still significant. This scar tissue can cause restrictions and affect your range of movement in the hips and lower back. The pull on your fascial web can also have implications throughout your body.
Scars can take up to two years to fully form and mature and your body will constantly be adapting and changing as it deals with the trauma of the operation and development of this new tissue. Therefore, any restrictions or discomfort arising from internal or external scarring may be felt months or years after your operation. This is where Scarwork™ therapy can help you. These slow and gentle massage techniques help to soften and stretch the scar tissue that may be attached to other internal structures or just pulling from the surface. It can also help if the scar is sensitive, stuck down or lumpy.
If you think that your abdominal surgery scarring is affecting your mobility or causing you discomfort, please get in touch for a confidential chat.

As we age, we will all notice numerous changes to our bodies. Some of these will be a natural part of aging and some will be due to our lifestyle. If you like to stay fit and healthy through sports, you may find that your usual training regime is no longer giving you the results you want. Here are a few things to think about changing that can improve your results:

1. Weights – As we age, we all naturally lose muscle mass. It is recommended that we undertake regular weight training to try to slow down this loss and keep ourselves stronger for longer.

2. Train smarter, not harder - Try to find more efficient ways to train that are kinder to your body. Water based exercise puts less strain on the joints, Pilates and Yoga build strength without impact and Fast walking can give the same benefits as a slow run.

3. HIIT – Occasional High Intensity Interval Training, either in a class or by yourself can help to maintain bone mass, fast twitch muscle fibres and cardio vascular health.

4. Recovery – You will need a longer recovery after hard or long sessions than you did when you were younger. Prioritise sleep, eat well and investigate other ways to help your muscles recover, such as massage, warm (or cold) baths, foam rolling and stretching.

5. Friends – Training with like minded people will help you to have fun and be more consistent. Try not to worry about getting fitter and faster. Concentrate on slowing down the aging process and avoiding injury.

6. Self - compassion – Finally, give yourself some slack. Your life now is completely different from when you were younger. More responsibilities, less time and an aging body. Sometimes you won’t see the results that you would like. But slow and steady often wins the day.

Sports injuries are usually caused in two ways – Impact and Overuse.

Impact injuries would come from a fall or tackle whereas Overuse injuries are due to repetitive strain. Overuse injuries are by far the most common in sports people so this article will cover some of the ways that you can help to prevent them.

Doing too much, too soon is a common problem. Try to keep 80% of your training at a lower intensity level, keep a training log and only increase mileage or effort by 10% per week so the body can adapt to the increased stresses. Train regularly during the week, not all at the weekend for the same reason.

A proper warm up and cool down period before and after training incorporating appropriate stretches is very important. Get plenty of rest including complete days off to allow your body to grow stronger whilst it recovers.

Using poor form or the wrong equipment can lead to injuries. Working with a coach or personal trainer when starting out will ensure that you know the correct techniques to use and together you can work on any adaptations needed to suit your body and movement type. Always use the correct equipment for your sport, size and ability level. Shoes are particularly important as problems in the feet lead to injuries further up the legs.

Only doing one type of exercise stresses the same set of muscles, tendons and ligaments. This can cause irritation and inflammation as well as causing muscle imbalances and alignment problems. Cross training by doing a number of different sports or using strength training, yoga, Pilates etc. to keep you in balance will help to prevent these problems.

Returning from injury too soon often leads to a secondary injury as you try to make up for lost time. Always respect your body and take the rest and treatment necessary to fully recover from your injury before returning to sport. Then take it steady to rebuild your strength. Review your training routine and adapt as needed to avoid future problems.

If you have any questions or need some advice, feel free to contact me.

Your skin is your largest and heaviest organ and has a surface area of between 1.5 and 2m square. It is soft and flexible and performs a number of very important functions. These include Protection from the outside environment, Thermal regulation, Detection of sensation and Preventing Infection.
It is made up of three layers -
• The Epidermis is the outermost layer of skin and provides our first line of defence against the outside world. It is waterproof and is continuously renewing itself. It also helps regulate body temperature and gathers sensory information from the surrounding environment. The thickness of the Epidermis is determined by where it is located on the body and the role it is required to play. The thinnest layer is on the eyelids and the thickest on the soles of our feet. This layer also contains the cells that produce Melanin. This pigment determines our skin colour and protects us from the effects of the sun’s UV radiation. Vitamin D can be produced in the lowest layers of the Epidermis when we are exposed to sunlight.
• The middle layer, the Dermis contains tough connective tissue, hair follicles, and sweat glands. It also contains blood capillaries and nerve endings. This layer also varies in thickness depending on location. Sensors in this layer transmit the sensations of touch, pressure and pain. These sensors help to protect us from wounds and burning. This layer is the most important part of our thermal regulation system. Cooling us through sweat production and relaxing of blood vessels when we are hot and contracting blood vessels when we need to conserve heat.
• The deeper Hypodermis is made of fat and connective tissue. This layer acts as a cushion when we fall and also contains larger blood vessels and nerves. Cells known as Fibroblasts and Macrophages live in this layer. Fibroblasts make Collagen which is necessary for wound healing and Macrophages are part of our immune system keeping the body free of harmful intruders. This layer connects the upper skin layers to underlying structure such as bones and cartilage.
The thickness of the hypodermis varies in different regions of the body and can vary considerably between different people. In men, the hypodermis is thickest in the abdomen and shoulders, whereas in women it is thickest in the hips, thighs, and buttocks.

Today starts Balance Awareness week. Balance is a skill that we learn. It needs to be maintained and practised throughout our lives to enable us to stay on our feet and participate in the activities that we enjoy. From learning to walk, putting on your trousers (standing on one leg) to running, jumping or dancing, good Balance is necessary for everyone.

In general, Balance is the co-ordination between muscles. The body uses special “proprioceptive” receptors to send signals to and from the brain that tell the muscles how and when to work. If you are upright, this is happening continuously in order to maintain your posture. Even seated, your muscles must maintain the balance in your upper body and co-ordinate your arm and head movements.
Realistically, there are two kinds of balance:
• Static balance is the ability to maintain your centre of gravity (the majority of your weight) over your base of support (usually your feet). It enables you to maintain a position without moving or falling over. This could be simply sitting or standing but also includes most Yoga poses.
• Dynamic balance is the ability to move your centre of gravity outside of your base of support and still remain in control. It’s balance in motion and is utilised when you walk, run, kick, spin or jump. With these kinds of activities, the majority of your body’s weight is located away from your base of support, requiring a much faster and powerful response from the muscle groups.
Both of these elements of balance are equally important and heavily influence each other. They are vital survival skills and need maintaining as we age because all of our muscles weaken ever so gradually after we hit 30. The length of our stride shortens, the pace of our steps slows, and vision becomes fuzzier. How well we keep our balance in midlife can protect us from what lies ahead. Approximately, one in three adults over age 65 takes a serious tumble each year. Avoiding falls often means a longer and better life and there are also immediate health benefits to improved mobility - fewer injuries, greater capacity to train hard during workouts and, therefore, an increase in overall fitness.

These pictures show a few simple exercises that you can add into your day to help maintain these skills. Little and often is the key. Try to incorporate some balance work into your everyday routines so that it does not get forgotten. If you have any questions or need some advice, please get in touch.

Once again at Reading lake supporting the athletes at this year's Reading Triathlon. Excellent local event organised by club Tri2o.

Adhesions are fibrous bands, formed in the same way as scar tissue, which inhibit movement between soft tissues. They are often called “knots” and can form in muscles, ligaments or tendons. Sometimes they can form between muscles and nerves which will cause a tingling feeling in arms or legs. Adhesions stop the muscle, ligament or tendon from working in the correct manner which leads to imbalance in the body causing strain and injury to surrounding tissues. This often leads to pain.
Adhesions can form from either an acute trauma or repetitive strain as both cause a lack of blood flow and oxygen in the tissues.
Acute trauma would result from surgery, muscle strains/tears or collisions.
Repetitive strain or overuse will cause micro-trauma over and again. Common examples of Repetitive Micro-trauma are computer work, endurance sports and poor posture.
Adhesions can be treated and “broken down” through a number of manual methods. Foam rolling is a form of self-massage that can help. Deep tissue or Sports massage should find all the adhesions that you missed with the roller and Soft Tissue Release techniques performed by a Soft Tissue Therapist will target the specific areas affected and resolve the immediate issues. To stop them reforming however, you will need to assess your posture, running form or desk set up and amend what is causing the problems.

Surgery that is performed in order to restore normal function and appearance after major trauma, medical conditions, disease or birth defects is called Reconstructive surgery. Common examples where this is needed include the Repair of Cleft lip and palate in children, Breast reconstruction after a Mastectomy and Skin grafts to cover Burns or after Skin Cancer removal. The operation will usually be performed by a Plastic Surgeon.
In many of these operations, tissue from one part of the body is used to reconstruct or cover the damaged part. This means that two sections of your body, often in different areas, will be affected by the surgery and the resulting scarring.
For a Breast reconstruction after treatment for cancer, the new breast(s) can be constructed using artificial implants or tissue from your back, abdomen or thigh. If your own tissue is being used, blood vessels will also be transferred to keep the tissue alive in its’ new home. Microsurgery is used to connect the new tissue in place and in the vast majority of cases this procedure results in a very satisfactory repair. If you choose artificial implants, they will need to be replaced after a given time so more surgeries may be required in the future. You will be able to discuss all options with your medical team before choosing what is best for your situation.
When surgery is needed to replace skin lost to Burns or Large wounds, extra skin can be encouraged to grow using a Tissue Expander. This is a balloon – like device that is inserted under the skin and gradually pumped up, causing the skin to stretch and grow. This “new” skin can be used to repair as needed and will have the same properties as the “lost” skin.
All of these procedures are major surgeries that will require a stay in hospital and a few weeks of recovery at home. The resulting surgical scars will take up to two years to fully form and mature and it is during this time that gentle massage and stretching can help to improve the function of the scar tissue. This in turn will mean a better outcome for your reconstruction.
If you have any questions or need some advice about how Scarwork™ might be able to help you, please get in touch for a chat.