Myofascial Release Therapy (MFR) for treating compression and pain

@lagnew I don't know how Canadian Healthcare works. Sometimes it is worth it to pay out of pocket for enough sessions to learn what to do, and then do home care stretching every day. Sometimes with knee replacements, doctors will do some maneuvers to stretch scar tissue. If you look at some discussions on knee replacement, you'll find patients talking about it. I do think MFR is worth trying, and it may take awhile before you become aware of feeling how it works in your body. You may have to work through a lot of layers of tightness before you can really feel it and understand how it is working.

thank you i appreciate you taking the time to answer

Hey Jennifer!!! Thank you for all the helpful advice. I LOVE IT that we are friends on FB! (Lori A. Escalera). do you think that maybe my cervical spine surgery BIG SCAR C3 - T2 down the center of my neck back could possibly need some attention at this time? (its been 1 year since surgery and you mentioned scar tissue). Last fall I had no problem (when nerves in back were numbe) doing my pavement art in the street but this spring I was in major pain! this spring the nerves were angry and trying to find their way. I fell a couple weeks ago and got whiplash, vbut that big ole rod in my neck saved my life. All the neck muscles are rock-hard - Its my 4th whiplash. I feel like even when the MFR guy gets them soft, and then I go to rehab, they get hard again. I do self acupressure on occasion but I haven't done any self MFR.
I have a question for you - about working. I am coming to terms with a partial retirement (been an artist since I was 12 - starting on the commercial side, then graphics, then murals and now fine art)... but don't know what I can realistically expect. All of these accumulated postural bad habits have taken their toll. Do you limit your time at work? did you have a time where your body kind of turned on you and you just had to adopt artmaking change? I waited all my life to paint "freely" of intrusions, but my bad body is intruding on my time. I am limited to a half a day of painting and try to respect my intuition. Have fun at the plein air festival!

@loriesco Thanks for letting me know about our friend connection. I don't limit my painting time. If I get tired and need a break, I take one. I don't paint all the time every day. When I ride my horse, I actually do a lot of "physical therapy" with that and it makes my posture so much better and stronger, unless I do something or my horse trips badly. That did happen recently and my neck and shoulders have been hurting a bit because I dropped the reins and had both hands on the saddle. My neck movement is pretty much the same as it was before surgery, and my fusion was C5/C6 done with no hardware and only a bone graft. I imagine having rods C3 to T2 is going to limit your movement significantly and wear you out while you are painting. Anything where you have to look down (like the sidewalk art) is probably exhausting. It would be for me. The best way to paint with less fatigue is to use good ergonomic posture and try to keep your neck straight. I would think that working on smaller pieces is probably a lot easier, and you'd get more done before fatigue sets in.

One year after a big neck surgery is not a lot of recovery time. At one year, I still had fatigue. I wore a neck brace for 3 months, so my neck was weak and that was exhausting. I think you are right to listen to your body, but don't believe that is your maximum recovery. It may be too early to tell. You need to find a balance between rehab exertion and stretching out the tight muscles. If rehab is making your muscles rock hard, maybe that is too much. I can cause neck pain and spasms easily because I have thoracic outlet syndrome, and my neck is tighter on one side. That is something I'm always stretching, and mostly on my own because getting PT on Medicare is very limited unless it's for something that is textbook mainstream rehab.

Having a whiplash when your C1-C3 is doing the whip movement isn't good because that top end of the spine is so vulnerable. If you get muscle spasms affecting those levels and how your skull sits on your spine, it can cause issues like vertigo, and you don't need extra pressure there that may lead to future disc problems. Do everything you can to protect that and keep it functional. I do think MFR on your surgical scar can help, and also to loosen up all the tight shoulder and neck muscles. Your rehab PT may need to lower the expectations. At some point, you'll stop going for that, and you'll be left with the hard muscles and spasms.

I periodically stretch my surgical scar on the front of my neck and it pulls down in to my chest and ribs. If that gets tight, it can limit my lung function. I still have some deeper rock hard muscles in my neck, but generally, it is more supple and looser than before my surgery. You don't know how much surgical scar tissue tightness is affecting you until you get it loosened and take the pressure off. You might be able to work on the back neck scar tissue by leaning up against a block on a wall or doorway and trying to stretch by pushing against it. Laying on a foam roller with airplane arms may help. Ask your MFR therapist for suggestions. Don't put direct pressure on your neck, but have the block along your back if that helps.

I'm glad you're painting. That is good healing therapy for your mind and body!