Myofascial Release

23 responses so far ↓

•   Haleta Holmes // Mar 8th 2013 at 5:26 pm

  I took my first MFR class in 1997. The vacation series of three classes. In 1998 I took MFR release for the Equine Athlete from Ruth Mitchell in Texas. The skills obtained from this class has dubbed me “The dog lady” in my neighborhood. One of the old Beagles down the street has a Hypermoble Iliac. (When it goes out, she is unable to walk)
  A slow and steady Tail Pull and a cross hand release on top of the iliac crest seem to be the ticket. Once it moves back into place, there is pure joy as Abbra licks my face and starts jumping around again. I have had great success in working on Race Horses as well. Working on animals has enhanced my touch and when working with my “people” clients, I am able to feel the fascia release at a deeper level.

•   Drucilla Likens Pape // Mar 8th 2013 at 5:55 pm

  Longevity: That’s what Myofascial Release has afforded our family pets! Let me just give the numbers as a testimony.
  Green singing finch Pootchie: 19 years: The Avian specialist was in disbelief, as finches usually live 2-3 years in the wild, and 4-5 in captivity, max. We did energy work on her, along with excellent vet care to pull her through many respiratory infections. When she was sitting on the bottom of her cage (very bad sign), she would perch after energy work (cradling her between our hands, off the body).
  Guinea Pig Maginty: 11 years: Daily back and sacral releases kept her in good health and mobile! She lived a long and happy life!
  Leopard Gecko Weezie: 11 years: When she was a baby, three days of hourly gentle finger releases across her abdomen coupled with warm water soaks saved her life by helping her to pass (without perforating her gut) 23 substrate stones she had eaten. The vet wanted to operate on her so that his student could “see this unusual case, which was not survivable anyway”. (Thanks to patience and MFR, she lived for 10+ more years, and we found a new vet!).
  Cat Tater Tots: 19 years (& counting): For the first two years after rescue as a kitten, my Tater Tots had terrible recurrent urinary stones with complete blockage every time. After multiple ER vet hospitalizations, a final treatment plan of cutting off his penis to remedy the blockage was recommended. Instead, we began to treat using tail pull and diagonal releases between the lower abdomen and the sacral area, combined with gentle traction of the tissue surrounding the urethra. Each time my cat would begin to block, we would treat, and he would go directly to the litter box and pee! After several episodes, he improved and the problem resolved, never to return, 17 years and counting!
  Rabbit Domino: 10 years with my sister Arby (& counting!), possibly 2 years old when we rescued him. Domino has had problems with constipation, as his bowels are slow in his old age. Arby does much the same treatment as I used on my cat, and he begins to make pellets again within a day.
  Vet says she is in “new territory” in treating “old Age” in a rabbit!
  Gerbil Botchka: 8 years: Tail pulls, leg pulls and back massage kept her healthy and happy!
  Siberian Husky Nikita: 16 years (& counting!) Arby’s dog had surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament. The tibia was advanced and affixed to the femur, which eventually caused a multitude of orthopedic issues. We treat Nikki daily with crossed hand releases to her flank, hips and back, to decrease pain and keep her ambulatory. She sometimes needs a boost to get up in the morning due to stiffness, and to mount the big step onto the porch, but is otherwise still walking, which is a miracle! This has also prevented the need for her other leg to have compensatory surgery as predicted “certain within two years”.
  Each of our animals receives(ed) some aspect of MFR daily (they each have their favorites!), especially when ill. I could go on, suffice it to say that MFR is essential for health and long life, be it human or animal!

•   Richard Harty, PT // Mar 8th 2013 at 10:56 pm

  I had been skeptical of the myofascial release process and John had encouraged the class I was in to be skeptical and test out the principles. I have clients that own horses and many of them had asked me to treat their horses. I thought this would be an excellent way to see how myofascial release would work in a non-verbal setting. I was going to treat a horse that had a reputation for being difficult. When I met the horse I decided that I didn’t want to treat him in the stall because he was clearly agitated. We took him out into the arena and he kept looking back at me with that wild horse eye look. I noticed that he kept his left hip as far away from me as he could. I decided to move right into his left hip with my elbow. I slowly began to increase the pressure and I noticed that he was pushing back. We kind of did this dance back and forth until my elbow began to sink in and pretty soon he was standing still with his head down and his eyes closed. He was breathing deeply for a while and then he lifted his head and walked away. I told the owner that it looked like we were done and I began to walk out of the arena. The horse came around and blocked my exit and proceeded to place his head against my chest and held it there for a minute or so. He clearly wanted to express something to me. He was a much calmer horse. I am no longer a skeptic because myofascial release allows natural healing transformations to occur in both humans and animals.

•   Molly McMillan, OTR/L // Mar 9th 2013 at 7:19 am

  I enjoy treating animals because they take the releases and just go. There is no wondering if it’s going to work, and wanting to know why! They allow authentic healing to take place, and give us as therapists a chance to see how easy it can be! I treated my dog Sparkle Star (named by my 5 year old daughter, and on the other end of the spectrum from Thor!) after she caught her leg while trying to jump. It kept catching everytime we’d go for walks, so she would limp for a few yards, then be fine again. After treating her for three days in a row with gentle leg pulls and other MFR releases, she is completely fine. I am so grateful that I could help her in this way. Especially when I think about how it could have worked out had the problem continued overtime. She may have wound up lame and in pain at too early of an age.

•   Sharon Lindy PT // Mar 9th 2013 at 10:56 am

  I recently took my dog Roper with me to a Peds course in Beaumont. I had heard they did a demo on a dog last year in Dallas after class so I had that in the back of my mind as a possibility. She mainly came along because my other dog began attacking her and did it again the morning I was to leave for class. Roper spent the morning in the car but it was warm in the afternoon so I left her in the hotel room. Unfortunately she managed to get out. Someone found her and put her in their back yard 2 mile away. I went looking for her after class only to find her gone out the hole under the fence. I know I heard her as I drove up barking for me but I called and called and she did not come. I spent the rest of the night and frequent trips the next day canvasing the neighborhood but could not find her. I had arranged for her to be the demo on the second day and instead she was the emotional catalyst for many that day as everyone could relate to my loss. One of the intentions the Instructor suggested for us was that Roper would get whatever was best for her out of the situation. I was afraid someone was planning on keeping her for their new dog and I sent out the intention for her to make them realize they did not want to keep her. And she got both intentions loud and clear. – She is home getting along with my other dog and she convinced my rescue friend that she could no way wait for the weekend so I was back in Beaumont Tuesday night to get her. (6 and an a half hour drive from home)

  Trust your hands and be conscious of your thoughts! Animals love this work.

•   Mary M. Ryan LMT Rocakway, NJ // Mar 9th 2013 at 3:40 pm

  All things with fascia love receiving the JFB-MFR Approach! The intention of focused, gentle approaching towards/with animals is perhaps the paramount need for animals to sense first. Aren’t we all like that?
  Then, when we put our hands on them, without any force, applying the unique techniques taught by you, these beautiful animals can feel something different is going on and get into it even more than we can, for themselves.
  I have helped many different types of animals as I continue along this amazing journey. Living the principles you share. My first many years ago was when my niece’s new little bunny rabbit was sent home after a visit to the vet determining the rabbit had dislocated his hip. A frantic call from my sister asking if there was anything I could do. After 20 minutes, of very gentle JFB-MFR techniques and ‘listening’ to the rabbit, he shook and bounced off my lap. Looking back, tilting his head and scampering away to live many more years. I have worked with a horse with an incredible sway back and frozen hip. I held my palms open, closed my eyes and thought out to her,”I am here when you are ready and I will admit to you I am petrified of your size.” She came at me with her head down full force right into my palms resembling…a Mastiff. Unwindings around her face/neck. sweat pouring off, a lot of whining, then quiet. We ended this first hour long Session with a full tail pull with her leaning forward. Her owner saw the sway back lift up as the horse stretched away from me with a long neck stretch. The back did not go back to the sway! A few more Sessions and the chiropractor was finally able to adjust the hip which had always been ‘stuck.’ Mind you, at the time I did not know a tether from a tither or what was at the end of the tail except for….And there I was holding onto the….with a connection that was astounding! If a horse over 1200 lbs can feel the landing of a fly on their back, there is no need to be forceful in manual therapies. I say sign up for these equine seminars. If nothing else the gentleness one can reach with offering a horse this type of therapy can awaken us to how much more effective we can be with our human clients.

•   Tamara Thomas, PT // Mar 11th 2013 at 11:11 am

  I’m Tamara Thomas and I teach the Mark Barnes Equine Myofascial Release course as well as a Equine 2 course developed by my business partner and myself. I began my myofascial release journey in the late 80′s and I was completely captivated when John would talk about treating animals. I have a great love of animals and had almost decided to be a vet instead of PT. My interest in quality of movement made my decision. I treated a horse with John in New Jersey, it was incredible! It wasn’t long after that, Mark Barnes created the equine courses. I now have an awesome career traveling the country and treating both equine athletes and their riders. It is essential to treat them both since they influence each others bodies. I have had many amazing treatments with the horses because they are so willing to let go. I would encourage you to take the equine class even if you are not planning to treat horses. Learning mfr in the equine energy field will enhance your skill and help you release as well. Please join me.
  http://www.equinemyofascialrelease.com.

•   Julie Leigh, OTR/L // Mar 11th 2013 at 3:31 pm

  Ironically, I had my first official house call for a dog this weekend. The owner was a former patient of mine & was very familiar with the benefits of MFR & was hoping that we could provide some relief for his dog Molly. Molly is a 15 y/o Chow Chow/Shar Pei mix who had recently started to show sign of decline- her hind legs were falling out from underneath her and she wasn’t able to navigate a few stairs to get in & out of the house very well. We treated her for 20-30 minutes & I demonstrated a few gentle techniques (transverse plane compression, tail pull, & leg pulls) for him to follow up on. Today the owner reported to me that Molly appeared very comfortable. “She slept through the night & had been standing with without her hind quarters collapsing”.
  Animals truly are a joy to work with because they just go for it; they know what feels right! It’s a beautiful experience.

•   Lisa Salinger, PT // Mar 11th 2013 at 5:03 pm

  I, like Dru, have seen the positive effects of MFR on our family pets. We just recently lost our cat, Tigger, at the age of 20. While the average age for cats is about 16, living to 20 is not unheard of. What is special about his story is that he was in kidney failure for the last 4 years of his life. The vet showed us how to do sub-cutaneous fluids for him at home but warned that it would likely only give him another 6 moths or so. With lots of TLC and MFR on a regular basis he was able to remain stable and happy and was with us for another 4 years! When he wouldn’t tolerate hands-on work, I just did off the body energy work. There were many times when he would climb up on me and would not get off until I treated him!

•   Sharon Smith // Mar 11th 2013 at 11:33 pm

  My cats LOVE the tail pull. They lean right into it. When they’re done, you know…. I have two cats who are both happy, active and regularly get MFR. They come to me when they’re not feeling quite right (like after the 8′ unexpected fall off the balcony), and every morning they get their MFR time. And my sister’s dogs, whew! They mob me when they see me. My sister’s pit bull LOVES psoas releases, and my other sister’s lab loves leg releases, psoas release and tail pulls (she also likes to run full speed down steep hills and JUMP into whatever water is at the bottom). I haven’t had a chance to work on horses yet, soon maybe…

  Thank you John for encouraging us to use these wonderful techniques on everyone – and not only the 2 legged people.

•   Deb Howard, LPTA // Mar 12th 2013 at 6:20 am

  About five years ago, I was heading out to assist at one of John’s seminars. I let my Golden Toby out for one last time, and he came back on three legs, his right hind dangling loosely, in obvious pain.
  I couldn,t leave him in that condition, so I sat on the floor with him on his side. After several attempts (he didn’t welcome touch to his painful leg) beginning off his body, I was able to start a very gentle leg pul. After a few minutes, he began to unwind, eventually entering a still point. THEN he wagged his tail and popped up onto all four legs and walked away, with no obvious limp. At almost 13, he’s never had a recurrence.
  I routinely treat horses and dogs for a variety of issues with great results. By theway, I was even on time for my plane and a great seminar!

•   Keith J. Sullivan, PT // Mar 12th 2013 at 8:26 am

  I had some friends who had a championship hunting dog that came back from a pheasant trip with a limp. They asked if ther was anything I could do, so I went to make a house call. I worked on the dog with various MFR techniques, and actually had him in a nice deep still point laying on his back between my legs. When we were done, he got up. ran and got one of his toys, and came back & put it in my lap. My friends’ jaws both dropped in amazement. “You don’t understand,” they said, “That’s his favorite toy. He doesn’t let anybody touch it.” That was one of my favortite “payments” I ever recieved!

•   caran kalish // Mar 12th 2013 at 1:24 pm

  Treating my dog was a treat for him and me. He loved leg pulls! After studing the equine course with Tamera Thomas, I have had wonderful sessions with horses. One big guy,(1700lbs~pure athlete) called the War horse, melted: the barn staff was stunned, so was I. I have a beautiful privite suite, 5 rooms, in Doylestown PA. I let some clients bring there dogs. What a difference in the recovery process. Yes, dogs do get up on the table, and get mini samples. Some people have difficulty with there trama, I have seen the dogs calm that down. Yes extra vacuuming is required. Check out google, dentists are using dogs: they lay on the patients laps. Caran Kalish former nurse, LMT in PA most courses

•   John Wolin, LMT // Mar 13th 2013 at 9:30 am

  I have a couple of short stories of helping animals with MFR. One day while watching football with a friend and her family her step sister’s dog hopped up on our laps. After he decided to take a nap on her lap I decided to see if he would tolerate a very gentle tail pull. As I went along I could the release stretching into his hind quarters. Then all of a sudden we both saw a big spasm travel straight up the dog’s back! He took a big sigh then flopped over to look at us. He kind of gave us a once over then moved his head into my lap as if to say “More please.” I did a little occipital release. To which he sighed and loved.

  Another time I was dog sitting for a friend. She has a little dachshund/corgi mix named Guinness. I guess for a long time he was having some trouble with his back left hip going up and down steps. Well one night when he was cuddling in bed with me I scanned his back hind quarters for areas of heat. I found a little thermal area and slowly and gently applied pressure. I felt the area soften and open a few times before we both fell asleep with my hand still resting there. When my friend picked Guinness up she said “What did you do to my dog’s hip? He’s able to go up and down the stairs without swinging his hips!” She was so excited that her dog felt better.

  Thank you to everyone else for sharing their stories. I love reading about all the amazing times people have had helping animals.

•   Carol Dorsey, OTR/L // Mar 14th 2013 at 2:41 pm

  I have taken the equine course twice from Tamara Thomas. It was truly a jump forward in all aspects of my life and my business. I highly recommend you treat yourself to this fun and fantastic course. I treated my folks Shih Tzu (amongst others),,,after he had a fall, injurying his back. This dog was a real snob compared to their other Shih Tzu,( would not come to you/let you pet him). He initially, did not want me to touch him, so I started very slow, moving along his cervical region, working down his spine,,,by the time I moved into a tail pull, he was like putty in my hands,gazing back at me, with a very relaxed look in his eyes. He was back to his old self, and my folks couldn’t believe it! He now greets me,rubs up against me,,and we are pals now! I love this MFR!

•   Teresa Miller PT // Mar 15th 2013 at 7:58 am

  Hi John,
  I took Equine 1 & 2 courses to improve my proprioceptive skills. I enjoyed the courses but didn’t plan to treat horses because they are big and truthfully they scared me a little.
  Shortly after taking my first equine MFR with my brother, one of his horses had a fall and developed a limp. He couldn’t turn smoothly to the right and was grumpy with pain.
  My brother and I set aside a session to try some of the MFR techniques on Jake, the injured horse. Jake was cooperative and enjoyed most of the work until we began to work on his pelvis. The assessment techniques we learned in the course demonstrated a rotation of his pelvis. When I tried the hand position taught in the course Jake moved away. He would have any of that one. So my brother and I felt our way to a new hand position. With the gentlest of light pressure I sustained contact with Jake’s hip bone while my brother assisted his rear leg into a stretched position. After several minutes of gentle pressure in a relaxed, grounded and centered space, I was able to feel this 1000+ pound horse’s pelvis bone drift back into place. After our session with Jake, he was frisky, playful and able to easily turn to the right. Amazing session, amazing work.
  After working with Jake, I have found my hands to be more sensitive with my clients, and I find being more effective with less effort and less pressure.
  It is a joy to connect and be able to communicate with our 4 legged friends through touch.
  Teresa Miller
  Omaha, NE

•   Renie Allen // Mar 15th 2013 at 9:48 am

  I have recently adopted 2 dogs from animal rescues. They both have a long history of living in shelters. Isis was obviously pretty severely abused/traumatized and the other, Buckie, has just had the misfortune of living his 3 years in a kennel.

  With both dogs, I had immediately incorporated MFR as part of their transition of coming into their new home. Rebounding, off the body work, cross hand release, full body compression and lots of love has definitely aided in the process.

  The first one I adopted, Isis, the traumatized one, has made ENORMOUS gains in trust and confidence. This was a dog who flinched and cowered at nearly every noise and movement. The progress she has made in 4 months time is remarkable, maybe even miraculous. In the beginning, all she would tolerate is off the body work. And soon we moved into rebounding…. and that was it! It was after one treatment of rebounding that she came into her body and started to show signs of great progress. She now demands it. At the end of the day, she talks enough for me to go sit with her on the couch for her daily dose of MFR.

  The story of Isis’ transition into our home wasn’t pretty… it definitely added to her history of trauma. But it was knowing how to read her signs through non verbal communication, waiting at the barrier, creating safe space, listening and respecting that allowed for our rough beginning to blossom into a beautiful bond!

  I appreciate the timeliness of the post on dogs. I’ve noticed a lot of animal energy and animal stories from within my own home and with my clients as well. Thanks John!

  Renie Allen
  Cumberland, Maine

•   Essence Sage Oyos-Haynes // Mar 16th 2013 at 12:10 am

  I have so much fun and am so honored to be able to ‘work’ with our 4 legged friends. I have so many stories but will just share the most recent and close to home.

  Our cat Archimedes aka “Noodles,” nearing 10 yrs now, has never been much of a snuggler with anyone, except HIS boy (my son). After I returned home from MFR 3 this past October, I noticed a limp in his front leg & decided to do some off body, & echoing / rebounding work with him. I was sitting on our back porch journaling the next day when he invited himself (limp free) into my lap for what turned into a 45 minute snuggle…with me? wow!

  This past Monday he showed up at the back door at 5:15 am bloody, barely walking, and in shock-presumably- defending his corner of the world from another cat?…sure, the one night in 10 years we couldn’t get him inside before we went to bed…not even with the click of the food can.

  He let me clean him up and do some off body, light-touch work again, and although he was in what I assumed to be enormous pain, began purring…. usually Mr. Don’t Touch Me himself! Took him in for antibiotics and a check-up to make sure I wasn’t missing anything. Doc said keep an eye out, wound is in a bad area…

  He’s been eating, drinking, and receptive to touch the last few days but still not his usual self and today was different as the deep puncture wound near his mouth began to abscess …lethargic and no interest in food or water.

  ‘Noodles’ had to go through the stress response all over again being in the car, shaved, poked, and prodded by the vet some more. When they began paperwork for his surgery estimate- I did some echoing / rebounding as he buried his face in the towel and I couldn’t believe he started purring again!

  He’ll come home tomorrow and I’m looking forward to connecting with my 10 year old 4 legged boy at an even deeper level, as I can only imagine how his pride of being “keeper of the corner” might be just as hurting as his physical wounds.

  Funny side-note…when I was hands-on-cat last night while talking to my son for 20 minutes or so, he says, “Mom, do you think you could work on me too please?”

  Equine and pediatrics are on my to-do list for this year.

•   Mary Mancillas-Loveless // Mar 27th 2013 at 7:30 am

  I have seen John Barnes work with animals and It is amazing to watch how they respond. I personally do not work with animals, but soon to take an Equine class. Looking forward to the amazing feel of a very large animal.

  Mary Loveless PTA, LMT
  Back In Motion
  612 1st. Ave. So.
  Great Falls, Montana 59401
  406.750-2655

•   Ann Udofia // Mar 31st 2013 at 8:18 pm

  I took the Equine MFR course a couple of years ago. Although I don’t work with animals as part of my MFR practice, I knew how invaluable it would be to work with beings that had not been ‘wired’ to second guess authentic healing. The class was really one of my favorites, and it gave me the re-assurance I was looking for about what myofascial tissue texture felt like as it released and the effectiveness of this amazing work.

•   Laura Probert, MPT, Author of "Living, Healing and Taekwondo." // Apr 3rd 2013 at 7:37 pm

  The equine seminar I attended with Cathy Covell of Motion For Life, was one of the most interesting and intense experiences I have had in my career. I learned to feel on another level, without using any words, without being given any verbal feedback. I learned to connect with that place, that every living creature has, that knows how to heal. The healing went both ways.
  And watching in awe while a thousand pound animal slowly nodded off in relaxation while I pulled its tail, well, that was priceless. Connecting with animals like this is a gift, just as it is with humans.

•   Stephen Sanacore // Apr 11th 2013 at 7:48 am

  I love treating my two dogs with MFR. They are two bigs dogs and have made it to 14yo. Both Dogs are very healthy and happy as they get daily MFR treatments. Thanks John.

•   Deb Epstein, LMT,NCTM // Apr 19th 2013 at 9:09 am

  My Husband Dave and I just presented a workshop on MFR for dogs. It was an amazing experience teaching MFR principles to a room full of people, all of whom were graduates of a dog massage program from the school where we held the workshop. All were committed to helping dogs.
  We first had the participants learn the techniques on each other. They were able to feel the effects of this profound work, and many had some emotions come up during the hands on demonstration. Lots of softening going on!!
  Later in the afternoon we moved into treating the dogs. You might think that in a room full of dogs that there would be a lot of rough housing going on, but these dogs were so ready for their treatment. They all settled in and received the work. Some of the dogs’ parents were amazed as they stated It is always a challenge to get a dog to lie still for massage, they had never seen their dog lay still for so long. Even dogs know that MFR is awesome!!

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