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About 1 out of 6 Australians suffered from back pain in 2017, and I am unfortunately one of the affected. While over-the-counter medicines work, I have reasons to seek out myotherapy.

Six months into the therapy, I didn’t find the need to bring painkillers anymore – what a relief! So take it from a 26-year-old sufferer of back pain: myotherapy alleviates muscle pain and prevents the worst from happening.

What is Myotherapy?

Most people liken myotherapy to a spa massage. Well, myotherapy does use massage to treat muscle pain.

Yet this non-invasive treatment uses a specialized remedial massage and a host of other physical techniques to strategically and effectively resolve problems on soft tissues (i.e., tendon, ligament, muscles, and fascia).

That said, one can anticipate a lot of hand and arm (e.g., use of elbows) manipulations in a typical myotherapy session.

Myotherapy believes that pain originates in the muscles and that finding the right trigger point in the affected muscle group is key to eliminating the pain and preventing myofascial dysfunction. And just like a typical weekend massage, it does relieve stress and calm my nerves.

Why I Decided to Try Myotherapy?

The main reason had to do with my age. I fell off the stairs during my young adult years, and although I did not have fractures, I had experienced occasional bouts of back pain since then. My job sometimes requires lifting, which causes the pain to become frequent.

The idea of becoming drug-dependent at a young age scared me. My doctor recommended physical therapy that helped significantly. But I was not able to sustain the exercises given to me.

Myotherapy has successfully rehabilitated the leg injury of my friend. I have heard from her about the assisted sessions. With this, I am confident I can sustain the treatment long-term.

What Are the Benefits of Myotherapy?

No more painkillers; that is the ultimate benefit if you ask me. Besides pain management, myotherapy expedites healing and protects the body functions supported by the affected soft tissues.

If your injury has already affected your mobility, you can expect myotherapy to help you achieve normalcy.

I went on to read the host of benefits myotherapy from Australia’s Institute of Registered Myotherapists. The list includes anxiety/stress relief, reduced soreness, chronic lower back pain treatment, and even pain management of the musculoskeletal disorder, fibromyalgia.

Patients suffering from terminal diseases (e.g., multiple sclerosis and cancer) were responsive to myotherapy sessions, too. They reported more positive well-being ratings. This must be the effect of oxytocin and endorphins, the happy hormones associated with massage.

How Does It Differ from Physical Therapy?

I’ve tried both myotherapy and physical therapy. Both use hand manipulation techniques to treat muscle-related pain and injuries. But myotherapy focuses on trigger points for pain, while physical therapy utilizes exercises for mobility.

In physical therapy, I transitioned from having therapist-assisted exercises to do-it-yourself exercises. The transition is often recommended for those without significant mobility problems.

Meanwhile, in myotherapy, your sessions are all therapist-assisted, be it dry needling, passive stretching, hot and cold technique, or another technique.

Myotherapy also seeks to treat muscle and fascia pain and dysfunction, whereas physical therapy treats musculoskeletal problems at a much broader scale.

Myotherapy is considered an alternative treatment, while physical therapy can be part of medical treatment.

Is Myotherapy Ideal for Older Age Group?

The answer is an astounding yes. Myotherapy fits all ages, not just young adults like me who got scared of eventual medicine dependence for back pain. In fact, the more sedimentary your lifestyle becomes, the greater is your need for myotherapy.

The norm is for people to seek myotherapy for sprains, joint and muscle pains, poor posture, and sports and overuse injuries.

But you do not necessarily need to suffer from any of these to start enjoying the therapy’s benefits. Treat it as preventive care. You can contact my trusted clinic. Click here to visit their website.

Myotherapy is yet an evolving treatment. Choosing your myotherapy clinic wisely is important.

Most Aussies I know play basketball, volleyball, futsal, and other team sports that are typically held indoors. On a more personal level, I prefer playing indoor cricket especially when we get to play under the roof of one of Action Indoor Sports’ renowned indoor sports stadiums all over the country.

You can also visit their website to learn where these stadiums are located so you can choose one nearest you. But why should you play indoor cricket, you might ask?

For starters, it’s a great way to sharpen your focus and concentration. A game of indoor cricket is similar to the one played outdoors. The only obvious difference is that, well, it’s played indoors.

But given that the objective of the game is to hit or bat the ball, this requires excellent hand-eye coordination and impeccable spatial skills.

The first time I played indoor cricket, I thought it was almost the same as baseball. Well, it is. But I found batting the cricket ball to be somewhat trickier and this requires skill. More importantly, one has to stay focused on the movement of the ball as it is bowled to you by the bowler of the opposing team.

You may not know it, but very fast calculations are already occurring in your brain. It’s trying to figure out the precise moment when the muscles of the arm will start twitching to get the bat ready to meet the incoming ball.

Everything happens in a split second. But do it many times and you’ve got yourself steadier hands, more focused mind, and lightning-quick reflexes. For youngsters, the sharpening of focus and hand-eye coordination can easily translate to better performance in school.

The same is true for adults as there are certain aspects of their work that require concentration and deft hands.

Indoor cricket is not only good for sharpening your cognitive and psychomotor faculties, however. It is also important in enhancing your overall fitness.

Sure, it pales in comparison to lifting weights or even doing a butterfly in the Olympic swimming pool, but it sure can work the muscles of the arms and legs.

As you bat the bowl, power is concentrated in the arms so that you can easily send the ball rolling, allowing you to score for your team. But that’s not all, running also targets the muscles of the legs and feet.

Unlike running however, the work performed by the muscles of your lower limbs is more explosive. Imagine you’re simply standing there. Then, all of a sudden, you have to spring into action. This can take your muscles by surprise. And this is how leg muscles get trained to be stronger.

Playing indoor cricket is also a great way to manage stress. If you’re like me who has to juggle work responsibilities with the other aspects of my life, then you know how frustrating it can be when you’re stressed out.

While there are plenty of ways by which we can manage our stresses, I find playing indoor cricket to be especially beneficial for me.

How? Like I said, it helps me focus on the task at hand. This alone helps me discard my anxious thoughts and replace them with more constructive ones. In this case it’s how I can hit the ball and score one for my team.

But the real motivation for playing indoor cricket is in the camaraderie and sense of belonging that I share with my teammates. Playing indoor cricket doesn’t have to be all about competition.

It can even be a friendly match which can be such a joy to have especially when followed by good food, great drinks, and plenty of laughs. Other indoor games can provide you with such a thrill, too.

Different individuals have different reasons for playing indoor cricket or any other game or sports activity held indoors. What I can honestly tell you is that indoor cricket is good for you.

Going for massage therapy is something that I really enjoy, whether I am alone or with the company of friends. Work has been so demanding lately as our boss required us to spend overtime due to last month’s low productivity report. Without a choice, my department has to stay in the office two hours more beyond 5pm. We have finally reached our goal and so it’s about time we give ourselves a break.

One full week of increased workload led us to a weekend of massage therapy. Little did I know that some of my colleagues were already planning for a much-needed massage. Indeed, last Saturday was a blast. Five of us met at the physiotherapy clinic near our office and spent a few hours of thorough stress-relieving massage. Admittedly, we looked haggard before we entered the clinic but when the massage was done, we have transformed into better-looking human beings. Perhaps, everyone in the office needs this.

All five of us complained of back ache, neck pain, shoulder ache and migraine. Our therapist happily stated that we are just in the perfect place for treatment. He explained that our posture at work is one of the main reasons we are experiencing these symptoms. One position for a prolonged period hardens the muscles and disrupts the circulation of blood in the body. Hence, this needs to be corrected.

From deep kneading to stretching, we were certainly relieved of getting massage therapy. Most importantly, we are treated by professional therapists who are highly-trained and skilled in their craft. I can definitely say that when experts do the treatment, you are assured of getting cured. Although it doesn’t take overnight to be completely healed, there is an assurance that constant massage will bring our condition to a better light.

Going back to work last Monday was like a breath of fresh air. We were ready to face the week again and stress is no longer that difficult to handle. My colleagues and I agreed to go for massage therapy regularly from this time onwards.

Stress in the workplace can never be eliminated however, there are many things that you can do in order to combat this reality. One way is obtaining treatment from a certified physiotherapist. Massage St Kilda Road is just a few minutes away for a start. It’s great to work hard and earn big but it is more awesome to be in the best state of health. Otherwise, we cannot be an efficient employee.