Alternative Therapies for Dancers

[pygmalion]

Just curious. How many of you use alternative therapies -- massage therapy, acupuncture, chiropractic therapy, holistic medicine, etc, to help prevent or treat the inevitable dance-related injuries and complaints? Any recommendations?

[etchuck]

Well, I don't, but I do believe in backrub therapy. ;)

I'd still say proper stretching and rest would probably do as much good (prevention-wise) as many of the other therapies that you list. As for treating injuries, I cannot say that acupuncture or holistic medical techniques are completely ineffective, but I'm sure someone has tried it before.

[jon]

I doubt they're dance-related, but I see a chiropractor and massage therapist for my shoulder and neck pain. They both help. Nothing ever fixes joint problems, they just help more than the conventional muscle relaxant - PT - rest - biofeedback - nerve conduction studies - etc. that I tried first in the conventional medical system.

However, I very strongly recommend against the type of chiropractor who thinks that adjusting the spine is the basis for solving all your health problems. Those guys are extremely dangerous, less because of what they do to you than because of what you may not get done elsewhere as a consqeuence of believing them. The D.C. I see is a very engineering-oriented type (and fellow swing dancer) who recognizes the limits of the technique and doesn't make outlandish claims for it.

My massage therapist does a lot of pressure point work. At first it was screamingly painful but as I learned to relax into it rather than tensing up, now the effect is to leave me a drooling mass of relaxation. I have had quite unpleasant massages from other people who do stuff like manipulate the arm in question.

It's a matter of finding some whose skills work for your particular body and issues. Alternative medicine has a wide range of options from the credible-but-not-yet-AMA-approved down to wacky murderous nonsense such as homeopathy. Use judgement.

[Genesius Redux]

Massage therapy rocks. Full body. One hour. Yes.

[Sagitta]

You know I've never had any sort of massage before. Perhaps something I should try out?

[Genesius Redux]

Definitely.

And let me tell you--girlfriends who give backrubs and such aren't the same. It turns invariably into something else. There's nothing like just completely giving yourself over to a professional whose job it is to relax every muscle in your body. 8)

[pygmalion]

Does anybody use foot massage either self- or professionally- administered?

[tsb]

i had to see a chiropractor specifically for something dance related (i ended up giving up contra dance a long time ago for that reason as all it took was one lady's over exuberance during a swing to throw my neck out of alignment and the way contra works you can't avoid anyone).

i've also been taught how to self-adminster foot massage by a fellow dancer & massage therapist but i think that's more beneficial for the ladies who dance in high heels.

[SDsalsaguy]

You do need to be careful to find someone who is both skilled and, as jon says, doesn't overdo it... but I probably wouldn't be dancing without my chiropractor.

[etchuck]

Definitely.

And let me tell you--girlfriends who give backrubs and such aren't the same. It turns invariably into something else. There's nothing like just completely giving yourself over to a professional whose job it is to relax every muscle in your body. 8)

Obviously you've never dated a professional masseuse. ;) (I haven't, but I did go out with a physical therapist. Learned a lot from each other. :roll: :roll: :ladiesma: )

[Genesius Redux]

Definitely.

And let me tell you--girlfriends who give backrubs and such aren't the same. It turns invariably into something else. There's nothing like just completely giving yourself over to a professional whose job it is to relax every muscle in your body. 8)

Obviously you've never dated a professional masseuse. ;) (I haven't, but I did go out with a physical therapist. Learned a lot from each other. :roll: :roll: :ladiesma: )

Well, no I haven't--but that kind of experience would look awfully nice on a dating resume! :lol:

[jon]

(I haven't, but I did go out with a physical therapist. Learned a lot from each other.

I dated a PT too, and all the massage went from me to her. After spending 4 hours/day doing chest percussion therapy on cystic fibrosis patients, she wasn't in any shape to do more work. Also had to learn how to dance without using her right arm for a period of several months. Which has actually come in handy with a number of partners since then; a distressing number of followers get badly enough damaged that they can't use their right arm to dance with.