I found it somewhat amusing to hear one of my new clients describe her conversation with one of her friends after her first session. I had seen this client just once and she presented with hand issues stemming from a fall a few months ago. I won’t go into all the details of her treatment, but during the fall, she braced herself with an outstretched hand, which then injured the palmar fascia and her whole right upper extremity was involved.
During her first visit, she brought with her the results of recent X-rays and an MRI. Neither showed anything remarkable, but surgery was one of the recommendations from her physician. She also reported to her primary care physician that she experienced pain in her forearm, and later pain in her shoulder. She was then referred to a specialist for her hand, one for her arm, and another for her shoulder. Each problem was seen as a separate issue, independent from the other.
During our 45-minute session, I addressed fascial and muscular issues related to the fall, which encompassed all three of her presenting symptoms. She is a musician and very tuned to her body, and this approach made intuitive sense to her, even though she had never received PNMT previously.
When she returned for her second session, she reported that her symptoms were substantially better, which also correlated with what I felt in her tissue. This is when she told me about the conversation with her friend, with whom she was extolling the results of our session and the process of treatment. She described the questions I asked, the physical examination of her tissue, and focused treatment on the areas potentially involved.
Her friend then asked, “What is he?”
“I think he is a massage therapist,” she replied.
“Doesn’t sound like it,” replied her friend. “I have had lots of massages, and that doesn’t sound like massage therapy.”
To my client, the approach just made sense- focused hands-on work on the areas involved, and the proof of concept were the results generated. Having never had massage of any kind, she was a bit amused and surprised at her friend’s reaction. I explained to her the obvious, that massage therapy is a big umbrella and Precision Neuromuscular Therapy is one of the options inside a field of many choices. Each has its place in the larger picture, the wisdom is choosing the right approach for the right outcome. PNMT excels in problem-solving soft-tissue difficulties using great assessment, sensitive palpation, and a flexible treatment approach. At some level, it is remarkably simple. Simple and easy aren’t the same thing- the skills required to practice PNMT effectively are demanding, challenging, and incredibly rewarding.
It is important for therapists studying PNMT to educate clients about the work so the public has an idea of who we are and what we have to offer. In that way, potential clients can make informed choices about whom to see for what reason. Over the years, I think my office has done a very good job with that endeavor. In our community, people generally do not mistake us for a spa; they know my office is the place to go when you hurt and want results. Our limited marketing reflects that image, making sure what we put forth is consistent with our aspirations and the services in which we excel.
As a result, people most often present at their first appointment with a complaint and once they experience the work, they are highly likely to return for continued maintenance on a schedule that makes sense for their needs. The proof of concept is that in a city the size of Champaign-Urbana (120,000), we have been seeing clients since 1982, have a staff of 20+ therapists, and saw more than 16,000 appointments last year. It is a vote of confidence from the community we take seriously, and it pushes us to be better each day.
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