ABC’s NIGHTLINE PROGRAM TACKLES
CHRONIC PAIN AS IT RELATES TO RESTRICTED FASCIA
- WE ARE A DRUGGED UP NATION: We all know that as a people, Americans are HEAVILY DRUGGED with hardcore meds like NARCOTICS or other members of “THE BIG FIVE” category of drugs. How bad is it? Although the US only contains about 3-5% of the world’s population, “80% of all painkillers taken in the world are taken in the U.S“. No wonder the opioid epidemic is running full-tilt with no end in site!
- AN ABSURD NUMBER OF AMERICANS DEAL WITH SOME SORT OF CHRONIC PAIN: You can find this statistic on my site, but Nightline said it as well. “It’s estimated over 100 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, costing almost $600 billion a year in health care expenses, lost wages, and lost productivity. And that figure doesn’t include the psychological toll it takes on people who are suffering.” In essence, this statistic shows that almost one in three people in America are dealing with some sort of chronic pain issue. Because MOST CHILDREN don’t have to deal with chronic pain, this means that the amount of pain in the American adult population is through the roof.
- DEALING WITH ADHESED FASCIA HAS MADE THE MOST DIFFERENCE FOR MANY PEOPLE IN CHRONIC PAIN: The story revolved around dancer / fitness instructor / model, Marissa Jo Merliss, who had been through seven surgeries (one a spinal fusion). Despite everything she had tried (CHIROPRACTIC ADJUSTMENTS, ACUPUNCTURE, TRACTION, PHYSICAL THERAPY, REGULAR EXERCISE, STRETCHING PROTOCOLS, etc, etc), using foam rollers to break FASCIAL ADHESIONS made “the most dramatic difference in her chronic pain levels.“
- FASCIA IS ABSURDLY PAIN-SENSITIVE: Here is where things get crazy. I’ve shown you that Fascia is not only the single most pain-sensitive tissue in the body, but that SCAR TISSUE (the medical community usually refers to this as “FIBROSIS“) can be over 1,000 times more pain-sensitive than normal tissue (HERE). The final punch to the gut is that it does not show up on tests such as MRI (HERE). “Leading scientists have discovered that people do feel more pain in their fascia than they do in their muscles. Fascia actually has a lot of nerve endings in it. If the fascia is inflamed it can feel painful.” The kicker is that not only does said inflammation hyper-sensitize the nervous system, potentially leading to TYPE III PAIN, but THIS SAME INFLAMMATION is the cause of most chronic illness as well. But this isn’t even the worst of it. How many of you were aware that Scar Tissue / Fibrosis is actually the leading cause of death in America (HERE)?
Nightline goes on to talk more about Fascia. They even interviewed Dr. Helene Langevin, a Harvard-trained neurologist / endocrinologist from the University of Vermont (she is responsible for these ridiculously amazing ten second videos — HERE). Langevin, along with the venerable Dr. Ingber, are two of the growing number of elite physicians and researchers who believe that FASCIA plays a huge role in the development of all sickness, disease, and Chronic Pain (HERE). Listen to what the program goes on to say about Fascia and the way that it CONNECTS EVERY PART OF YOU TO EVERY OTHER PART OF YOU.
“….A part of the body that most of us have never even heard of, a connective tissue called fascia. Connective tissue is flexible scaffolding under your skin. It’s where collagen is produced in the body. It plays major roles in everything from keeping your skin lifted to giving joints shock absorption to giving muscles balanced…. It forms a network in the body, connects everything with everything else. It might play a role in the interface between body systems.”
When the chips are down, however, the only thing that really matters with whatever treatment is being done is results. Listen to what Nightline says about the results of breaking Fascial Adhesions. “Plenty of people say they feel an immediate difference.” “Immediate difference.” That is the goal in my clinic (HERE are three examples). No matter what some might tell you, it’s not a pipe dream (HERE).
While I agree with what they are saying, and adamantly promote what they are doing, foam rollers are not necessarily the panacea that Nightline made them out to be. The worse the adhesions, the greater the chance you are going to have them broken up with methods that are more intense than foam rollers — possibly MUCH MORE INTENSE. The beautiful thing is, however, there is no downside to using foam rollers or similar. The worst thing that could happen is that it doesn’t work as advertised. If you are interested in DIY information on how to prevent SCAR TISSUE (HERE) from forming in the first place, as well as the the best ways to deal with it if it does manage to form, HERE is the page to visit.
