Mountain Meadow Massage Therapy

What is Fascia?

Fascia is a thin, sticky, almost translucent film that wraps around muscle tissue, organs, bones, nerves, blood and lymph vessels, and every cell of the body.  It is a 3 dimensional web which extends continuously from head to toes without interruption. It wraps around fibrils, fibers, bundles of fibers, and the structures themselves, and then goes on to form tendons and ligaments. It is the tissue that holds all the other parts together.  It gives shape to and supports all of the body.

It is comprised of collagen & elastin fibrils and extracellular fluid called ground substance. The collagen gives support, shape and stability. The elastin gives dynamic flexibility.  

The ground substance provides cushion and is, under normal conditions, of a gelatinous like consistency that transports metabolic material through the body substance makes up the bulk of the extracellular matrix.

 Fascia is the primary communication source of all cellular activity. It regulates vital functions such as temperature, water, mineral and bioelectrical energy balance including glycolysis and respiration. It determines the extracellular environment providing nutrition and oxygen to cells, eliminating waste, and is a part of every inflammatory and defense process.

Fascia’s Response to Trauma

Much of all movement dysfunction arises from adaptations the Myofascial system makes in response to trauma. As trauma occurs in the system many changes take place in the Myofascial complex. The elastin loses resiliency & pliability and becomes restricted. The collagen fibers increase in production and become dense and fibrous. Neural and vascular structures can become entrapped in these fascial restrictions causing neurological symptoms and ischemic conditions. The ground substance dehydrates & solidifies causing cellular disease.

Myofascial restrictions occur from trauma, surgery, inflammation, stress, etc. These restrictions can exhort pressures up to 2,000 pounds per square inch on pain sensitive structures that do not show up on any standardized tests (xrays, MRIs, CAT Scans, electromyography, etc). Over time this can lead to poor biomechanics, altered structural alignment, decreased strength & coordination, inflexibility, abnormal craniosacral motion, headaches and pain.

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