Graston Techique

[Dr. Natural]

Ok soemone else mentioned this is the section about what tools they use. So i looked it up. I didnt notice that they will teach massage thearipits how to use it in which they wont sell it to us. Now this is something i dont understand because it is for the muscles and arent we all about muscles. Does anyone know more information about this? Does anyone here every used it?


Edited to correct spelling by maestra 5/27/2011.

 

[Soul to Squeeze]

I also looked this technique up. It is very interesting. It is based on Cyriaxs Myofascial Release Techniques. The instruments are used to locate areas of congestion and then used to break up the congestion--scar tissue etc. Looks like they don't teach MTs how to do the therapy. They teach it to Sports Trainers though and I would think we are comparable to them at least. Seems like a lot of Chiros use the technique. I am interested in finding out if anyone in my area practices it. I have tendonitis in my medial epicondyle...it is only 60 percent effective for that...but maybe worth a try...

 

[Black Delilah]

This is a Pm that i got from a MT who has had ti doen on her. Now i think it is a good thing that MT dont do this tecnique. It sounds painful, and i dotn want people coming to me and hoep i wont hurt them this time. You know what i am saying?


"Liz,
I am a MT, I don't practice Graston. I have rec'd about 5 sessions. It's an interesting-read that painful- technique. It basically scours the scar tissue from many different angles-cross fiber, longitudinal, etc. The DC who used it on me performed the following protocol:
1. Locate lesion-scar tissue
2. Warm up with ultrasound
3. Apply Graston tool for 30-45 second intervals
4. I scream, writhe, and moan on the table.
5. Ice the area.
Total time-30-45 minutes.
I think this technique is effective yet limited to certain populations. I wouldn't expect people with low pain tolerance, those on blood thinners, or those who are fragile. It's best for those who want to get back in the game/life quickly while enduring some tenderness after treatment.
Graston can leave bruising and it's very deep. It's easier on the operator than doing friction massage. The client can feel all the scar-feels like gravel. It basically causes a new injury and the remodeling of tissue. It requires follow-up with ice, movement, etc.
Hope this helps,
rubmyster,
jody"

 

[Mirroboy Nick]

Ohhhhhh....thanks for that info Liz... :shock: I guess that is why we should not jump into things we know nothing about...

 

[Quiet girl<3]

This link may help you:

Graston Technique
http://www.massageplanet.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2303

Specifically:

I have been too busy doing other things to add this info like I had been wanting too. I had also placed some info on another forum quite some time again, and recieved the following rsponse (see below). It intrigued me enough, that I called the man. I have spoken (via telephone) to Dr. Scampole (quoted below) and got some good info from him, that others may want regarding massage therapist training with this technique. His website is: http://www.sastm.com/providers.htm

 

[Qassem]

I have received Graston once and it does hurt. The chiro was targeting multiple adhesions/trigger points in my shoulder. I did not bruise dark but came out with the reddest shoulder and neck. It really helped with my ROM in the shoulder and I'd love to have it again. I don't know if that sort of response from a client helps or not. t026

 

[Voldemar H. Guerta]

Granston Techique

Just adding this info as a general info bit.

Here is another company that makes "Graston-like" tools:

"Welcome to iam tools - The home of top quality, hand crafted instrument assisted massage tools"

http://www.iamtools.co.uk/

They also offer the ability to design your own tool - http://www.iamtools.co.uk/tool-design-service/

 

[ann!belle]

Granston Techique

Hi everyone,

Thanks pueppi for posting that link to our website.
We're over in the UK and are quite a new business. My wife is a sports massage therapist & Cranio Sacral Therapist and she attended a course called FAKTR-PM last year, and that's basically when our business first started.
FAKTR is a 2 day course that teaches you how to use the IASTM or (Instrument Assisted Soft Tissue Mobilization) instruments in a much more functional and dynamic way than some of the other courses like Graston, or systems like ASTYM or SASTM
It's a lot cheaper than the other courses and it seems like a lot of the chiropracters/physio's etc: in the US are now starting to say a lot better too. I have to say that in all honesty, myself and my wife have only had experience with FAKTR, and in no way are trying to say that the other training/tool providers are not as good. Quite the opposite - I've never heard a bad thing about them..except the price of their tools and courses/certification. :roll:

If anyone is interested, then the website is http://www.faktr.com
The 2 day course they run is very good value - around $400 and they teach you how to use these instruments. The really nice thing about the course though is that i'm pretty sure(you would need to check) it's open to massage therapists as well. Also, (and this is the big bonus and how we set about starting our business) they allow you to use which-ever tools you like and have a selection of various manufactureres tools for you to try - be it Gua Sha, Graston, or what-ever you like.

Finally, once you start to use these tools in a more dynamic and functional way, you find that you don't need to use as much force, or require as many treatments.

The tools we started to make have all been designed to give the therapist much more feedback, which in turn means more control, less pressure, less bruising and less discomfort for the patient.

These treatments don't have to be brutal! With motion and load and with the use of the right tool, they can be extremely effective very quickly! My wife Lucy has treated 100's of people with tools using this method for nearly a year now, and none of them have experienced the sort of agonising pain that is described in the post at the start of this topic. Sure, for some people it can be a little uncomfortable and yes there can be bruising, but only where there is an issue in the tissue like scar tissue for example as it is being broken down.

Hope this post is helpful to people.. and my advice for anyone who is interested would be to buy some cheap Gua Sha tools to start with and search around you tube for some IASTM video clips..Then if your interested book onto a http://www.faktr.com course.

Hopefully - we'll have a few video's of how to use the tools with functional movement and load on our website soon so keep an eye out as we update our site every few weeks or so.

Cheers

Malc http://www.iamtools.co.uk

 

[knoxzi]

Granston Techique

There is a training coming up in Boston in October that I might just save up the money to take.

 

[Krysta H]

Granston Techique

Thanks Malc! I got the above info from an MT I know from the UK. So, glad you responded with more info, which is really helpful!

 

[jumpxit]

Granston Techique

I am trying to understand what a tool can safely do that my hands can not. The potential for needless tissue damage (as evidenced by bruising, soreness, etc.) exists and is extremely common. Some practitioners even suggest that bruising and soreness are "necessary" parts of the healing process, but I have yet to see research that supports this claim. It is good to see a practitioner claim otherwise.

If tool use is primarily predicated on the notion of "releasing fascial adhesions", the potential applications are limited and will frequently be based upon incorrect assessments. I hope that the training courses for such tools include in-depth injury assessment and evidence-based clinical reasoning.

 

[" ? "]

Granston Techique

It's a very interesting topic...
Over here in the UK, a good 50% of my tools have so far been sold to Personal trainers or a better name might be 'functional trainers' and they are using these tools solely for increasing ROM with amazing results.
I learnt recently that Personal trainers in the US would'nt be allowed to use these tools for insurance reasons etc: - you'd have to correct me if that's not the case? But I have to admit that I was surprised to hear that - I was talking to Annette Lang and Adam Wolf recently when they were over in the UK a few months ago..
The PT's over here who are buying them are experts in functional movement and have a good understanding of fascia and the whole myofascial system, so they are using that knowledge to great effect.. the tools themselves are used in this instance to locate the fascial restrictions within the tissues. They then use them on certain areas to enable the muscles and fascia to glide again, helping with the ROM.
This type of tool use rarely causes bruising, although sometimes will cause the area to redden as the body sends more blood to that area.
There's a very experienced American Chiropracter called Tom Hyde (the owner of FAKTR) who's coming over here shortly to run a 2 day seminar pitched at PT's to teach them how to use these tools effectively.
The functional awareness that most of these PT's have is similar to the stuff taught over in the US by a chap called Gary Gray - http://www.grayinstitute.com/

I do have a lot of Chiropracters/Osteopaths/Physiotherapists and massage therapist who also buy these tools and although many of them use them in the same way for increasing ROM, they also use them in a slightly different way to break down local scar tissue.
Most of the design and developement work that I have done on our tools has been to enable them to do this as well as possible without damaging the good tissues surrounding it.. but at the end of the day - it always comes down to the training, experience and knowledge that each individual practitioner has, as to wether they use these tools safely. I would never want anyone to buy one of our tools (or anybody else's for that matter) who did'nt have a good understanding of what they are, how to use them and also have a really good understanding of how the whole myofascial system works. Making sense of the information that these tools can provide, also only comes with a good background of hands on palpation skills.

The best explanation I can give about how the tool itself works, is that it acts as an amplifier to the therapist.. If you think of it in the same way as an old fashioned record player, then the tool edge is (in a sense) very similar to the stylus of the record player. As you use it to glide over the tissues it picks up information about the state of the tissue, so in some cases it can be easier to detect areas that might be problematic... The way the edge is designed also makes it much easier to seperate tissues that have become 'stuck' so it's not neccesarily that you can do things that you cant with your hands - just that it can enable you to do the same things more effectively and quicker.

Try getting a t-spoon from your kitchen cupboard (not too sharp but a slightly rounded edge one) and, using the handle, rub it on an area of yourself that you think maight be restricted in some way. You should be able to feel the tissues quite well and in some cases (if the edges are good enough) you may be able to feel the tissues change as you scrape over them. If that works then buy some cheap gua sha tools and have a play around with them instead as they will work slightly better!
The stainless steel tools are simply an imrovement on the gua sha tools and can give you even more feedback and control.

My wife uses both - gua sha and steel (dependant on the client or body area she is working on) and still uses her hands for parts of her treatments too. It's just another tool to have in your toolbox at the end of the day, but it goes a long way to saving your hands.

Sorry if I've rattled on and written an essay, but I hope this helps

 

[Spicy Chicken Sandwich]

Granston Techique

Addition: I should have written I got the info from a friend who is an MT and Functional Movement trainer (Gray Institute trained, at that!). *oops*

Thanks Malc, for the extra info. I have long been interested in Graston, etc. - and feel that this type of work can be beneficial for some clients, as can the way of work that JasonE is describing. Different problems call for different actions. I am so happy to have found your site.

 

[Jal]

Granston Techique

In the United States, personal trainers are NOT qualified to do that type of work. In my experience, most are barely competent to train clients without health problems, let alone use a steel tool on a painful and restricted part of the body. The educational and certification standards for certified personal trainers (CPTs) in the USA ranges from no formal training (just pass a multiple choice exam) to university degrees + certification exams + practical exams + required continuing education. I recommend NOT marketing this type of product to American CPTs.

For certified athletic trainers (ATCs), an advanced degree is common, and it is a licensed profession with title protection and much higher prestige and responsibility. An ATC would most likely be competent to do this type of work. This would be a much better target market for this type of product.

 

[ngantuk99]

Granston Techique

Great thread. Good post for explaining the width of training for PT's in the US as well.

That must be why PT's in the UK are better considered "functional trainers". They really are different:

The PT's over here who are buying them are experts in functional movement and have a good understanding of fascia and the whole myofascial system, so they are using that knowledge to great effect.

I always love learning new info about other countries and the practitioners within. I hope with this thread, the knowledge of your tools (and the Gray Institute) expands rapidly into the US!

BTW, this is the same Gray Institute I mentioned previously in CEU's, regarding the Chain Reaction seminars.

PS: Are there any mods out there who could correct the title of this thread we are talking in, to "Graston" so that it is easier to search for in the search function? Whoever started it, wrote it incorrectly.

 

[DieselPowered]

Graston Techique

PS: Are there any mods out there who could correct the title of this thread we are talking in, to "Graston" so that it is easier to search for in the search function? Whoever started it, wrote it incorrectly.

There you go pueppi, I've corrected the spelling for you in the title. Hope that makes it easier for you to search the subject.

 

[FAISALWAD]

Graston Techique

t041 You're the best!

 

[kitkat77]

Graston Techique

http://fuziontherapytools.com/

I just read an article about this tool in Massage Magazine. It does peak my interest, but I think $1500 for the tool is steep

 

[Owlwoman]

Graston Techique

Not a big fan of grastons technique. I have difficult time knowing what I'm feeling while using there tools I use to feel like I was just torchering patients!

Absolutely love using the gua sha. The instrument allows you to identify adhesions that the hands aren't sensitive enough to pickup. Generally use the instrument on achilles and knees. Tools are so inexpensive too!