Do you have a knot or soreness in the muscles in your back, neck, shoulder or leg that just won’t go away? Perhaps it’s related to a prior injury, past accident or maybe everyday stressors.
The Integrative Wellness & Research Center (IWRC) introduces Kelley Junkman, a licensed massage therapist for 14 years, and is trained in various modalities of massage including trigger point and Swedish massage.
Nine years ago she completed her associate level certification in Ortho-Bionomy® (OB). Junkman has found massage and OB, to be useful in combating many different problems including acute and chronic pain, stress, restricted range of motion, poor circulation and postural related restrictions.
“OB is a form of body work that has been around for over 30 years; it is gentle, non-invasive and osteopathically based,” Junkman says.
OB balances the body’s structure, helping muscle and nerves to function more efficiently, allowing the patient to feel better by bringing the body back into a more relaxed and pain-free existence.
For example, if an infection occurs, the body automatically knows what to do. We don’t need to tell the white blood cells what to do or where to go, they know.
“Ortho-Bionomy® simply uses comfortable positioning and compression movements to give the body much needed input to the affected areas, and with proper input to the proprioceptive nerves only then does relaxation, self-correcting and healing begin,” Junkman says. “After a session of OB the body may continue changing or self-correcting over the next several days, making improvements that are gradual and lasting.”
Ortho-Bionomy® is conducted in a quiet setting with the gentle sound of music playing in the background while the client remains fully-clothed and in a completely relaxed state, enjoying the same benefits of traditional massage therapy.
Junkman has worked with patients, of all ages, abilities and athletic prowess, from high school athletes to silver-haired golf enthusiasts to increase their strength and flexibility using various stretching techniques.
Patients who seek her expertise in this discipline do so for preventive purposes, because of an existing injury or because of age-related loss of muscle range and elasticity. However, employing a regimen of stretching can also be a source of relief for stress, depression, anxiety, musculoskeletal problems or simple quiet enjoyment.
Stretching and flexibility increases the ability of muscle groups to function more efficiently, contracting when necessary and relaxing at times when they are not needed, which also helps to increase stamina.
Mashing is another technique that Junkman employs to complement the stretching techniques. Mashing is done by applying weight to break up the dense fascia and scar tissue that may occur due to injury. The dense fascia and scar tissue contribute or can be the root problem for the reduction of range of motion or of joint or muscle pain and discomfort.
