Pain and discomfort of musculo-skeletal head, neck, and shoulder conditions caused by injuries, repetitive actions, heredity, poor posture and sleep positions are the biggest reasons why millions of people seek massage therapy and other health care practitioners. This workshop will use a dimensional approach to explore, evaluate and treat tension headaches and a variety of common soft-tissue head, neck and shoulder conditions. Nancy will lecture on the skeletal and muscular anatomy of the head, neck and shoulders by power point. She will also address the specific etiologies, signs and symptoms related to the pathologies of this area. Special attention will be given to discuss the history and exam findings that would warrant professional health care referrals. She will discuss structural perspectives, headache categories, trigger points, and referred pain patterns. Nancy will demonstrate techniques used in Dimensional Massage Therapy and provide supervision for hands-on practice by participants. Dimensional Massage Therapy techniques are deep tissue strokes and methods that have been designed to balance joints by working on all the muscles that produce, assist in, or oppose the actions of, or stabilize the joint. Careful attention will be given to the execution of these techniques, specific muscles and their idiosyncrasies, and to the individual structure of the receiving person on the table. To help maintain distance between headaches, additional Dimensional Massage Therapy techniques will be discussed and practiced for muscles of the head, neck, and shoulders that lend to bad posture and repetitive holding patterns. The information and techniques covered in this workshop will take a focused look at a very difficult and costly problem!
Nancy W. Dail, BA, LMT, NCTMB has been a professional practicing massage therapist and a member of the AMTA since 1974. She is the founder and director of the Downeast School of Massage in Waldoboro, Maine (USA) (1980). A leader in her field, Nancy presents workshops internationally, is certified in Orthopedic and Sports Massage, and has developed the working philosophy of Dimensional Massage Therapy as lead author in Kinesiology for Manual Therapies published by McGraw-Hill. Her BA in Health, Arts, and Science from Goddard College helps her balance her administrative duties as Director with teaching Dimensional Massage, Advanced Skills, Kinesiology, Ethics and related subjects at DSM. Nancy enjoys her therapeutic practice for her clientele, traveling and teaching, and playing with her grandsons Alexander and Kingston whenever possible at her home in Waldoboro.