The Secrets of Specialists/Chapter 6
The evolution of massage as practiced in Sweden, at the present day, has a long chain of ancestry. The Chinese were known to use certain manipulations three thousand years before the Christian era. The ancient Egyptians and Hindoo priests acquired a knowledge of manipulation, which was supposed to be invented by the gods; the Persians used several forms of manipulations for different affections, which were followed in practice by the Greeks and Romans.
In the sixteenth century an effort was made to combine massage and movements of the body with medicine for the treatment of disease.
At an early period in the nineteenth century, P. H. Ling, of Sweden, founded the first scientific system of massage, and body movements. His work was succeeded by Dr. Mezgar and arranged into a system, which is now extensively used, not only in Sweden, but throughout the entire world. According to Dr. Mezgar's teachings, the scientific application of massage is based upon a thorough knowledge of the anatomy and physiology of the body, and each movement or manipulation is conducted for the specific purpose of producing a normal equilibrium of the functions of the body. All manipulations are passive, and applied to the nude skin, without the patient's assistance or resistance, and arranged systematically, so as to act upon the different tissues and organs of the body.
Dr. Mezgar has divided the massage treatment into four principal manipulations namely: effleurage, frictions, petrissage and tapotement.
Effleurage consists of stroking a given part towards the body or heart; this may be accomplished by using the fingers and thumb, or the palms of one or both hands, or by the thumb or fingers separately.
Frictions are firm, circular, deep-seated movements, applied with the thumb or tips of the fingers, towards the body or heart, generally over a certain group of muscles at a time.
Petrissage, or the kneading of muscles or organs is accomplished with two thumbs, or the thumbs and fingers of both hands for the purpose of raising or loosening the muscles from their attachment, in the treatment of rheumatism or stiffened muscles, etc. This is also conducted by rolling the muscles on the bone, and clapping the muscles to revive new activity.
Tapotement is the tapping or percussing either with the tips of the fingers, where light pressure is desired, as on the surface of the face, or hacking with the ulnar border of the hands; this is used around nerve centers, and upon muscles where heavier pressure is desired. Beating is also practiced with the closed fist over deep muscles and large nerve trunks, as the sciatic.
What constitutes an efficiency of massage is to be determined by the force and frequency of the manipulations, and the length of time during which they are employed. A good manipulator will accomplish more in fifteen minutes than a poor one will in one hour, and it is an art which requires much experience to handle successfully. The directions of most of the Swedish massage movements are the same as vibratory massage, from the extremities to the trunk, from the insertion of a muscle to its origin, and in the direction of the returning currents of the blood, and lymphatic system. With this object in view, special attention should be given to the inside surfaces of the extremities in the axillae and groin, to unload the lymphatics and expel diseased particles and effete matter.
While Swedish massage will always hold a respected position in the manual treatment of disease, physicians of the occident, as a rule, are, apparently, too indolent to put the system into active practice to any great extent, and until vibratory massage was introduced, in which the technique is very closely allied, massage was very little used in this country; the technique of the different manipulations, as they have been substituted by vibratory massage will be discussed in the succeeding chapter.
Osteopathy was founded by Dr. Andrew Taylor Still, a regular practitioner of medicine and army surgeon, who, nearly half a century ago, conceived the idea that medicine did not incorporate all the benefits of the healing art; that the body is an organic machine, and may become impaired or its parts misplaced, which require adjusting, the same as any other piece of mechanism. After silently carrying on his experimental work in this field, he was finally crowned with success. In the year 1887 he began to teach his sons this new art of healing, and later established the American School of Osteopathy, which is turning out graduates broadcast; working side by side with physicians, and contributing their share of success in relieving the sick and suffering. Osteopathy, like nearly every other new branch of healing art, was very much criticized and ridiculed in its infancy, but physicians and the laity have been compelled to accept the truth, and today osteopathy has passed its experimental stages and holds a respected position as one of the noblest causes which man is called upon to officiate—restoring health.
Osteopathy is like Swedish massage, inasmuch as it is purely a manual treatment for disease; it is also analogous to vibratory massage, as the technique of the treatment often has a striking resemblance. The only difference, in many of the manipulations, is that nature gave the osteopath his instruments to work with—his fingers and arms—while mechanical genius has supplied us with the various forms of vibrators. It will, therefore, be seen that osteopathy has a great advantage over vibratory massage in emergency cases, as the operator always has his instruments with him, and can always treat his patients, either at the bedside or in emergencies, without the delay of time in securing a vibrator, and oftentimes, the operator cannot be supplied with the motive power, in places where he wishes to treat his patient. This is particularly so in the country, where he does not have access to the electric currents. We, therefore, find that while vibratory massage can be used to excellent advantage in office practice, osteopathy can be applied on all occasions, and at all places. To illustrate the writer was once making a social call on an old patient and found the daughter suffering intensely with dysmenorrhœa. Under ordinary circumstances, if I had my medicine case with me, I would have given an analgesic, or might, in this case, have depended upon a hypodermic of morphine; but my only alternative was osteopathic manipulations. I therefore applied sufficient pressure to inhibit the nerve centers of the lumbar region, especially the tender areas of the third, fourth and fifth lumbar centers. I also gave the entire spinal column a general treatment; in less than five minutes the pain had entirely disappeared, and the patient enjoyed a very restful night. This is only one case in hundreds where a knowledge of osteopathy can render the physician better service than drugs, and if the practitioner will acquire a knowledge of osteopathy to the extent of relieving pain alone, his time would be well spent.
To understand many of the fundamental principles of osteopathy, which are so analogous in many ways, to the technique given in vibratory massage, the reader is referred to the accompanying chapter for the local areas and landmarks, which are incorporated largely by osteopathic manipulations.
Osteopathy, Swedish and vibratory massage, and all drugless methods of treatment, are directed in the same course; to stimulate or inhibit through reflex action, the centers controlling the functions and organs of the body, thus assisting nature in dispelling disease, and to obtain and maintain a healthy equilibrium.
Dr. Goetz maintains that when all obstructions to the natural direction of life forming and healing energies that are resident within the body are removed, and all chemical changes preparatory to nutrition are corrected, as they may be without medicine, then nature swiftly and surely regains her normal equilibrium of health and strength. It will, therefore, be seen that Swedish massage and osteopathy have many things in common with the technique of vibratory massage; the only difference being the mode of application, the former being applied by the hands and the latter with an instrument or vibrator. It would be only a repetition to discuss the technique of each, separately. This is particularly so with many of the treatments of the spinal column. We may obtund pain in certain localities by desensitizing the nerve force, either by direct pressure or manipulation with the cushioned ends of the fingers or by the "Tapotement" of massage, or the mechanical vibrator; the effect will be the same.
Of course there are several features favoring osteopathy, in the treatment of many diseases, which osteopathy will reach, where vibratory massage cannot be utilized. This is particularly so in luxations of the bones and muscles, ligaments, etc., and their impingement of nerves.
Most of the diseases of the body are reached through the nerves of the spinal column. These nerves control motion, sensation, nutrition, and other functions of the body; therefore, manipulation of the spinal nerves bears the same relation to the osteopath and vibratory therapeutist as the keyboard of a piano does to a pianist, the mechanism proper is on the inside of the piano, but is controlled from the keyboard. Likewise, many diseases of the body can be controlled from the spinal nerve centers by manipulating with the cushioned tips of the fingers or a vibrator, and inasmuch as Swedish massage, osteopathy and vibratory massage are so closely related, we will discuss the technique more thoroughly in the succeeding chapters.