Trigger Point Therapy - Frozen Shoulder Syndrome

Frozen Shoulder - Quick Facts

"Even simple tasks like putting on a coat became increasingly difficult"

We often like to write about clients who have been successfully treated with trigger point techniques, especially those who come to us more out of desperation than any true belief or understanding of the treatment.

Today's blog has an added twist, in that the client in question is Vivienne Parry OBE, an extremely highly regarded science correspondent.

Vivienne is well known in the United Kingdom as the presenter of BBC TV's science programs Tomorrow's World and Panorama. Vivienne is also currently employed as head of Genomics England. So, this is one lady who knows what research is all about!

Vivienne Parry OBE - Author, Journalist, and BBC Science Correspondent

It Started With a Fall

A little while back Vivienne stumbled on a slippery slope at a fireworks party. She was surprised when an "electric shock" of pain shot down her arm, despite it receiving only a small knock.

The pain disappeared almost as quickly as it came, but within a couple days a dull ache had begun in her shoulder and upper arm.

Thereafter, Vivienne found that even the slightest knock to her arm would set off an intense spasm in her shoulder that hurt so much it made her feel nauseous.

Pain Induced Sleep Depravation

Typical to a frozen shoulder, Vivienne soon became sleep deprived, as the pain was much worse at night, and even simple tasks like putting on a coat became increasingly difficult.

And the symptoms got even worse.

Within a matter of weeks Vivienne could hardly raise her arm at all; couldn’t dress without help, or lift a phone to her ear.

Worst of all for Vivienne was that she was completely unable to carry on her favorite pastimes of gardening and swimming.

With the pain and lack of movement now severely affecting her work, Vivienne finally went to visit her family doctor and was diagnosed as having a frozen shoulder.

Whilst the diagnosis was relatively straightforward, Vivienne discovered that her doctor had relatively little to offer in terms of treatment.

So Vivienne did what she probably does best, she started researching the problem and looking online for viable treatment options.

And that's how she came to find about trigger point therapy, and specifically the Niel Asher Technique (NAT).

Naturally Skeptical

In an article written for Britain's Daily Mail newspaper, Vivienne freely admits that she was at first skeptical of NAT although the idea that pressing trigger points in the shoulder to ‘re-train’ nerves, based on the theory that the shoulder pain causes the brain to switch off the muscles round the joint to try to protect it - did seem to make sense. 

Results of the Treatment

Thankfully, Vivienne was positively surprised by the NAT treatment and it is best to use her words to summarize the results: 

"I found the first treatment session quite painful as the therapist pressed for about 20 seconds on five points on my shoulder and upper arm. But the pain was less that night and within two treatments had gone. I had nearly a full range of movement within six weeks. Best of all, I was able to get back to my gardening!".

About NAT

NAT is the only evidence based trigger point treatment for frozen shoulder. If you are a therapist looking to add a powerful technique to your practice, click on the link below for more information.

NAT is simple to learn, and the technique (originally developed for treating frozen shoulder) has been adapted over the past 20 years to treat a range of common musculoskeletal disorders.

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Membership

About NAT Courses

As a manual therapist or exercise professional, there is only one way to expand your business - education!

Learning more skills increases the services that you offer and provides more opportunity for specialization.

Every NAT course is designed to build on what you already know, to empower you to treat more clients and grow your practice, with a minimal investment in time and money.

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About Niel Asher Education

Niel Asher Education is a leading provider of distance learning and continued education courses.

Established in the United Kingdom in 1999, we provide course and distance learning material for therapists and other healthcare professionals in over 40 countries.

Our courses are accredited by over 90 professional associations and national accreditation institutions including the National Academy of Sports Medicine (NASM) and National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB). Full details of all international course accreditations can be found on our website.  

Printed course materials and other products offered on our websites are despatched worldwide from our 3 locations in the UK (London), USA (Pennsylvania) and Australia (Melbourne).

More About Us

NAMTPT AWARD 2017

We are honored to have received the 2017 "Excellence in Education" Award from the National Association of Myofascial Trigger Point Therapists.

Since 1999 Niel Asher Education has won numerous awards for education and in particular for education and services provided in the field of trigger point therapy.

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Award Winning Instructors

Niel Asher Healthcare course instructors have won a host of prestigious awards including 2 lifetime achievement honorees - Stuart Hinds, Lifetime Achievement Honoree, AAMT, 2015, and Dr. Jonathan Kuttner, MD, Lifetime Achievement Honoree, NAMTPT, 2014.

Meet the Instructors

Accreditation

If you are a qualified/licensed manual therapist or exercise/fitness professional you can expand your credentials with NAT certification.

In addition to national accreditation for continued education, each course that we offer includes "NAT Learning Credits". By taking and completing courses you can accumulate NAT credits to qualify for NAT certification.

There are currently 3 levels of NAT certification. Certifying NAT is a valuable way to show your clients that you take continued education seriously, and to promote your skills and qualifications.

Most of our courses are accredited for CE/CPD/CPE. A full list of CE accreditations can be found by clicking on the link below. 

About NAT Certification

Niel Asher Technique

Since 1999 the Niel Asher Technique for treating trigger points has been adopted by over 100,000 therapists worldwide, and has been applied to the treatment of a number of common musculoskeletal injuries.

The Niel Asher Technique for treating frozen shoulder was first introduced and published in 1997 and has been widely adopted by therapists and exercise professionals working within elite sports and athletics.

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International Students

Most of our courses are available as either "Printed" or 'Download" editions, wherever you live. Internet connection is required to access online and downloadable material.

When you purchase a download edition, you receive immediate lifetime access to all course material. Course texts can be downloaded and printed if required. 

When you purchase a "Printed" edition, you will also receive free access to the download edition.

We ship Worldwide from locations in the USA, UK, and Australia. Most items are despatched within 24 hours and shipping is FREE for all orders over US$50.

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Where to Start?

We offer a range of over 50 courses, presented by some of the worlds leading manual therapists. All courses are reviewed annually, and new courses are regularly added.

Our courses are modular, and designed to build on what you already know. For more information, please visit our "Where to Start?" page.

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Trigger Point Therapy Master Course

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