April 19, 2010 – With the development of the X-ray, the spine was presented
as a disembodied stack of bones. Discs
and other soft tissues are invisible in these images. The apparent misalignment of the bones of the
spine and/or collapse of the disc space between them, led to the conclusion
that this “fragile” and frequently imbalanced structure must be the source of back
pain. Since the spine is richly supplied
with pain nerve endings, there is even one ‘inventive’ approach to overcoming
back pain by cutting or destroying these nerves. Nothing like treating the cause!
Unfortunately, many of these treatments have been
unsuccessful, or provide only a short-term solution for this painful condition.
Matrix Repatterning
Matrix Repatterning is a form of treatment based on the underlying
structure of the cells of the body, referred to as the Tensegrity Matrix. This concept confirms that all of the tissues of
the body, including the joints, muscles and ligaments, as well as the bones
themselves and even the internal organs, are interconnected. It also explains how the body responds to injury.
This model of the body has been proven by research at
several cell biology laboratories, including the pioneering work of Stephen
Levin, M.D. and Donald Ingber, M.D., Ph.D. 3.
These studies prove that the body tissues are
composed of interconnected protein strands in the form of a geodesic framework.
These proteins form a continuous
framework throughout the body, providing a balance between stability and
mobility.
This structural model explains
many of the properties of the body related to postural support, movement,
response to injury, as well as the effects of treatments.
Primary Restrictions
Since the tensegrity matrix is a continuous fabric linking
every cell in the body, when the force of an injury, either strain or impact,
enters the body it is rapidly transmitted throughout the entire body. Moderate injuries are easily dissipated due
to the elastic properties of the matrix.
Excessive force however, may be absorbed by the matrix, causing the protein
strands inside the cells to become rigid and electrically charged.
When
force is transmitted through the tissues and encounters a dense surrounding
material – such as water or bone – the energy may become even more focused and
trapped locally. This focusing effect is
like a magnifying glass that tends to concentrate the mechanical energy of a
strain or an impact into the protein structure of the cell, leading to the
formation of an area of restriction, which Matrix Repatterning Practitioners
refer to as a primary restriction.
Water
is the most dense substance in the body.
Fluid-filled internal organs (such as the heart, liver, spleen and
kidneys) and crystalline bone, due to its density, tend to absorb much of the
force of injury. These tissues are often
the sites of primary restrictions. These
sources of tension create strain in structures throughout the body.
This, in turn, results in abnormal movement
and irritation of sensitive structures such as joints and muscles.
The primary restriction itself is often
painless after the initial injury, since the nervous system tends to get used
to a constant source of irritation, and only becomes painful with direct pressure
(tender or trigger points).
The assessment consists of a detailed examination of
postural balance, movement patterns, muscle tone, joint mobility, neurological
function and other tests, as well as a careful determination of the primary restrictions. When we bump our knee or elbow, our natural
reaction is to hold or rub the area.
Research has demonstrated that the electrical field in the hand tends to
normalize the field in the injured area.
In a similar manner, the practitioner places his or her hand (a normal
field) on various parts of the body. If
the area contains a primary restriction, it will temporarily reduce the local
cellular tension. Since the matrix is interconnected, the rest of the body will
relax slightly. This is something the practitioner can detect and the patient
can often feel as well.
This process is continued until all of the primary
restrictions are identified. The practitioner will then determine the priority
in which these areas are to be treated.
Treatment
Treatments involve the use of precise localized pressure,
which releases the stored electrical charge within the restricted area. When
this happens, the molecular structure returns to its natural, flexible state.
This is a permanent correction and it will not return unless another
significant trauma occurs.
Each area may
need to be treated in several, different directions in order to release the
entire pattern, and several primary areas may be treated in any one session.
Treatment is generally painless. However, since long-term imbalances are often
being corrected, the body may respond for a period of several days after each
treatment. The brain tends to adapt to chronic conditions and pain. Treatment
may re-awaken some of this stored information
causing a temporary aggravation of symptoms.
Certain home-care measures may be recommended to help your body adapt to
these changes more comfortably.
The assessment is repeated at each subsequent visit. Further layers of restriction are thus
revealed and released in priority sequence. This is similar to an archeological
excavation.
A series of treatments can release all of the structural
imbalances developed over a lifetime.
Let us consider the spine from the perspective of the
tensegrity structural model. The spine
provides protection for a very important structure called the spinal cord. Without it, we would not be able to survive.
Painful signals from the spine help to prevent
any movement that would threaten this vital structure.
The spine however, like all structures of the
body, is connected to every other part by way of the tensegrity matrix. Therefore, it is subject to any abnormal
strain patterns arising from any one of a number of possible primary
restrictions.
Based on our clinical research, many cases of back pain
are due to restrictions in other parts of the body.
When these are addressed appropriately, the spine
is able to heal rapidly, and then pain becomes a non-issue.
KEY POINTS:
Pain is often not the problem.
The cause is often in the deep core tissues: bones and organs
The cellular and molecular level matrix repattering is focused on well-being, not dis-ease.
Matrix repattering is focused on solutions, not treatments.
References:
1. Barral
JP: Visceral Manipulation: Eastland Press, St. Louis, 1990.
2. Gray
G: Functional Kinetic Chain Rehabilitation; Overuse and Inflammatory Conditions
and Their Management: Sports Medicine Update, 1993.
3. Ingber, DE:
The Architecture of Life: Scientific American, January 1998, pp. 48-57.
4. Levin
SM: The icosohedron as the three-dimensional finite element in biomechanical
support. Proceedings of the Society of
General Systems Research on Mental Images, Values and Reality Philadelphia,
PA: Society of General Systems Research, St. Louis, May 1986.
5. Roth,
GB, D’Ambrogio, KJ: Positional Release Therapy: Assessment & Treatment of
Musculoskeletal Dysfunction: Mosby – Harcourt-Brace, 1997.
6. Schultz, AB:
Biomechanics of the Spine. In Nelson L
(Ed): Low Back Pain and Industrial and Social Disablement. London, American Back Pain Association, 1983,
pp. 20-25.
7. Wang
N, Butler JP, Ingber DE: Mechanotransduction Across the Cell
Surface and Through the Cytoskeleton: Science, Vol. 260, May 21, 1993.
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Dr. George Roth is the developer of Matrix Repatterning. He is the
president of Wellness Systems Inc. and the director of the Matrix
Repatterning Centre in Aurora, Ontario. He has presented seminars at the
University of Western Ontario, York University; the University of
Alberta, the University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine, the University
of Illinois, and at numerous hospital- and university-based symposia
throughout North America. He is the co-author, with Kerry D’Ambrogio PT,
of Positional Release Therapy (Elsevier, 1997), and the author of The
Matrix Repatterning Program for Pain Relief (New Harbinger, 2005).
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