When it comes to back pain, knowledge is power. The more you know, the more you can be in control of your own treatment, and Muscle Balance Therapy™ is one of the most powerful tools you can use to help you take control of your situation. A basic fact about back pain is that most treatments fail because they begin at the end—that is, they merely focus on the pain, which is just a symptom of a larger problem.

Muscle Balance Therapy is an innovative approach to eliminating back pain once and for all, starting with a careful yet simple assessment of all the muscles that affect the stability of your hips, pelvis, and spine—from both a strength and a flexibility perspective. In a sense, what Muscle Balance Therapy™ is asking you to do is a very "unbalanced workout" to get your body back into proper balance. Once your muscles are more balanced and you're feeling better, you will be able to return to your workplace or to your favorite activity with the confidence and security that you need to live a full and productive life.

A word of caution: If you feel even minor back pain, you should take it very seriously—your body is telling you that something is not right. Failing to address this situation now will likely result in a higher level of pain and having to work much harder and much longer to get yourself back to a pain-free state.

More than half of all Americans are living with chronic or recurring pain, with broad numbers saying it interferes with their activities, mood and enjoyment of life — sparking a vast search for relief, from medication to bed rest, yoga or the palliative power of prayer. An exclusive survey by ABC News, USA Today and the Stanford University Medical Center finds that, excluding minor annoyances, just under half of adults have experienced pain in the last two weeks, and nearly four in 10 do so on a regular basis.

Sixty percent of all Americans have rated their last experience with pain as moderate or worse, and for twenty percent, which is approximately 40 million individuals — it was severe. Nineteen percent suffer chronic pain, meaning ongoing pain that's lasted three months or more. An additional 34 percent report recurrent pain; the rest say their usual pain experience is acute, or short-term.

This national survey paints an extensive portrait of pain in America, measuring not just prevalence and severity but also where it hurts (back and knee pain are most common), whom it effects (pain is much more frequent among older adults), and its source, impact and treatment. The survey supports a weeklong reporting project by ABC News and USA Today, "The Fight Against Pain."

There are a wide variety of pain relief options that are outside of traditional medical thinking—and massage therapy is being touted as the latest sensation to spread relief to sufferers.  Thus, it would appear that massages aren’t just for relaxation anymore.  With a host of pain medications and their long list of possible side effects, people are seeking a more natural means to deal with both common aches and pains as well as more chronic conditions. 

When we think of massage therapists, we envision a shady operation more interested in pleasing the customer than dealing with pain to relieve tension.  This idea about massage therapy is quickly becoming a distant thought because massage schools are popping up all over America as an alternative means to pain relief.  Massage has been an effective way to deal with stress and pain for centuries, and with today’s medical knowledge, massage therapists are making a definite impression on patients with their healing touch. 

Sports injuries, migraines, arthritis and other common pains can be rubbed away with a regular trip to the masseuse.  Massaging pressure points and promoting blood flow are the key elements that give massage its pain relief properties, and knowing how to correctly administer this relief to the body is a skill that is quickly becoming a commodity.  Most states do not regulate massage therapy, but taking the step to do so could make treatments a cost effective pain relief solution that is covered by health insurance. 

Currently with traditional medicine, if medications do not help alleviate pain, the only options patients face is surgery, but massage is revolutionizing the medical industry and offering a less risky and less invasive answers to pain.  Even so much that many individuals are foregoing the trip to the surgeon, and paying out of pocket for massage therapy.