If you've been stricken with frozen shoulder, you know it right away; your arm is stuck, with very limited range of motion. And fibromyalgia? According to the Mayo Clinic,
"Fibromyalgia is a disorder characterized by widespread musculoskeletal pain accompanied by fatigue, sleep, memory and mood issues. Researchers believe that fibromyalgia amplifies painful sensations by affecting the way your brain processes pain signals.Symptoms sometimes begin after a physical trauma, surgery, infection or significant psychological stress. In other cases, symptoms gradually accumulate over time with no single triggering event. Women are more likely to develop fibromyalgia than are men. Many people who have fibromyalgia also have tension headaches, temporomandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, irritable bowel syndrome, anxiety and depression. While there is no cure for fibromyalgia, a variety of medications can help control symptoms. Exercise, relaxation and stress-reduction measures also may help."
Soothe licensed massage therapist Stephanie Mayhew addresses fibromyalgia and frozen shoulder pain through a combination of massage therapy, hot towels, and CBD oil; previously she used a combination of massage with hot/cold stone therapy but was able to achieve similar results using CBD oil. Mayhew holds a massage certification in fibromyalgia and does weekly visits with fibromyalgia patients, while also being a fibromyalgia patient herself.
Describing a situation with one former female fibromyalgia client who could not get up in the morning on rainy or cloudy days, Mayhew says: “I performed hot/cold stone therapy to loosen fascia around muscles which can be tight. The heat from stones helped open and spread fascia. This helped her achieve some relief so she could move.”
Now, she achieves similar ‘opening’ with fascia using CBD oil in combination with hot towel treatments (steamed towels). Working on the problem area directly, she first rubs in the CBD oil, then applies the hot towel, and finally massages the area.
Mayhew uses similar techniques when working on clients with a frozen shoulder, a very common condition known as adhesive capsulitis, characterized by pain and stiffness that make it difficult or impossible to move the shoulder. Frozen shoulder is the result of scarring, thickening, and shrinkage of the joint capsule, or an injury.
Soothe (www.soothe.com) is one of the world’s leading on-demand massage service, which delivers a licensed, insured massage therapist to your home, office, or hotel, within 60 minutes. Since launching its mobile app and massage service in Los Angeles in 2014, Soothe has delivered close to 1 million massages worldwide, and is now available in 70 markets across 4 countries, with over 13,000 background-checked therapists in its network. soothe.com
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