Knee Pain Relief with Myofascial Release
Why do I have knee pain?
There is a widespread belief that certain activities are hard on the knees. It can feel that way, but it isn’t because the activity is “bad” for us or that we are just getting older. Knee pain happens when there are restrictions or misalignments in the body that cause excess tension and stress on the knee joint. The problem can arise from almost anywhere in the body. Knee pain relief is possible with Myofascial Release Therapy.
Did you know?
Did you know there are 62 bones in the lower half of the body? Each foot alone has more than 30 joints and over 100 muscles, tendons, and ligaments. With all these moving parts, the problem of knee pain or knee joint pain can really come from almost anywhere in the body.
Common Causes of Knee Pain
Stiffness in your knee can interfere with simple tasks like walking, sitting as well as functioning at an optimal level for sport.
Knee stiffness or tightness in the knee can be caused by prior knee injuries, muscle imbalance, poor biomechanics (turned out hips, flat feet etc.), inappropriate exercise, poor movement habits or degenerative changes to the knee or hip.
Two common problems not directly related to the knee, but can affect it are:
- Knee pain and/or stiffness can involve increased muscle and fascial tension of one leg which can cause a pelvic tilt and compensatory tightening of other muscles such the gluteal muscles (glutes).
- Adhesions and scar tissue from a previous ankle sprain (even if it happened years ago), can lead to gait changes resulting in throbbing knee pain.
These changes can contribute to tight fascia at the knee where several low inner thigh, hamstring and calf muscles connect.
Knee injuries are often caused or aggravated tightness and weakness in the muscles and tendons that connect to the knees—specifically, the adductors, glutes, hamstrings, calves, and quads. Thigh muscles may become tight due to the extended amount of time spent in the seated position during the workday or after injury or a period of inactivity and immobilization. Tight muscles also become weak because they can’t perform a full contraction of the muscle fibers, since the fibers are shortened by tightness.
Many of the muscles which connect at the knee start at the hip. It is therefore especially important to keep one’s hips loose and strong just as nature intended, by doing squats. The squat should be a hip-dominant exercise and not a knee-dominant exercise to reduce the load on the knee. Muscles need to be strong and supple enough to support the knee through a full range of motion and thus strength deficits can cause a decrease in joint mobility. Exercise should only be performed with correct form and only through a pain free range of movement.
Knee Pain Treatment Options
When seeking knee pain relief, it’s important to address the tightness, restrictions, and rotations. This could be happening in the joints, bones, and tissues of the pelvis and hips, the fronts, backs, and sides of both legs in the hip sockets, above and below the knees, and in the ankles and feet. We also need to get the pelvis more aligned under the body. As we chip away at the restrictions holding bones and tissues in rotation and misalignment, patients report relief from knee pain. Even to the point of going to normal daily life.
Sometimes patients are told the only option that will make them feel better is surgery. There are some chronic knee pain conditions that do require surgery. But in many cases, surgery does not address the issues with the tissues. Therefore, the pain continues after knee surgery as it did before. Sometimes, knee pain becomes worse because of the new inflammatory cycle initiated by surgery.
“When all parts of the human body are in line, we have health. When they are not the effect is disease (dis – ease). When the parts are readjusted disease gives place to health. When the body is adjusted from the abnormal to the normal; then the abnormal condition gives place to the normal and health is the result of the normal condition.”
A. T. Still
Myofascial Therapy – Knee Pain Treatment
When somebody is seeking Myofascial Therapy treatment for knee pain, we must consider all the muscles that latch into the area. Even if most of the pain comes from the resident cartilage and ligaments, at least some pain will be associated with local muscles tightening out. We can deal with that! Part of that assessment is also to address the fascia. Fascia tissues get misaligned due to trauma, injury, poor movement patterns and emotional stress. Fascia is a system of proprioception. Fascia is rich in nerve endings, so it creates a direct pathway for nerve signals to flow to and from the brain which aids in proprioception, coordination and our ability to control our movements.
Myofascial therapy essentially “melts” slowly through the tissue, and investigates and works out the restrictions. Any change will affect the relationships of the bones, ligaments, and muscles. During this melting process, circulation to the area improves, which means more oxygen to the tissues. More nutrients mean better elimination of body waste from the areas and better joint circulation. By improving the circulation of synovial fluid and lubrication of the areas around your knee joint, it revitalizes the tissue and protects it from degeneration due to excessive pressure, friction and insufficient lubrication.
Are you ready to take back control of your health?
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Myofascial Release performs a whole-body approach. The consultation begins with a thorough case history. Wholistic PT will do a physical examination to assess your knee pain. This information helps your therapist to diagnose which joints, ligaments and muscles are inflamed and the type of biomechanical imbalance that may be present.
The therapist will address the joint, ligament and muscle imbalances of the knee, as well as looking for other compensations taking place from the ankle and feet up to the hip and lower back that may be contributing to your knee pain. There are many reasons the knee area can get tight, and for any solution to be truly lasting we would need to discover the root cause and address it through Myofascial Release diagnosis and treatment.
By identifying the source of your knee injury, we can develop a treatment plan. Most patients find us because they’ve exhausted all your traditional medical options first. Wholistic PT has helped so many patients already with knee pain relief. If you’re ready to explore a more holistic and whole-body approach, contact us today for a consultation for knee pain relief.