Counterstrain
Counterstrain is a manual therapy technique in which the practitioner releases abnormal tension in the connective tissue or fascia surrounding various structures in the body.
When the tension is released the body is able to return to its natural state. Joints open up, good posture is easier, and muscles are much easier to activate. It is a very gentle technique with the capacity to achieve very powerful results in a surprising number of areas, including chronic pain, global inflammatory conditions and post-concussive conditions.
Counterstrain works by releasing tension held in the body's fascia. Fascia is connective tisue which surrounds all the structures in the body, including muscles, our blood vessels, nerves and bones. This substance was originally thought to be a passive structure , our body's essential duct tape, merely clothing and supporting all vessels, organs etc. In the last 20 years research came out demonstrating that fascia, rather than being inert, is itself both innervated and responsive to its environment. Under strain or trauma this connective tissue can go into a reflective guarding posture which, if not resolved, can be a source of on-going dysfunction.
In the original Strain-counterstrain technique, first developed by the Osteopath Dr. Laurence Jones, areas of dysfunction were put in positions of ease to allow them to return to their original state. Brian Tuckey, one of only four students of Dr. Jones who was authorized by him to teach this technique, made the connection that what was being “eased”, was in fact fascia throughout the body. He has greatly expanded this work, adding techniques that allow the body to normalize multiple structures, both local – as in an ankle bone- or far-reaching as in blood vessels and nerves.
In his 2021 research paper, Brian Tuckey et al detail the relationship between the body's response to trauma, how the vascular system can become involved, and the tie-in with the spinal cord. Understanding of these relationships is particularly powerful when addressing chronic pain.
Using Counterstrain, practitioners are able to help patients' bodies break the cycle of feedback loops that cause persistent dysfunction. Counterstrain empowers the lymphatic system to clear away the chemicals involved in malfunctional patterns. This allows the body to utilize its innate ability to return to a natural state of balance.
For more information about Counterstrain:
Counterstrain.com
Tuckeypt.com
jicounterstrain.com
bridgeback.org
Research Article: