I have spent a good part of the last two weekends sanding drywall. It is thankless and dirty job, but ultimately a satisfying one for me. Our kitchen remodel is nearly complete and I’ve managed to keep from breathing in too much of the dust! For those of you who’ve never done so, sanding drywall produces copious amounts of dust, which ends up cover your entire body, glasses included. The ceiling is especially messy, as the dust ends up falling right into your face. The dried compound needs to be sanded smooth, ready for the next coat or, finally, paint. After a short period of time spent sanding, once my glasses have been sufficiently dust covered, I ended up feeling for smoothness with my hands instead of visually inspecting the surface.

After a time, I realized that this process was quite similar to myofascial release as I practice and teach. (I had a LOT of time to think while sanding!) Developing the “Feel” for soft tissue tightness is the most important aspect of MFR. You put a soft hand on your client and gentle reach inside, pressing only to the point where you have engaged the first barrier. Then you look around, feeling for tightness that connects with their pain. When you practice MFR in this fashion, you quickly develop an inner sense of your patient’s pain, reflected by the lack of smoothness in the tissue. That is how I felt my way toward completion with the drywall. Feel for roughness, sand, recheck. (Over and over!)

Don’t make myofascial release more difficult that it is.

For now,

Walt Fritz, PT

Author: Walt Fritz