Tension seekers
Relieving stress from aching muscles need not be painful. One therapy uses a softly, softly approach to great effect, finds Laura Davidson
So there I am, face down and full clothed on a rigid massage table, feeling slightly bemused as therapist Kerry Teakle makes a series of gentle "pokes" with her poised fingers up and down the length of my spine. There is no wrenching manipulation, no deep-rooted massage and certainly none of the unearthly crunching sounds I expected from my introduction to Body Stress Release. The altemative therapy, which has been hailed around the world as a revolutionary treatment for ailments as diverse as allergies, digestive complaints and mental stress, is new to Scotland. It's most commonly used to treat back, neck and shoulder pain arid, contrary to what the name suggests (the very idea of getting rid very of "body stress" must surely involve some degree of discomfort?), it is entirely painless - yet, I can assure you, very effective.
Most of us know all too well what it's like to have a brain incapable of sustaining a single rational thought; headaches that require regular visits to the medicine cabinet and shoulders more rigid than Stonehenge. So we're stressed. Who isn't? It is no longer enough, however, to treat the problem with a couple of aspirins and a decent night's kip. As a devotee of vigorous therapeutic massage, I was initially sceptical as to how non-invasive BSR could help my symptoms of tension and stress. But all that changed in the hours following my 30-minute session as my lower back pain eased and I enjoyed a great nine-hour sleep that night.
According to Teakle, Scotland's only BSR therapist, who works from Medicalternative in Edinburgh, the treatment works on the basis that the body can heal itself. The aim of BSR is just to help the process along. "Stress is stored in our muscles and it can build up in the body in a number of ways," she says. "It can be from physical problems such as sports or lifting injuries, or be brought on by chemical means such as an intolerance to food additives or pesticides. "Emotional trauma, including the breakdown of a relationship or a fraught time at work, can also cause body stress. Tension is stored in the muscles and eventually builds up to a point where the muscles contract and spasm, putting pressure on the nervous system.
"If you think of the body as being like a car, the nervous system is the engine; it fuels everything. Muscles that are in spasm Will press on the nerves, meaning that. the nervous system can't work:properly and you'll never be running on full steam, This is why people suffering from body stress feel tense, tired and lacking in crier ." So far; so depressing: In as' few as three sessions,. however, BSR practitioners believe they can begin to reverse the negative effects of stress. "The movements used during treatment are not massage," says Kerry."I don't manipulate anything. Instead, I begin by carrying out simple tests, looking for signs of: stress. I do this by applying a light pressure to the muscles in the back, arms and legs. "I then move the feet to determine where the body stress is. If a muscle is in spasm and pressure is. applied, one leg will temporarily become longer than the other an this is a good indicator. Once I've identified specific areas I apply pressure m a certain direction to release stress and ease tension."
Kerry learned the treatment from its pioneer, South African practitioner Ewald Meggersee. The former industrial chemist had suffered from back pain since falling out of a tree at the age of five. In his mid30s, with movement so limited he feared paralysis, he trained as a chiropractor and subsequen eve oped the non-invasive technique now known as BSR. Today Meggersee still has a fit, supple body well into his 50s. From his home in South Africa, he and wife Gail now train 12 new practitioners 'a year from all comers of the globe.
Kerry, who has a slight curvature of the spine, became interested in BSR after her mother Ginny, who had successfully been treated, recommended she give BSR a try. After a few sessions Kerry's back pain disappeared and she was on a plane to South Africa to begin her training as a therapist. Jane Williamson, 30, of .Edinburgh, was one of Kerry's first clients, and believes BSR has rid her of the back problems that have plagued her for more than 10 years. A sports development officer with the Scottish Golf Union, Jane has played the sport since she was 11, and years of lugging a heavy golf bag around had taken their toll. "I was at my wits' end with the pain in my lower back," she says. "I had difficulty getting out of bed in the morning and, as I do quite a bit of driving with my lob, sitting in the car for hours on end was just aggravating the problem."
Jane heard about BSR through a friend and signed up for a course of four treatments last November. "I was sceptical at first," she admits. "It wasn't at all what I expected. The muscles were being touched m a very specific way, but I kept wondering how being prodded a little could make such a huge difference. "I quizzed Kerry about it and she explained everything to me: how putting pressure on the muscles m a certain way would release the tension stored in them."One thing I really like about BSR is the fact that you can keep your clothes on. There's no embarrassment factor and, because you don't have to worry about getting dressed and undressed, it can easily be fitted into a lunch-hour."
Jane was amazed at how quickly the treatment worked. After her first session, she was asked to return for a follow-up three days later and again seven days later. "Since the third session I've had no lower back pain at all," she says. "I can get out of bed in the morning without having to stretch my muscles as I used to. "After just four sessions I feel so much more supple - and I'd definitely go back for more treatment if the niggles come back. I also have BSR exercises that I can do at home if I ever feel an ache, but so far I've had hardly any problems."
Although back pain and stress are the most common ailments treated by BSR, its Body Stress Release therapist Kerry Teakte takes a gentle approach to massage. Picture: Michael Boyd effects are wide-reaching and have been found to be beneficial to asthma, sciatica and migraine sufferers, among others. Because it is a gentle treatment, it is also suitable for small children and even babies to ease colic and growing pains. The softly-softly approach proves what many of us have failed to realise for years: that there can indeed be gain without so much of the pain.
BSR costs £30 for a 30-minute session.
For details, contact Kerry Teakle at Medicalternative, tel: 0131225 5656 or visit www.bodystressrelease-uk.co.uk.
'One thing 1 like about Body Stress therapy is the fact that you can keep your clothes on'
