What is Neuromuscular spinal technique - nmst?
NMST movements are fast. They are precise "jabs" into the point of the restriction. The joint is not put at tension so it is less likely to push to the end of the range of motion.
The practitioner performing this MUST have a in-depth knowledge of anatomy to know which direction muscles run, how deep they are and where the musculotendinous junction is. They must know what normal joint play feels like, be able to feel the end of the range of motion and when they adjust, to know exactly how deep to intrude to get a release.
In essence a NMST practitioner must have very sensitive hands.
We all are aware of the term trigger point in a muscle right? It is a palpable nodule in the muscles bands.
NMST is looking at spots in the body like these but adding with it, small feelings of joint play. Joint play is the movement of a bone in a joint with reference to the other joint. Take the shoulder, you have a ball and socket formed by the humerus bone into the glenoid. The head of the humerus will have small amounts of movement when passively moved.
On top of this a NMST practitioner must be able to feel small "pain" responses or reactions in a patient when palpating the body. These will guide the practitioner to the right spots that need adjusting.
Is NMST like activator methods?
Yes and no. With an activator the practitioner finds the spot, typically joint, to be adjusted, then replaces their fingers with the activator, which they have set to the required "depth" of adjustment. A NMST practitioner can feel how deep to adjust, is not taking hands off a patient so knows how deep to go to and can feel a muscle or joint relax during an adjustment.
NMST is not like using a massage gun either as it does not require multiple, repeated jabs into the same area.
The best part about NMST, is it's adaptability. It has the ability to work with new born babies to the very old and frail.
People in high level of pain like fibromyalgia can tolerate this better than traditional methods.
It works for hypermobility, where people have too much movement. These joints should never be forced to move more and need rebalancing!
It works for people who have struggled with traditional methods, physiotherapy, massage and other chiropractors however it can work really well in with a combination therapy as well. Essentially patients are encouraged to listen to their body on what they need.