Advanced Neck Work I

Course overview

This two-day workshop will take students deep into the intricate structural relationships of the muscles and the vertebrae of the cervical spine, how form and function influence one another, and how massage can positively support and improve these relationships. Students will be given the skills to track down dysfunction in the neck and the techniques to work deeply and effectively with clients' trouble spots in order to restore balance, relieve pain, and improve range of motion and overall function. Students will learn how vertebrae behave in movement using Fryette's Law (a set of three laws pertaining to skeletal anatomy named after Harrison Fryette, DO.). We will then explore how to apply this knowledge of vertebral movement to our tissue work. Students learn how to work the tissue attaching to the spinous processes (and other parts of the vertebrae) along with gentle movements to bring about de-rotation of rotated vertebra. We will also cover how to visually assess a client to determine whether a vertebral rotation may be happening before confirming findings with palpatory assessment. At the end of this course, students will know how to use manual therapy techniques to work the soft-tissues in the neck and address rotations in the cervical vertebra.