What are frictions?
Frictions are small forceful movements applied back and forth over isolated areas using the pads of the fingers or thumbs – utilising considerable pressure compared to the techniques described so far. They are applied adjacent to the direction of fibres and hence, are often referred to as ‘cross-fibre’ frictions. It is vital to understand that such techniques actually disrupt the tissues in order to realign new fibres and therefore must be used sparingly and only when the need arises – see below. Several benefits of frictions may be generated by using deep stroking instead; the subtle difference between the two techniques being slightly less pressure and therefore no disruption caused. The pads of your fingers or thumbs move with your client’s skin in either a circular or transverse direction, and may be used on muscles, tendons and ligaments. Finger and thumb pads can be used with medium to firm pressure for exploratory purposes to feel small areas under the surface. Greater pressure
