What is St. John Neuromuscular Massage Therapy?
St. John Neuromuscular Therapy utilizes trigger point therapy and neuromuscular massage to lengthen chronically short muscle groups. Trigger points are known to shorten muscles and to send noxious impulses to distant areas. Many common pain conditions are caused by trigger points including headaches, ‘sciatic’ pain, low back pain, and neck pain. Postural distortion causes pain by creating abnormal pulling and tension on adjacent and distant structures. St. John Neuromuscular massage therapy releases these muscle-shortening trigger points, restoring postural balance and pain free movement. Developed by Paul St. John, St. John Neuromuscular Therapy relies on the work of Dr. Janet Travell and Dr. David Simons who wrote Myofascial Pain and Dysfunction: The Trigger Point Manual. Dr. Travell was the first female white house physician and served during the Kennedy and Johnson era. She was appointed due to the assistance she provided John F. Kennedy in 1955 with chronic back pain. She devoted
