Massage / manual therapist Molly Rea, LMT, based in Portland, Oregon, explains how manual therapy can bring balance to a dancer's musculoskeletal and nervous systems.
Like any Manual Therapy session, Manual Therapy sessions that are specific to Dance Medicine are tailored to an individual dancer’s needs and goals. Assessments and treatment plans are created to inspire wellness through an informed lens of the technique and developed habits of the individual dancer in order to release, stabilize, and restore structure and balance to their musculoskeletal and nervous systems.
Dance medicine specific manual therapy can be helpful whether it be recovering from an overuse or traumatic injury, maintaining healthy peak performance, or even addressing emotional and mental trauma that comes from the physical and mental demands of a dance career.
When we begin high level training at a very young age; which is often the case in ballet dancers, our skeletal system begins to shift and grow to accommodate what is being asked of it; causing our structures to look and act a bit different than the general population’s.
Having a Manual Therapist who is experienced in the world of a professional dance as well as trauma-informed athletic performance therapy and rehab is an excellent addition to a dancers’ health and wellness journey that may often be overlooked.
Seeking dance specific therapies allows a dancer to receive treatment from a practitioner who is already aware of the differences in their structure, as well as the physical and mental demands of their work. This level of understanding and empathy aids enormously in a dancer's healing process.
Aside from pain, injury often leads to emotional trauma; for those who use their bodies as tools of their profession, this can be detrimental.
Being told or required to stop doing the thing that you care most about due to injury, can cause emotional/mental, physical and even financial stresses. This kind of stress leads to exacerbation of symptoms and can often lead to a lengthened period of injury and hinder recovery time.
As a dancer, you have the right to care for your body the way an olympic athlete cares for theirs. Your body is your art, your tool, and the most precious thing you have. Taking care of it should not have to be put on the back burner due to a lack of accessibility or understanding from healthcare providers.
Molly-Grace Rea LMT, is a massage/ manual therapist at TPA, who specializes in providing trauma-informed, empathetic rehabilitative treatment sessions focused on rebuilding structure within a dancer’s musculoskeletal and nervous systems; helping to ease anxiety, decrease muscular tension and strain, and help you to feel your best self, on and off the stage. (Photo: Samuel Hobbs - push/FOLD Dance Company)
Dance Medicine at Turning Pointe Acupuncture
We are lucky to have three providers on staff with backgrounds as professional dancers, which gives them a unique perspective in treating dancers and athletes. Molly Rea is a member of push/FOLD a contemporary dance company based in Portland, Oregon. Massage therapist Brent Luebbert danced professionally with Pillow Project, Attack Theater, Eowyn Emerald and Dancers, Bodyvox and Washington Dance Collective. He continues to perform on a project basis around Portland. Acupuncturist Emily Bartha danced professionally with numerous companies and projects in New York City and Portland, Oregon, and spent several years teaching ballet.
