Live Pain Free by Changing How You Sit

When I was on my retreat at Kripalu I was fortunate enough to hear a presentation given by one of the staff members. Lee Albert is neuromuscular therapist who focuses on Positional Therapy. Lee explained that he was introduced to positional therapy because he had horrible migraines for 3 years after a bad car accident. He couldn't find relief in any type of treatment until he stumbled upon this type of therapy. 


During the presentation Lee had a few students come up with different aches and pains. He would ask them what their problem was and then do a small demonstration. Every time the person said the soreness felt better after his treatment. He also gave us some tips on doing positional therapy to ourselves. His book Live Pain Free without Drugs or Surgery explains a lot of the ones he showed us. 

Kripalu describes Positional therapy as "a gentle, effective therapy for the treatment of chronic and acute muscular pain and for increasing range of motion, this treatment includes careful observation and evaluation of posture followed by placing the affected muscles in a position of comfort for 90 seconds. When then pain vanishes from the tender point, the stressed tissues are felt to be at their most relaxed. Positional Release Therapy achieves its benefits by means of an automatic resetting of muscle spindles. Relief is immediate and long lasting. These techniques are very effective in the treatment of pain due to injury, stress, repetitive strain, postural distortion, and chronic neuromuscular conditions" Kripalu

At the end of the presentation Lee Albert also explained the best way for sitting in a chair. Here is a video where he explains the best way to sit! If you spend a lot of time in a chair, at a desk, or in a car each day try this option to help with back pain and general body soreness.