How Assisted Stretching Can Help Those Living With MS: A Bright Wellness Case Study
According to MS Australia, more than 33,300 Australians are living with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and roughly 75% of these are women.
Though there are no medications to cure MS, several supportive treatments are available to relieve existing symptoms and slow down the onset of further physical issues. This includes assisted stretching and mobility work.
In this blog post, we are going to look at the causes and symptoms of MS, as well as a case study on our client Florence, who lives with MS, and how assisted stretching has improved her quality of life.
What is MS?
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic condition wherein the immune system attacks the central nervous system and prevents signals travelling from the brain to the body, which can cause problems with muscle control, vision, and how a person thinks and feels.
Causes
Though the exact cause of MS is not known, scientists believe a combination of genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors can trigger the immune system to attack the central nervous system. These include:
● Having a close relative with MS or another autoimmune illness
● Low levels of vitamin D
● Living further away from the equator, as this may reduce your exposure to ultraviolet light and vitamin D
● Smoking
Symptoms
MS is a highly unpredictable disease and the symptoms can come and go and vary widely depending on which part of the central nervous system is damaged and to what extent.
For the most part, however, MS can cause issues with how a person thinks, learns, moves, and feels, including:
● Fatigue & weakness
● Tremors
● Vision problems, such as blind spots and blurred vision
● Dizziness, vertigo, and a loss of coordination and balance
● Unusual sensations, such as numbness and tingling
● Changes in cognition, including 'brain fog' and impaired memory
● Changes in mood, including anxiety and depression
● Spasticity
Spasticity refers to feelings of stiffness coupled with a wide range of involuntary muscle spasms, such as sudden movements and sustained contractions.
Treatments
Though there is currently no cure for MS, there are strategies available to help people manage their symptoms and maintain their quality of life.
This includes assisted stretching and mobility work, both of which have several physical and mental health benefits for people with MS, who can experience muscle tightness and lose their movement potential due to weakness, spasticity, and decreased activity.
For instance, moving joints through their full range of motion and stretching muscles to their full length can decrease the risk of contractures, when joints permanently shorten and become painfully stiff.
Stretching can also improve blood flow, which lessens the damage to artery walls and so lowers the risk of strokes, heart attacks, and other vascular diseases.
Not to mention, stretching can increase serotonin levels, the body's natural mood stabiliser that helps people feel calmer, happier, and more focused. [1]
Florence: A Case Study
This is the exact treatment approach we are taking with one of our long-term clients, Florence.
Florence suffers from spasticity and experiences intense muscle stiffness and tightness every morning when she wakes up.
The stiffness is so severe, Florence often likens it to 'feeling like a corpse', which can make getting out of bed and standing up extremely challenging.
The team here at Bright Wellness: Disability Fitness Service assists Florence every Thursday morning with a 30-minute assisted stretch session from her bed, while also providing additional weekend visits, fitted in and around her social and family events.
Our stretch sessions with Florence begin with some myofascial release work with tools like lactose balls, foam rollers, and dowels to massage soft tissue.
We then focus on movements through the hip region and work rotational patterns and flexion before tending to her hamstrings with some static stretching.
We also stretch and massage Florence’s feet, calves, and ankles, as her MS has caused her to develop a condition called drop foot. People with drop foot can find it difficult to lift the front of their foot sufficiently high while walking, which can cause the foot to catch on the ground and lead to a fall. By massaging the lower parts of Florence’s legs, we provide muscular relief and improve her ability to bear weight and stand when she is required to temporarily do so throughout the day. [2]
Likewise, we provide some gentle movement assistance to help with the rehabilitation of her right arm/shoulder, which is currently suffering the effects of ‘frozen shoulder’ (pain and stiffness in the shoulder joint) from a long-standing fall injury.
By moving her body, stretching her muscles, and mobilising her joints, we help Florence access certain joint positions and movement patterns she otherwise couldn't due to the nature of her MS.
And by moving Florence through these range of motions, we help lubricate her joints, boost blood flow through the body, and provide healthy stimulus to the tendons and ligaments.
The result is a significant reduction in the episodes of spasticity Florence experiences throughout the day. In fact, she reports a marked improvement in her energy and performance during her gym sessions with her dedicated exercise physiologist, which she attends directly after our visits.
But perhaps most importantly, our stretching empowers Florence with the confidence, strength, and vitality to attend her multiple weekly appointments, fulfil her work obligations, and spend meaningful time with her kids and loved ones. [3]
Contact Us for More Information
Here at Bright Wellness, we love using movements and exercises to help clients like Florence achieve better health and lifestyle outcomes despite the limitations imposed by their physical, intellectual, or mental health disabilities.
As part of this process, we are open to collaborating with our clients' dedicated teams of allied health professionals, such as physiotherapists and exercise physiologists, to receive feedback and get advice on how to mould our programs to their client's specific needs.
To learn more about the assisted stretching support and other programs offered here at Bright Wellness: Disability fitness service, please do not hesitate to contact us at ben@brightwellnessfitness.com.au or 0416 313 536.
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