The Fascial System

Fascia is a three-dimensional web of connective tissue that runs uninterrupted from head to toe-from the surface of the skin down to the nucleus of the cell.

Fascia is the environment for all other specialized structures in the body. Fascia surrounds and interpenetrates every organ, muscle, bone, blood vessel, lymph vessel, and nerve. It surrounds and penetrates every cell, forming the cytoskeleton of each cell.

It’s design allows for constant adaptation, balance and support, and fluid movement. We can now see how it is microtubles carrying fluid that is part of the network of communication from cell to cell.

All injuries, repetative strain, and stress initiate an inflammatory process, causing fascia to tighten. This can create tensile forces upwards of 2000 pounds per square inch. This crushing pressure creates pain, pulls tissue from it’s normal position, and doesn’t allow for the free expansion and contraction required for optimal functioning.

However, these fascial restrictions cannot be seen with standard testing equipment such as x-rays, CT scans, electromyography, MRI’s, etc. Therefore, such restrictions are usually ignored or misdiagnosed, and referrals are not made to appropriately trained specialists.

Because fascia is interconnected, trauma, scarring, or abnormal tension in one area can cause tensile forces to be exerted upon and felt by adjacent pain-sensitive structures, as well as on structures far from the original site of injury. That is why your practitioner may work are areas other than the place of your concern.