Manual Therapy
Manual therapy is hands-on physical therapy: your therapist uses their hands to move stiff joints and loosen tight muscle and soft tissue so you can move with less pain. Every East Mountain Physical Therapy therapist and assistant has advanced training in manual therapy techniques, and we offer it in Cedar Crest, Edgewood, Tijeras and Moriarty.
What manual therapy is, in plain language
It is skilled touch used for a purpose. Instead of only handing you exercises, the therapist works on the joint or tissue that is stuck, then teaches you how to keep what changed. Our clinic describes its approach as designed to reduce pain, restore normal alignment and improve overall function.
It is not the same as a spa massage, and it is paired with exercise on purpose: hands-on work opens a door, and the exercises are how you keep walking through it.
The techniques you may meet
Joint mobilization
Gentle, repeated movements of a stiff joint, from the spine to the shoulder to the ankle.
- Graded: your therapist chooses how firm
- Often used for back, neck and shoulder stiffness
Soft-tissue mobilization
Pressure and stretch applied to muscle and the tissue around it.
- Eases spasm and tight areas
- Used before exercise to help you move better
Myofascial release
Slow, sustained pressure on the connective tissue around muscles. It has its own page: myofascial release.
- For tightness that stretching does not reach
Manual traction
The therapist gently draws a joint or the spine apart by hand.
- Used where it relieves pressure and pain
What a manual therapy session is like
You stay clothed in comfortable clothes, and your therapist tells you what they are about to do. Pressure can be firm; it should not be sharp, and you tell us when to ease off. Some people feel a little sore afterward, like after a workout, and it usually passes within a day.
We schedule one patient per hour for each therapist, so the hour is yours. How many visits you need depends on what is wrong and for how long, and your therapist tells you after the first evaluation.
Related hands-on treatments
Dry needling works on tight muscle knots with a thin needle. Cost and coverage are plain: we accept and file most insurance, including Medicare and Medicaid, and we will check your plan when you call (505) 286-3678.
Related care
Manual Therapy care in the East Mountains
We see patients from Cedar Crest, Edgewood, Tijeras, Moriarty and the East Mountains.