Meet Our Providers: Pain Relief PT

Ulli in her treatment center, located in Uptown New Orleans.

Pain Relief PT is one of our collaborative health partners and the first we’ve chosen to spotlight in the Meet Our Providers series. Meet Our Providers is a new series where we give you an inside look at healthcare professionals that provide much needed, specialized services to clients of the Musicians’ Clinic

First up is Ulrike “Ulli” Naresh, PT, JFB Therapist, MDT, the owner and therapist at Pain Relief PT in New Orleans. Read on to find out more about Ulli and her physical therapy-based pain relief services.

Ulli has been a practicing Physical Therapist for many years in locations around the world and has been an MFR (Myofascial Release) therapist in the New Orleans area for 17 years.

Her methods are designed to relieve pain, reduce limitations and restore patients to full function. Working with her hands she uses using the scientifically proven technique of Myofascial Release (learn more at About MFR).

Ulli invited us to her treatment center to answer a few questions about her practice:

What is MFR Therapy?

MFR stands for Myofascial Release. It affects and releases muscles (” Myo”) and the tissue (“Fascia”) which connects and holds all our bodily structures in place. The fascia (web of connective tissue) forms a continuous web that extends throughout the body, from the top of our head to the tip of our toes. It surrounds everything.

That connective tissue can be influenced, especially when it is damaged and then heals. Sometimes it can heal in a very hard or inelastic way and then compresses nerves and joints or modifies the actions of muscles–that is what produces pain.

Mind and body, art and science, all come together in MFR, heightening our awareness and releasing the restrictions that are the source of the problem. MFR is treatment designed for and around each patient to reduce pain and symptoms.

Who does it benefit the most?

MFR can benefit anyone! We all have this connective tissue that infuses everything in our bodies and gives us shape. Anyone can experience pain because of this.

MFR is a good option, especially when regular Physical Therapies or other attempts at healing fail. I think for people who have a long standing complaint and they think that have tried everything, I would encourage them to try one or at least two MFR therapies.

What can your patients expect to experience here at Pain Relief PT?

In regular PT, the focus is primarily on muscles and muscle exercises. MFR is focused on body work and exerting pressure in order to address and relieve pain.The tissue we are working on has collagen in it, which responds to pressure. When we do MFR we exert gentle, sustained pressure over long periods of time and that changes the tissue…so that it can function more normally.

A typical appointment lasts for one hour and involves body work and muscle work to address painful areas. Then I send patients with ‘homework’ or stretches/ practices and more info they can utilize. I combine the MFR work with exercises similar to those in PT treatments. I’d say exercises are about 20% of what I do.

I suggest that when trying out MFR, coming in at least four times to be able to really assess if the MFR therapy is effective.

Have you noticed anything in particular about treating musician patients?

A lot of my musician patients (guitarists, horn players, etc) come to me with shoulder and upper body issues usually resulting from the postures and positions which they are playing in and have been for years.

Most patients that I see, the conditions have been in the making for a long time- it doesn’t happen overnight. Its the same with my musician patients. We all have Myofascial restrictions but when it’s gone on long enough it starts to develop symptoms and give us pain.

One thing that I don’t have to persuade any of [my musician patients] on is the mind-body connection. Musicians recognize that connection [that is necessary for healing] because they themselves must feel the music in order to be a part of it, otherwise its just notes coming out of an instrument. It’s the same with pain relief- using specialized MFR and PT techniques combined with patient participation results in the mind AND body working together to produce results that lead to relief.