The following information is taken from the book, Myotherapy,
A Complete Guide to Pain Free Living, By Bonnie Prudden.
The excerpt is from the Afterward by Dr. Desmond Tivy,
University of London.

“The subject of Myotherapy involves the interaction of structure and function, with a strong emphasis on function; thus inevitably it involves the complexities of an incompletely understood cybernetic system.”

“Essentially, Myotherapy relieves certain disorders of musculoskeletal  (strictly neuromuscular) function, and cannot influence structure.  It can, predictably, relieve trigger points, which are the basis of the fibrositic (or fibromyalgia) syndrome.”

“Myotherapy involves:
            1.  temporary erasure (using local pressure) of whatever neuromuscular
                 circuitry causes a trigger point, and
            2.  reprogramming said circuitry with stretching exercises.

Myotherapy uses pressure, which has high convenience and availability and low side effect and cost compared with most other methods-in a word its merit is simplicity.

Other ways have been used to reprogramming after pain alleviation, ways that attempt, as does Myotherapy, to teach the system how to “balance” itself-i.e., restore proper local, as well as general, muscle tone.  It is my impression that the exercises used in Myotherapy clinics are more effective than others I have come across.

Reprogramming (learning) proper muscle tone and balance (defined as that which promotes a pain-free existence) can seemingly be achieved in three possible ways, alone or in combination:
            1.  avoidance of pain-producing postures and movements;
            2.  strengthening of muscles that allow pain because they are weak; and
            3.  muscle-efficiency promotion by relief of trigger points contained therein,
                 with subsequent muscle stretching.

It is this third method that is used in Myotherapy, although the patient may, coincidentally or unconsciously use a certain amount of the other two methods as well.

Who might try Myotherapy?