How does Posture Therapy work?
After a thorough assessment of what your pain issues are, Egoscue U. Certified Posture Therapy usually begins with a postural assessment. If you are able to stand, your therapist will take front, side, and rear views photographs of your standing posture, thoroughly evaluate them against the functional design blueprint, and explain to you what is going on – why you are hurting.
Once the posture assessment is complete, and you understand why you are hurting, your therapist, with lots of feedback from you, will design a routine of exercises ("ecises", or "easycises") for you, based on how you are holding your body on that day. You will do the ecises right then and there, with clear instructions, and both of you will assess if they are working as anticipated.
You will be able to feel a difference. You will receive a list of the exercises and instructions so that you will be able to repeat them everyday (preferably in the morning so that you start the day with a better aligned body). After 7 to 10 days, the routine (called a "menu") will have done its magic, and your body will plateau. It's time to meet with your therapist to reevaluate and get another menu. It's like peeling the layers of an onion. You won't achieve your design blueprint posture overnight.
The ecises are meant to be done everyday. Each time you do them, your body will shift a little. Chances are that your body won't be able to hold onto the shift, but if you repeat them everyday, the shift will start to stick. If you wait 48 hours between doing your menu, you will have lost the shift you created, and be back at square one the next time, instead of a bit ahead.
What you see when you look at your posture is a map of the way you have compensated for your dysfunctions. For example, if your hips are not symmetrical (dysfunction), chances are your shoulders have turned or rolled to enable you to stand up in spite of your asymmetrical hips. Human bodies are masters of compensation, and it is the main reason why we have survived and thrived. With Egoscue Method, we work to correct the compensations, and keep working to correct the underlying cause.
Are your hips symmetrical? With shorts on, stand in front of a mirror and look at the position of your knees and feet. Do both knees point straight ahead? Inward? Outward? Are they symmetrical? Are your feet pointing straight ahead? Does one turn in, or out? Both? Your knee and foot position tell you what your hips are doing. From the side view, do you have the proper S-curve in your spine? Is your head forward? Are your hips forward? Knees hyperextended, or flexed?