Releasing Joint Restriction (RJR) Technique

I finished my Master's degree in Physical Therapy and one month later I was in a motor vehicle accident (MVA).  I was able to walk after the accident but I felt pretty banged up.  Over the next few days, I became sorer and found that my back was stuck in flexion which means I was bent forward and could not stand up straight.  Not only could I not stand up straight I could not bend backward at all.  I lived about an hour from the clinic I worked in so I was forced to find a physical therapist closer to home.  My husband drove me to my first appointment with this new therapist. 

 

As a new graduate in physical therapy, I was expecting Bob to put me in a gown so he could see my back.  I also anticipated him to use all of the specific tools such as a reflex hammer and a two-point tester but he did not.  Instead, Bob asked me to bend forward and bend backward, or at least try to straighten up.  He measured my spine's ability to move into these positions and asked what my pain level was during these movements.

 

After he finished asking me questions and observing my range of motion, I was ready to lie down on my stomach so he could work on my back.  However, I was in for a shock.  Bob asked me to lie down on my back which really confused me.  How could he work on my back if I was lying on it?  Next, Bob started pushing on the front of my stomach and pelvic bones.  I was not shocked that this was horribly painful because as I showed Bob, I had horrible black and purple bruises across my breasts and stomach from the seat belt.  Of course it would hurt when you pushed on a bruise. 

 

The next shock came when Bob lifted my legs and put me in a very awkward position and when he poked again on the sore spot, it was no longer painful.  I was very confused by this.  Since the skin was bruised, it should have hurt to poke on that area.  It did not hurt at all, however.  Bob continued to locate the most tender points and used specific positions of my spine and legs to make the tender points go away.  After about 20 minutes of this work, he had me stand up.  I could not have been more surprised to find myself to be standing up straight and able to bend forward and backward without pain.  My pain level coming into the clinic was probably 9/10 and leaving after only 20 minutes, the pain was down to 0/10.

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This experience was an amazing experience to have the pain resolve so quickly.  It was especially amazing for me as a therapist to experience this transformation for myself.  Over the years, I have continued to wonder what the tender point comes from since the bruises were not tender once he got me into the treatment position and even coming out of the treatment position it still did not hurt.  I still question why this tender point goes away immediately but am now suspicious that it is a bubble of lymphatic fluid that is trapped by the joint that is held in a restricted pattern.  As soon as the joint is put into a free position, this allows the fluid to move out.  There is no proof of this, it is just my theory.

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Overall, I have learned that pain is a true gift.  It tells your brain that something is wrong and requires assistance to resolve the pain and improve function.  My experience with Bob truly changed my life.  I have spent my professional life since 1993 studying this technique and experimenting on all of my patients to find the best way to help people.  I have especially worked to teach people how to use this tool on their own and that is the purpose of writing this website.