Pohltherapy

With Pohltherapy®, structures are treated that are given little attention in conventional medicine and psychotherapy – persistent tense muscles and inflexible, tight connective tissue. These are the result of an enduring imbalance between tension and relaxation, which can lead to a wide variety of disorders.

With the help of Pohltherapie® and in close cooperation with the  therapist, patients learn to consciously perceive their muscular contractions and gradually release them. This is facilitated by combining several techniques which

• enable the conscious perception of the existing muscle tension
• enable the conscious control of the “forgotten” muscles (sensory-motor amnesia)
• release the unconscious persistent tension
• improve mobility
• Identify unconscious everyday movements and activities that trigger or chronify the permanent tension
• help reintegrate the affected areas into normal everyday movements

Used together, these techniques improve the interaction between the brain, body and movement, and help to alleviate symptoms.

Therapist and patient work hand in hand, because “Almost all patients can describe their disorders very well and show the exact spot on their body where they feel it.” (Dr. Helga Pohl). You become an active part of the solution instead of passively accepting help. The Pohl therapist has expert knowledge of functional anatomy and the muscular and fascial system, and in conjunction with the patient’s description of their pain can treat the specific muscles and parts of the body. All treatment steps are individually tailored to your personal disorders.

Detailed information on the principles and potential of  Pohltherapie® can be found here.

„Finding your way out of the ordeal by understanding your own body.“

Dr. Helga Pohl

At the beginning of my treatment I take a medical history and carry out the first treatment steps. You describe your disorders, when and where they do occur, how long you have had them, what you have already done, what effects this had, what diagnostic findings are available, etc. I will guide you with questions through this part of the conversation. I also analyze your posture while sitting, standing and lying down, as well as your movements and I will palpate tension with my hands. We may also talk about typical movements, postures and actions in your everyday life (e.g. working on the computer, carrying children, etc.). If you agree, I will document any visible malpositions and abnormalities with a digital camera. This can support the treatment, as you can gain a better understanding of your symptoms and their causes.

Based on this, I will explain the structural and anatomical correlations to you and together we will create a treatment plan. Normally, we then begin with the first treatment steps, so that after the first appointment you will have a better understanding of how the treatment will proceed.

From the second appointment onwards, the actual treatment then takes place with manual procedures as well as sensation and awareness exercises. During the entire treatment, we will keep talking about specific observations and findings regarding your disorders. In this way we investigate together what could have led to your current disorders and I continuously adapt the treatment steps to these findings.

As soon as your awareness of your tensions allows, I will give you exercises that match your symptoms and can be practiced at home. These exercises are an important part of the treatment, as they enable you to gradually feel and avoid incorrect movement and posture on your own and thus to prevent pain from occurring at all.

At the beginning of each appointment, we discuss your observations on the effects and changes since the previous appointment, how you are getting along with the exercises, what you have perceived in everyday life, etc. Thus, the treatment can continuously be adapted to you and your personal healing pace, allowing you to gain optimal success.

The aim of Pohltherapy® is to permanently resolve your symptoms. You will learn a lot about your body during the treatment process, in order to identify and avoid disadvantageous posture and movement patterns at an early stage and thus prevent pain and discomfort from occurring at all.

Ideally, the treatment takes place every one to two weeks and lasts 60 minutes per appointment. Depending on your individual situation and commute, this can also be varied. The first appointment requires 90-120 minutes due to the detailed anamnesis.

The number of treatments required varies from person to person and basically depends on the type and severity of the symptoms and how long they already persist. Even if one or two treatments may be sufficient in extremely rare cases or for acute problems, a longer sequence of treatments is usually necessary. As a general rule of thumb one can assume, that the longer a disorder or pain has persisted, the longer the treatment will take. The reason for this is  sensory-motor amnesia. In many cases, the number of required treatments can be roughly evaluated after the initial anamnesis.

However, an initial relief of the symptoms and reduction of the tension in the affected areas are often noticeable after the first treatment. Regular monitoring of changes is part of every treatment unit.

The symptoms caused by the restricted mobility of muscles and fasciae, which can be treated with Pohltherapy®, are diverse. Complex interactions can also be observed in many cases. They can be categorized as follows:

• Chronic pain
• Functional disorders
• Abnormal sensations
• Movement disorders
• Respiratory disorders
• Effects on mental health

Detailed information on  symptoms and discomforts that can be treated with Pohltherapy® can be found here.

Pohltherapy® combines five different intertwining methods, both physical and mental, which complement and reinforce each other, and are specifically effective when applied together:

Pandiculation – Thomas Hanna’s technique

With the help of the therapist, unconsciously tensed up muscles, which can no longer be fully moved, are made accessible to the conscious feeling and moving of the patient again.

Active Pain Point Treatment

Active pain points/myogelosis are muscular hardenings that are painful to pressure. By applying selective pressure on the actively moving muscle, these myogelosis are released, whereby the muscle regains its mobility.

Specific Connective Tissue Treatment of the Skin and Subcutaneous Fascia

Manual treatment of the skin and subcutaneous tissue makes the connective tissue more flexible, which means that the underlying muscles become softer and more reactive again. Pain and abnormal sensations subside.

Sensory-motor Exercises

Exercises to improve awareness of tension and relaxation, as well as the perception of movements and which muscles are involved.

Body Awareness Training

During the entire treatment, the patient and therapist jointly analyze and discover situations and behaviors in everyday life in which muscles involuntarily tense up, for example, due to stress or poor workplace ergonomics. Body awareness training helps to recognize the “old” patterns and reactions and to avoid them in the future after overcoming the sensory-motor amnesia and releasing the tension. This helps to maintain success of the treatment in the long term.

Detailed information on Methods of Pohltherapie® can be found here.

Many kinds of pain, functional complaints and abnormal sensations are based on chronic tension. Affected patients are often not aware of these tensions, or they feel the tension but do not know how to release it. This phenomenon, that people have forgotten or unlearned to consciously tense and / or relax a certain muscle, is what Thomas Hanna called sensory-motor amnesia.

In Pohltherapy®, the conscious feeling and control of the affected muscles and body regions is practiced and thus the patient learns again to consciously strain and relax it and to integrate this into everyday movements.

Detailed informationen on sensory-motor amnesia and its treatment with Pohltherapie® can be found here.

Muscles and connective tissue / fascia consist of fibers and sensory cells, among other things. In the event of injuries, threatening or stressful events, or even the idea of them, the fibers contract, which limits mobility. At the same time, the receptors report an uncomfortable feeling – pain, fear, nausea or other discomfort.

If these contractions last longer, for instance due to a fixed or protective posture after an injury or poor workplace ergonomics, or if the stress was too severe, chronic muscle tension and hardening of the connective tissue arise, which can no longer be resolved – even during sleep or with positive events.

Since sensory and motor skills, feeling and moving control each other, more discomfort leads to more tension, and more tension to more discomfort. Often a spiral of pain is set in motion and if the symptoms cannot be explained otherwise, they are often diagnosed as psychosomatic or “normal wear and tear signs of aging”.

At a certain point, long-lasting contractions can no longer be resolved at will and sensory-motor amnesia occurs. The corresponding body region can no longer be fully controlled and relaxed consciously. Fortunately, this process is reversible, but  therapeutic support is usually required to break the patterns that have emerged.

Detailed informationen on sensory-motor amnesia and its treatment with Pohltherapie® can be found here.

The cost per treatment unit (60 minutes) is € 130.

The initial appointment takes 90 minutes (€ 195) and includes a detailed anamnesis and examination, as well as initial treatment steps. Payment is by bank transfer – you will receive a total invoice at the end of the month.

Reimbursement of costs by health insurances

If you have private insurance and / or are eligible for subsidies and / or have additional insurance for Heilpraktiker benefits, the health insurance companies often cover the treatment costs. Please inquire in advance with your health insurance company or aid office about the relevant regulations. Billing can then be based on the fee schedule for Heilpraktiker.

Statutory health insurances usually do not cover the treatment costs.