Spinal Slump Massage in 1880

I have been cleaning out my desk and finding images that I collected for possible inclusion into books that I wrote last century. These images were collected in the 1980s, well before the internet. Most didn’t make publication but we will use this opportunity to post them.

Here is a photograph of “Spinal Massage”, taken in the  1880s by Dmitri Ermakov, a military photographer who travelled extensively in the Russian Empire. I can’t recall where I found it, but I  was delighted to find that Dmitri has Wikipedia listing with some beautiful photographs.

I was attracted to the image above because of the resemblance to an aggressive slump test mobilisation with perhaps the toes giving some additional input to the upper thoracic spine. I noted in the image below that the technique can also be done in reverse, though with more potential to slip down the back!

– David

PS. I am not using nor do I recommend this technique!

Useful Links

Bodily Relearning, Boyd BS
Neurodynamic techniques Handbook & Videos, Butler DS
The Sensitive Nervous System, Butler DS