Meet Dana Hood. She is a successful entrepreneur that has dedicated her professional life to the care and pampering of our furry friends with her Dog Savvy Doggie Boutique and Spa on Larimer Square in Denver. She also has a dog daycare service AND teaches a martial arts/dance class several times a week. No wonder she experiences tension in her back, neck, head, jaw clenching at night and occasional migraines.
Dana came to The Wellness Center almost two years ago in search of relief. She had tried various modalities to help alleviate her pain and discomfort, including massage, chiropractic, hypnosis, mouth guards, etc, but none had lasting results. Layhoon Kasa, CMT got the case and initially did soft tissue work on her upper body to address the tension. About six months into their treatments Dana came in with a raging headache. They decided to incorporate Intra-Oral massage work into the session. Her headache actually diminished during the session and the tension in her jaw was gone too!! They have continued to do Intra-Oral work together over the past few months. We talked to Dana about her experience and what it is like to get Intra-Oral work.
What was the Intra-Oral massage like? Can you describe it to us?
Basically you open your mouth and do your best to relax. With gloves on Layhoon reaches a finger or two into my mouth and gently massages the tissue to find spots where I am holding stress. She puts pressure on the spot (or trigger point) until it subsides. This can definitely be a little intense but you simply breathe through it.
Does it feel uncomfortable or invasive?
It is a little weird having someone’s hand in your mouth, kind of like at the dentist. But 5 minutes of discomfort for hours of relief with my jaw make it totally tolerable. I’d much rather get intra-oral work then go to the dentist!
How do you feel after a treatment?
I feel an amazing sense of relaxation and freedom in my jaw and surrounding areas. If you don’t have jaw tension you may not understand, so I liken it to yoga. You may not feel super tight or tense in your body but after doing a yoga class your entire body feels totally different – relaxed, awakened, balanced and free. This is the same feeling you get after Intra-Oral work.
Would you recommend Intra-Oral work to people?
For sure! Especially people that experience headaches, for most of the time it has to do with tension in the head, neck and jaw. If you can release this then your headache will be gone. I would also highly recommend it for anyone with jaw problems for the relief from the treatments lasts much longer than any other modality I’ve tried. I’m a believer!
Dana has recently started doing acupuncture with Michelle Leno, LAc at the Wellness Center to compliment her work with Layhoon. This has proven to be incredibly effective in continually unraveling her jaw tension.
Many thanks to Dana for sharing your story with us.
Check out her businesses:
Dana is also a black belt Nia teacher:
For more information about Intra-Oral Massage and the practitioners at The Wellness Center that practice is powerful modality cal 303-357-9355.