Massage Services
My Approach
My approach to massage is to talk to my clients about the discomfort and pain they are experiencing and the goals they have for our sessions. Through visual observation I analyze holding patterns and compare them with what I feel in their body. After considering the client’s comfort and goals, I then select the most efficient modalities to begin therapy.
I will not heal your injury, rather we will work together to heal the injury with me acting as a sherpa to lead you to comfort. You may feel that I am doing all the work to create ease in your body, but in actuality I’m listening to your body and giving it what it wants. I am always open to hearing if you want to receive a specific modality, and I will mix it in. I believe that most body work helps the ultimate healing, it’s just a matter of how efficient and how receptive the body is to the modality.
Myofascial Release
Fascia is a connective tissue that the body continually produces to keep objects in place as well as to aid the efficiency of commonly used movement patterns. Fascia continually builds up between muscles, and when neighboring muscles are used independently, the fascia gets torn apart (melts away). When neighboring muscles don’t use their full range of motion and are used inefficiently (due to trauma/pain/etc.) the fascia between them builds up, getting thicker and stronger. This is a great and helpful process for the body, but it can also reinforce improper (e.g. painful/uncomfortable) muscle movement.
Why?
Myofascial release massage focuses on determining patterns in the body that are not supporting the individual and breaking up the fascia between the structures in the body’s holding pattern. This can allow for more easeful movement and greater range of motion.
What does it look like?
In practice, a therapist will place hands on the body, sink to access the level of fascia (skin/muscle facia or muscle/muscle fascia) and then move and separate the structures with gentle movements. Sensations can range from gentle to intense depending on body patterns held.
Sensation*?
Internal sliding sensation, temperature difference between tissue, pin prick sensation, soft burning sensation (like a friction burn i.e. twisting skin in opposite directions), wet blanket sensation (feels like wet cloths on the skin being moved), itchy, stinging, smarting, sharp, cold, cool, slidey, slimy, pricking.
Swedish Massage
Swedish massage is a collection of strokes with fancy French names that focus on stimulating the parasympathetic nervous system which provides stress reduction. All strokes are toward the heart to promote healthy blood flow.
Why?
Swedish massage’s main purpose is to relax the body. Generally Swedish strokes start off a massage to gently encourage a client’s body to move from sympathetic nervous system activation (fight or flight) to parasympathetic nervous system activation (rest and digest).
What does it look like?
Repetitive rubbing and gliding movements across muscle and skin, gentle rocking, soft kneading of muscles, and rhythmic percussion with all strokes going towards the heart.
Sensation*?
Softening, expanding, warming, lengthening, ease.
Lymphatic Drainage Massage
Lymph is an interstitial fluid (between structures in the body like muscle tissue) that contains white blood cells and is a big part of our immune systems. Lymph grabs toxins (bacteria, viruses, unwanted substances, cancerous cells, etc.) and moves them through lymph nodes to protect the body. The lymph system doesn’t have it’s own pump to move the fluid through tissue and lymph nodes; instead lymph is moved around by the body’s movement and via touch. Regular exercise and full body actions will continually move the lymph around our body, but when we have holding patterns in our body (where certain areas/muscles/tissues are being ineffectively used) the lymph in those area do not get efficiently drained.
Why?
While all touch based massage moves lymph around the body to some capacity, lymph massage focuses on moving lymph from tissue into lymph nodes while directing it through the system. Lymph massage aids the body in detoxifying itself and can aid in reducing swelling allowing for quicker recovery times from sickness, stagnation, and even partying.
What does it look like?
Lymph massage is a very gentle modality with a rhythmic pulsing/squishing of the skin in patterns following the lymph nodes across your body.
Sensation*?
Squishiness, gentle pressure, rhythmic pawing, & heat.
Deep Tissue Massage
‘Knots’ occur in muscle when a muscle restricts a portion of it’s movement in order to protect the body due to trauma (physically being hit, repetitive stress movements, emotional holding, etc). These knots can be uncomfortable or painful when resting or when performing specific movements.
Why?
Deep tissue massage is ideal for tight muscles that are causing discomfort. By applying an appropriate amount of pressure on a tight muscle, the body will start to release the deep tension in the muscle. This can have profound effects on the length of a muscle, as well as producing more ease and openness in a client’s body.
What does it look like?
Deep tissue massage involves the therapist slowly sinking into the targeted muscle tissue and slowly dragging their hand/elbow through the tight muscle allowing it to release.
Sensation*?
While deep tissue can be intense, it isn’t always experienced that way. Deep Tissue also has a misnomer that it should be painful, but in fact no massage technique should be painful (as it puts the body into a fight or flight response). Sensations experienced: deep pressure, “pleasurable pain” release, lengthening/stretching sensations, unwinding, expansion.
Trigger Point
Tigger points are areas of muscle tissue that are bunched up and can cause discomfort / pain locally or in other areas of the body. When the pain is not in the same location as the trigger point, it is called referred pain, and trigger point massage is utilized to reduce this pain by identifying the tight areas and placing constant pressure on them until they release.
Why?
Trigger point is ideal when there are small knots causing discomfort or pain in a client’s body. Some clients respond better to trigger point massage, others to deep tissue.
What does it look like?
When a tight area is identified, the therapist will place their hand at an angle on the edge of the tight area and hold that point with constant pressure. Once a release is felt, the therapist will check to see if there are more parts to be released and if so continue the procedure stated. Sometimes you may asked if certain areas have more sensation or are more tender than others in order to identify the most effective areas.
Sensation*?
Pointed pressure, “pleasurable pain” release, lengthening/stretching sensations, unwinding, expansion.
Natural Body Unwinding
The body can unconsciously hold itself in non-balanced positions (twisted torso, hunched shoulders, etc.) which can cause one to experience discomfort or pain. Our bodies compensate for trauma/weak muscles/etc by holding tension and restricting movement in ways so as to not produce discomfort or pain.
Why?
Natural body unwinding is a profound modality that can relieve tension, discomfort, and pain with gentle movements that are not typically associated with massage. This unwinding taps into the body’s inherent intelligence to balance itself out, thereby allowing the changes made in a session more likely to fully integrate.
What does it look like?
Body unwinding is usually performed with clothes on. The therapist positions the client’s body to determine the position that creates the greatest ease in the body, then the therapist slowly moves the body in the path of greatest ease allowing the muscles to balance themselves out.
Sensation*?
Bands/planes of tension melting, increased sensation in muscles, twitching, thrumming, movement of sensation, muscles coming online (light tingling sensation in areas where there was no sensation before), ease in the body, feelings of expansion, feeling lighter, feeling taller, feeling more grounded, sudden stress relief.
Neuromuscular Techniques / Active Release Techniques
Neuromuscular techniques (also referred to as Active Release Techniques) are a collection of approaches to release tension in muscles by utilizing the inherent capabilities of nerves. It involves a client lightly resisting specific movements by flexing muscles which in turn releases the tension in the muscle.
Why?
Some clients are sensitive to pressure, so this technique can allow them to release muscles themselves. Depending on the client, this modality may provide extra release in a tight muscle, or it may be used as a way of loosening up a muscle before working on it deeper.
What does it look like?
A practitioner will place a client’s body in a position to focus on releasing a specific muscle. The practitioner will then provide resistance for a specific action, asking the client to resist the pressure with 20-30% of their strength. By lightly pushing against the resistance, the nervous system will automatically try to relax muscles that aid in the movement.
Sensation*?
Feels like pushing against a wall. There is a gentle resistance when pushing, and then relief and openness afterwards.
Cranial Sacral
The central nervous system (CNS), consisting of your brain and spinal cord, is contained by tissue called the meninges. The meninges holds the clear cerebrospinal fluid that clears wastes, facilities blood profusion1, and acts as a shock absorber for the brain to protect from physical injury. The cerebrospinal fluid is created and absorbed in different rates producing subtle fluctuations in the bones of the skull. A practitioner will gentlely sense the pulse and movement of these structures and gently encourage the tissue to move in a way that produces more fluid and ideal movement.
Note that there are several studies that try to debunk cranial sacral therapy, but experientially clients and myself have felt benefits from the therapy.
Why?
Cranial Sacral therapy optimizes the environment for the CNS, which houses our primary form of perception of our environment (the senses). CS therapy addresses concussions and traumatic brain injury, headaches, stress, chronic fatigue, and PTSD among others. People with drug addictions have also expressed that CS therapy benefits them.
What does it look like?
CS therapy is a clothes on modality that has the practitioner resting their hands on the feet, sacrum, spine, and head for 1-10 minutes at a time. With 5g of pressure (the weight of a US nickel) the practitioner will make tiny movements to encourage movement.
Sensation*?
Common experiences: seeing colors, memory flashes, internal expansion, openness. During a cranial sacral session some people experience a deep level of meditation, some people fall asleep. Others just feel a gentle sense of relaxation.
Reiki
Reiki is an energy modality that involves the conscious movement of life energy, qi or chi, in the body. Developed in Japan, this modality focuses on increasing the client’s capability of self healing.
Why?
Reiki can be a good for people with fibromyalgia or people whom are very sensitive to touch. Conscious intention and focused awareness on areas of the body that hold discomfort or pain is beneficial.
What does it look like?
A practitioner will place their hands above or gently resting on a client’s body. The practitioner will listen to their intuition to understand where their focus and intention should be directed. Alterations may be completely intentional (i.e. not physically obvious) or may involve moving hands to different locations on the client.
Sensation*?
A practitioners hands may feel very warm. The sensations one may experience range from nothing to waves of sensation in various parts of one’s body. Commonly reported sensations are: expansion, openness, gentle shifts, uplift in attitude, etc.
*Disclaimer: Commonly experienced sensations are examples of what some people state they felt. These are shown here to give some insight into what some people may experience.
1: Wright, Ben L. C.; Lai, James T. F.; Sinclair, Alexandra J. (26 January 2012). “Cerebrospinal fluid and lumbar puncture: a practical review”. Journal of Neurology. 259 (8): 1530–1545. doi:10.1007/s00415-012-6413-x.