Tell me what you can’t do comfortably and I’ll work from there. But folks like knowing what they’re booking, so here’s what the hours actually look like.
This is what most people come for, and it’s why clients call my work correctional instead of a feel-good massage.
Before I touch you I look you over standing, front and back and side on. Where your head sits. Shoulder height, shoulder rotation. Rib cage. Pelvic tilt. Whether one leg’s riding shorter than the other. A right shoulder that hurts is very often a left hip that quit doing its job, and standing you up is how I find that out.
Then I work the whole chain instead of the sore spot. Release the fascia that’s holding you out of line, free up the joint so the muscle has somewhere to lengthen into, and take the load off whatever’s been covering for it.
People bring me low backs and sciatica, headaches and clenched jaws, frozen shoulders, hips that quit moving years ago, scoliosis, and whatever the oilfield or a desk has done to them. I also work on youths from junior high to high school who participate in football, track and field, swimming, tennis, and gymnastics.
I’m a licensed massage therapist, not a doctor. I don’t diagnose, and I’ll tell you straight when something needs a physician instead of my hands.
Two completely different people book lymphatic. Both need the same thing from me, which is light hands, going one direction, taking their time. This isn’t deep tissue and it shouldn’t hurt.
Before surgery. Those preparing for mommy makeovers, tummy tucks, BBLs, and breast augmentations will greatly benefit from a pre-surgery lymphatic session.
After surgery. Liposuction, breast augmentations, glute lifts, tummy work. They all leave fluid sitting where it shouldn’t. Drainage helps move it along and keeps things softer while you heal, and the first few weeks are when it counts. Bring your surgeon’s post-op instructions with you. I work inside them, and I won’t start a day earlier than they’ve cleared.
Long-term swelling and edema. Generally women in midlife experiencing chronic fatigue syndrome, which includes environmental toxins, medications, food toxins, and the stresses of life, benefit greatly from lymphatic massage sessions.
People managing lymphedema have a devil of a time finding anybody around here who’ll take the time with them. I’ve worked with these clients for years, at whatever pace and pressure the tissue will tolerate. I’d rather see you often than see you hard.
Massage therapy helps with comfort and getting fluid moving. It isn’t medical treatment for a diagnosed condition, and I defer to your doctor on that.
Not every visit has to be corrective. Sometimes you need pressure, and sometimes an hour where nobody asks you a thing.