Treatments: Massage Therapy

What is Remedial Massage?

Remedial massage is a general term for a type of massage that aims to correct muscular imbalances and promote healing through increased blood and lymph circulation. When we are under physical or psychological pressure, our muscles shorten and become tense. When our muscles and fascia (the tissue that surrounds muscles) are either overused through physical activity, or underused due to the pressures of modern life, they become fibrous. Toxic waste gets trapped in fibrous tissues and the overall result is pain and discomfort.

How does a massage therapist help to relax tense muscles?

Because muscles need to contract to do their work, when parts of a muscle are shortened, its ability to contract is diminished. Tense muscles can also compress nerves and blood vessels causing increased pain. Massage therapy helps to restore length into the muscles and return them to their natural pain-free state.

Why do we have knots in our muscles?

Fibrous adhesions or 'knots' in muscles occur because damage to the tissues causes bleeding and the sticky blood binds the muscle cells together forming scar tissue. Muscular scar tissue is strong but it cannot function efficiently because it inhibits the muscle from being able to perform to its full potential. Deep tissue remedial techniques work to break up the scar tissue and encourage more blood flow into areas where it could not previously reach.

How does massage therapy release toxins?

Toxins are the body's metabolic waste products. They become trapped in congested, knotty muscles because there is little or no blood getting into the tissues. When a massage therapist releases the tension in a muscle, a flow of blood enters the area. This blood flow brings nutrients such as oxygen and unleashes waste products into the circulatory system. That is why we recommend drinking plenty of water and going for a short walk after a treatment as it helps the body to flush the waste out.