Cathy Bell is our Massage & Natural Therapies expert at Peaceful Willow. Here are the most recent Q & A archives... |
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by Cathy  About Cathy: Cathy Bell is qualified in a number of natural therapies including Kinesiology, Massage (Chinese, Remedial, Deep Tissue, Relaxation, Lymphatic Drainage), Reflexology and more. Cathy will answer your questions about hands-on healing and natural therapies.
 What is lymphatic drainage massage? The lymphatic system lies just under your skin. The vessels of the lymph system are filled with a fluid called lymph that is collected from the space between the cells in the body. The lymph fluids feed the cells of the body by transporting various nutrients such as salts and minerals. Lymph fluid also carries wastes, toxins, dead cells and excess fluid. It is filtered and passed over to the bloodstream to be eliminated by the kidneys, lungs, colon and skin. The lymph system can be thought of as the cellular toxin disposal system. When there are high levels of toxins present in the body then the lymphatic system will be slowed down. This can result in the formation of cellulite, poor circulation and a weakened immune system. The lymphatic system has no central pump and depends on muscle contraction through deep breathing, exercise and manual manipulation to move fluid. Lymphatic Drainage Massage utilises a very light pressure combined with soft pumping movements in the direction of the lymph nodes. Immune system function can be significantly increased, improving metabolism and helping the body to detox. It can also be useful in cases of fluid retention, sports injury or for people with a sluggish immune system or suffering a lack of energy. I've heard about a Chinese method of massage called cupping. Can you please explain what it is? Massage cupping has been used extensively in Chinese medicine for several thousand years. By creating suction and negative pressure, massage cupping is used to drain excess fluids and toxins; stimulate the peripheral nervous system; bring blood flow to stagnant muscles and skin; and loosen adhesions, connective tissue and stubborn knots in soft tissue. A flame is inserted into the glass cup to create the vacuum. This is placed over the area to be treated, the flame is removed and the cup is inverted onto the area of the body to be treated. There are two main cupping techniques: stationary and moving. Stationary cups are placed on the skin and left for a period of five to 15 minutes in one location, or four to six cups may be applied and removed cyclically in a technique called "flash cupping". These are the methods most commonly used in Chinese medicine. Moving (or "massage cupping") is the more commonly used form of cupping among massage therapists and other health care practitioners. Prior to applying the cup, oil is administered to the skin to facilitate smooth movement and palpably discover the areas of tension and congestion. Create the vacuum and place the cup on the affected area, then glide it over the surface. A cup may be "parked" for a short time on stubborn knots or over inflamed joints or tissue. Cupping can be used on the neck, shoulders, back, sacral area, hip, abdomen, thigh, upper arms and calves. The sensation of cupping is often characterized as deep warmth and tingling, long after the treatment has ended. Cupping is not an irritant to the skin or body. It draws the inflammation out yet does not add to it.. Massage cupping is often used on the broad areas of the back, which is a wonderful addition to any massage. The treatment is sedating, and people will often descend into a profound state of relaxation. (A deep snore is common!) Larger cups may be used on the back; the strong vacuum will mimic the rolling action of deep tissue massage without the discomfort. The movement may be long and draining, or circular and stimulating, for stubborn knots and areas of rigid tissue. The skin will redden with strong massage cupping, indicating that circulation has been brought to the surface. The increased local blood supply will nourish the muscles and skin and allow toxins to be carried away. Stubborn neck tension is soothed using a slow, deep approach with small cups. This is not a technique with limitations - its applications are endless. Clients have often reported that the massage cupping experience stayed with them longer than other treatments and that results are cumulative with consistent sessions. Massage cupping therapy is also easier on the practitioner because it enables the therapist to go deeper without discomfort to the client or themselves. Make this New Year the year of trying new things and check out your nearest therapist who advertises cupping or Chinese Massage. My employers are looking at implementing a wellness/workplace massage program at work. Can you explain what that is? The cost of ill health in the Australian workplace runs into the millions every year. Major corporations such as IBM, AAMI and Kellogs now use wellness programs to attract, retain and reward valuable employees. This shows they value their employees, care about their health, and demonstrates long-term commitment. In return, the company earns the respect and trust of employees, communication and interpersonal relationships improve thus increasing motivation and productivity. They believe that actions speak louder than words. A recent study by Medibank Private "found that healthy workers are 3 times more productive than those who define themselves as having poor health - taking on average 18 sick days a year as compared to 2 for those who describe themselves as having good health. Workers with good health and lifestyle habits take less sick leave, are more satisfied with their performance and perform more effective working hours each month". Therapists set up the massage chair at a workstation, boardroom or suitable space. Massages can even be scheduled to suit an employee's work break. They can be implemented on a regular basis or used as a way to reward and recognise employees on a one-off basis or can be used to help staff cope with a looming deadline. Many companies also hire massage therapists after a sporting event or during a trade show or conference. Because there is no need to remove clothing and sessions take approximately 15 minutes, chair massage has proved to be a popular and less expensive alternative to a traditional table massage. Massage that comes to you is convenient, no parking, driving or wasted time spent waiting. If you are interested in implementing a wellness program at your workplace, there are now many mobile massage therapists offering corporate massage options on either a regular basis or as one-off special treats. Please check that they are fully qualified with a Diploma of Remedial Massage and have professional indemnity and public liability insurance, are registered with a professional association and the major health funds. The Natural Therapy Pages is a good place to look online for a reliable therapist in your area. I have a dear friend who is recovering from myocarditis - an infection in the heart. He is also actively working with his emotional heart and feeling a lot of pain there. Is there any kind of gentle hands of therapy he or I could do to help heal the heart and release energy blocks? According to Eastern thought, breathing is the primary way we bring energy into the body. We extract energy from the breath and store it in the lower abdomen, and the more we can extract and store, the better our physical condition. But mostly, due to ignorance and poor habits, we do everything possible to defeat both the flow of energy into the lower abdomen and our ability to store it there. As a result of physical trauma, stress, and sedentary living, we develop blockages - areas of tension, often unconscious and long-standing, primarily in the abdominal area. Energy can't flow through tension and thus is prevented from reaching the reservoir in the lower abdomen. Ultimately, these blockages in the energy pathways lead to organ dysfunction. Illness and decrepitude, wrongly considered an inevitable result of aging, are often the result of blocked energy intake, dissipation of our reserves, or accumulated toxicity. Conserving our internal energy, developing it, and bringing it under voluntary control allows healing to take place. To create heart energy take your thumb and rub it very gently across your fingertips for about half a minute or a minute. While you do this, don't do anything else, just put your attention on your fingertips. Close your eyes and feel your thumb rubbing slowly across your fingertips. Notice that when you do this, it brings your physical attention into that part of your body. Now you can relax and bring that same physical attention anywhere inside your chest, not just where your heart is, but anywhere across your chest, solar plexus area or abdomen, and either generate or look for a physical warmth you can actually feel. Take a minute or two or as long as you need to find that warmth. And when you find it, go into that feeling of warmth and feel it more, just stay with it. Stay with that feeling of warmth. Feel it for a few minutes so you can memorise the method, and most importantly, so your body can create a recollection, a physical recollection of how it needs to feel for you. The heat might come up in different parts of your body - maybe one time in the left of your chest, maybe another time in the right of your abdomen or other places around there. Wherever you feel it, just let it be there, don't try and move it around - that's where it's showing up in that moment. Always when it comes up and you feel the warmth, go into it and feel it more. Make sure you do this when you are alone and quiet, not when you are driving a car or doing anything that requires your full attention. After you have done the warmth for five minutes, or as long as you can do it - relax. Now think about this: The warmth is the physical evidence of loving yourself. We've all read about how we need to love ourselves, but this exercise creates the actual physical experience of it. The heat will tend to push everything out of you that is not of you or supporting you. Because the heat, as the physical experience of loving yourself, also unites you with Creator Energy and generates a greater sense of harmony with all beings. You might notice as you get better at this, that your friends or other people might feel more relaxed around you, or situations might become more harmonious. Things that used to bother you or upset you don't bother you as much, because the heat creates an energy, not only of self love but of harmony. Because it is heart energy, it just naturally radiates, like light coming out of a light bulb. Remember, you don't throw the heat out even with the best of intentions. You don't send it to people. If other people are interested in what you are doing or why they feel better around you, you can teach them how to do this exercise in the way you have learned or the way that works best for you. And the most important thing to remember is that this method of loving yourself and generating harmony for yourself, creates harmony for others, because you are in harmony. Remember that this will provide a greater sense of ease and comfort in your life no matter who you are, where you are, what you are doing or how you are living your life. It can only improve your experience. |