Lymph Drainage…What is it? Who needs it??!!.

The lymphatic system is part of the circulatory system. It is a secondary pathway to the heart, parallel to the venous system. It moves fluids through the body and returns it to the circulatory system. The lymphatic circulation has a slow rhythm, as compared to blood circulation. The lymphatic system is the body’s waste disposal. It clears away bacteria, cell debris, excess water, proteins and wastes from the connective tissue and returns it to the bloodstream for ultimate removal by the kidneys. Lymph drainage massage increases lymphatic circulation and helps detoxify the body. It drains sluggish lymph nodes. The purpose of lymphatic drainage is to cleanse and regenerate tissues and organs, and to promote balance of chemistry. It stimulates the movement of lymph and encourages the formation of lymphocytes that produce antibodies, increasing the body’s resistance to infection. If tissue has been damaged, Lymphatic drainage helps to stimulate the lymphatic system to remove wastes more rapidly from around these inflamed tissues sending it back to the lymphatic system for removal and cleansing. Manual Lymphatic Drainage is safe and indicated for most people with a few notable exceptions. If you are frequently ill or just sluggish, MLD can help overcome this burden if the primary cause is an overtaxed lymphatic system. Minor edemas can be helped with basic lymphatic techniques. The lymphatic flow can stagnate for many reasons, such as swelling, chronic inflammation, lack of physical activity, stress, fatigue, emotional shock, age, poorly fitted brassieres, or brassieres worn for an excessive amount of time. When lymphatic circulation slows down, the regeneration of cells becomes less effective. This condition allows toxins and proteins to accumulate around the cells, causing cellular oxygenation to decrease and tissue regeneration to diminish.

As an advanced practitioner of Lymph Drainage Therapy I’m trained to interact with the fluids at different levels, from the superficial cutaneous circulation to the mucosa, muscles, tendons, periosteum and viscera. We also perform Manual Lymphatic Mapping to assess the direction of lymph flow before, during and after treatment to see if the location of lymph stagnation has improved.

Why live with back pain? Alternative therapy benefits

Weekend warriors and people living an active lifestyle that has recently been disrupted by pain as well as those of you that have jobs / hobbies that have you doing repetitive actions for extended periods of time fall in this category too.  Why are you putting up with these pains?  Now it’s affecting activities you love and it doesn’t seem to be getting any better.  Does this sound like you? Adding regular bodywork as part of your health and fitness/ training regimen is preventative for injuries.   Which by the way helps you stay on your game?  SET bodywork is so much more than a deep tissue massage; this therapy incorporates cranial work, body logic, and deep tissue massage to focus on the source of where your symptoms are coming from.  Let me help you get back to feeling like yourself and resume normal life activities.
Having been in this industry for 13 years, I have always believed the benefits of massage especially the more specialized work like I do, have been undervalued.  So it was great to see an article on NPR discussing the benefits and the great results.  They compared the effectiveness of treatments for lower back pain using three different groups, full body relaxation massage, deep tissue massage and medication and physical therapy.  The study found good improvement with those who used either relaxation or deep tissue massage therapy over conventional types of treatment.  You can check out the full article at http://www.npr.org/2011/07/04/137609072/got-low-back-pain-massage-therapy-may-rub-it-out?sc=emaf.
Although massage has been around for hundreds of years we are still discovering the power the body and mind having in the healing process.  I have seen and lived this process with many of my clients, that is why I feel very fortunate and excited to do what I love to do, help others that are suffering from herniated discs, bulging discs, hiatal hernias, peripheral nerve damage, nerve entrapments, pinched sciatic nerve issues and many more symptoms that people think they either have to have surgery for or are told they just have to deal with the pain.  At www.surgicalalternative.com we can help!

Scoliosis! A painful but treatable condition

Scoliosis! A painful but treatable condition

I see clients suffer from all kinds of pain and my passion keeps me working and training on alternative techniques that I can integrate to help my clients. One of my clients had been suffering for a while and this is their story.

“I was diagnosed almost 3 years ago with Scoliosis. This gave me some relief knowing what was causing all my pain. My knees hurt, my neck would sometimes lock and my lower back was in constant pain. I had to roll out of bed as I could not sit straight up in the mornings. According to the orthopedic doctor, the outlook was not bright. They wanted to put me on pain medication, a body brace and possible surgery. None of this was me. I have always lived a healthy lifestyle and I had no intentions of changing, but what could I do? I started to do some research on the internet on alternatives to help with my Scoliosis, with no real success. One day, by chance, I was speaking to a co-worker concerning my plight and she said, “My daughter is now practicing massage. Let me ask her if she knows anything that could help you”. Her daughter recommended I call Peggy Boyd at Surgical Alternative. That was one of the best phones call I ever made. Peggy changed my life for the best. I have been going to Peggy Boyd for two and a half years now and thanks to her, I am back to doing all that I used to do, and more importantly, without Pain! If you have Scoliosis, this is where you need to be! No drugs, no body brace, no surgery. Peggy gave me my active life back and I am forever in her debt. “

I feel very fortunate and excited to do what I love to do, help others return to a normal pain free life. I have been dealing with clients in severe pain in Tampa Bay, for almost 14 years now, that are suffering from herniated discs, bulging discs, hiatal hernias, peripheral nerve damage, nerve entrapments, pinched sciatic nerve issues and many more symptoms that people think they either have to have surgery for or are told they just have to deal with the pain. If you know someone who is living in pain we can help at www.surgicalalternative.com