Services Overview:
Quick note on scheduling. The "schedule now" button will take you to Hawthorn Health, where I work alongside 2 other amazing and wonderful colleagues.
After clicking on the schedule now button, click on the "Servicies tab. From that page, scroll down to "Therapeutic." There you will see options for massage, Tensegrity, Bowenwork, etc.
Therapeutic Massage
Touch is our first language. Massage is an ancient system of healing touch, dating back more than 5,000 years.
Massage is used in every culture for healing. It is a way of communication that supersedes the linear, fast-moving part of our brain and communicates directly with the whole person. Massage therapy is used for relaxation and general well-being as well as direct response to the healing of injuries and chronic conditions.
As an addition to conventional medical treatment, there are many situations where massage has been proven to enhance and speed up results.
Relaxation:Therapeutic touch sets into motion a cascade of physical and psychological responses that allow us to step away from habitual “fight, flight or freeze” responses and venture into the truly restorative “rest and digest” mode. Simple relaxation should not be under-rated. In so many ways it is foundational to our healing. And there's also this: it feels good!
Injury treatment:Targeted treatment of affected areas with a solid understanding of the tensional forces happening in the muscular, skeletal, and nervous system. Injury treatment massage can shorten healing time and improve patient comfort while decreasing the risk of re-injury. Ideal for tight legs, back and neck pain, shoulder pain.Injury treatment massage may require more client participation during our session as we work together toward improvement. I will suggest home exercises; you should be ready to work with me to improve your condition.Resources for further exploration:
Massage:
http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/stress-management/in-depth/massage/art-20045743http://www.massagetherapy.com/learnmore/benefits.phphttps://www.amtamassage.org/articles/1/News/detail/3124
Scar Release
In 2020, I started working with McLoughlin Scar Release technique. So far, I have been very impressed with the results.
Scars can be from trauma, injury, or surgery. They are areas of tissue where the body had to fix itself up in a hurry, and they can remain rigid. They can be superficial, as in the case of a small cut, or deep, as in the case of scarring from surgery such as a caesarian section. Scars can be numb, or irritating, or itchy--and they can certainly have emotions around them.
What McLoughlin Scar Release technique does is gently and quickly reorganize the randomized fascial layers of scar tissue so that they are more orderly, like tissue that is not scar tissue. This increases circulation, lymphatic and fluid flow, and often results in the appearance and sensation of the scar being greatly improved.
The process is straightforward, often requiring several short visits. Once the scar is released, it will be released for good.
Tensegrity Medicine
The whole-body understanding I continue to grow and develop through my ongoing study of Tensegrity Medicine informs every session I participate in.
Tensegrity Medicine, developed by Kelly Clancy, is a combined-modal approach that seeks to restore 3-dimensional balance to the human system for increasing freedom of comfortable mobility. We work neurally, muscularly, and fascially, with an overarching emphasis of connectivity of tissue throughout the body.
In a session greared around a pure Tensegrity Medicine approach, we would check in with you first to see how things are in your whole life, as everything we do and feel impacts how we feel. We then perform a series of myofascial length assessments to determine the areas of greatest restriction. We then use a variety of fairly light techniques to release the most severe restrictions to allow the body to respond by re-balancing. Some simple movement and walking, as well as dialogue, helps to set the state and allow the individual to experience the new choices available to the body. We test again to verify progress.
This can produce lasting change. It is a bit more clinical than a typical massage, and will require some input and interest on the part of the client.
Further resources:
https://www.tensegritymedicinenw.com/
https://kellyclancy.com/what-is-tensegrity-medicine/
"Life seeks perfection--all we have to do is suggest the opportunity."
- Todd Garcia
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Bowen Technique
Bowenwork is a dynamic system of muscle and connective tissue (fascia) therapy that was developed by the late Tom Bowen in Geelong, Australia. It utilizes small but measured inputs to the body stimulating the body to heal itself, often profoundly.
Bowenwork can result in the relief of many specific injuries and other health problems, both acute and chronic. The manipulations are delivered to the nervous and fascial system at specific locations (on muscles, tendons, ligaments, or nerves) and the body does the rest.
Bowenwork enhances general well-being; its gentle touch is at the fulcrum of mind/body wellness.
What To Expect from a Bowen Session
Bowen sessions generally last from 20-50 minutes. The moves are gentle but purposeful and can be done through light clothing.
A session involves several sets of gently rolling moves, which signal the body's response. Between each set of moves, the practitioner pauses for a few minutes to give the client's body time to integrate the information presented to the body.
The Bowen technique allows the body to heal itself with minimum intervention.
After the session, I will probably remind you of the “Three W's”: Water, Walking, and Wait. Walking 20 minutes per day helps the body integrate the changes begun by the Bowenwork session. Drinking plenty of good clean water allows your body's fascia to develop their full response as your body responds. Your body will continue responding to the treatment for up to 10-20 days after your session. It is advisable not to receive other bodywork between sessions, so that we can assess what changes are coming from the Bowenwork sessions.
Many people report that they continue to feel the effects of the session develop for several days to as much as two weeks. This is an indication that the body is responding to the therapy and finding ways to change from what the condition was before.
Bowenwork has been successfully applied to a wide variety of physical ailments; here is a partial list:
Headaches and migraines, back and neck pain, digestive problems, joint pain, fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue, frozen shoulder, asthma and respiratory illness, TMJ disorder, vertigo, sciatica, tennis elbow, carpal tunnel syndrome, infertility, pregnancy, colic in babies, sprain and strain injuries, post-surgical rehabilitation, scar tissue release, sports injuries, scoliosis, postural imbalance, insomnia, arthritis, chronic myofascial pain, bed-wetting, incontinence, plantar fasciitis, wellness care.
Further information about Bowenwork:
Description from the official Bowenwork website:
http://www.bowtech.com/WebsiteProj/Pages/About/AboutBowtech.aspx
An introduction by John Wilks:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GI6DMNy12iM
Explanation by Kelly Clancy, founder of the Northwest School of Structural Therapy:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1dcOmwyDr4