Remedial massage is a deep tissue massage done to create the conditions for the body’s return to normal health after injury. It is used to treat strains, sprains, bruising or any injury where the skin is intact. Deep tissue massage can help to remove blockages, damaged cells, scar tissue and adhesion’s left after injury. It can help speed up recovery and encourages more complete healing.
Remedial massage is also used for conditions created by lifestyle for example repetitive strain injury and back pain. It is designed to increase the flow of blood and lymph particularly in the injured areas and can often be successful where other forms of treatment have failed, especially when used in conjunction with additional treatments such as chiropractic or physiotherapy for example.
During treatment there is tenderness in areas that are being treated, it indicates which muscles and tendons are injured. The therapist uses the patients feedback to pinpoint the damaged tissue and to regulate pressure. The results are usually immediate; certainly within three sessions a big improvement will be seen with a skillful practitioner and some patients can feel a difference after one session.
Remedial Massage has particular success with long-standing back and compound injuries that have resisted previous treatment attempts. Once a serious injury is properly healed, further treatment is only needed if another injury is sustained. Sportsmen and women attend regularly to ensure that unnoticeable small injuries are treated before they reduce performance and become debilitating. Recurrent injuries are injuries that have never been effectively treated.
Some common conditions that can be successfully treated are:
It is an unusual form of massage in that it does not set out to relax the patient, the intention is more to fix a mechanical problem. However all-round health improvement is seen: better sleep, increase in vitality and performance levels, as well as increased mobility.
It can also be used to treat general muscle soreness from over exertion.
Remedial massage is often used by athletes but is equally effective for non-sports people.