Massage Styles

Massage Therapy is a wonderfully diverse field. Massage can be just a supremely relaxing pastime or luxury, or it can be therapeutic. Relaxation, pain relief, dysfunction correction can all be achieved with Massage Therapy. Listed below are some of the massage styles I use to help you achieve your goals.

Swedish Massage: This is the relaxing, stress-reducing type of massage most people think about when they want a massage. Swedish massage includes gliding, kneading, and striking strokes as well as friction strokes, stretching, joint movements, gentle shaking, and rocking. Generally, the massage is full-body and is very relaxing and has therapeutic benefits. Swedish Massage technique can also focus on one area of the body such as the back if that is the client's desire. Swedish Massage sessions are typically 1 hour to 90 minutes, but can be shorter or longer as desired.

Trigger Point Therapy: This type of therapy targets the sore, irritable, tight spots in muscles called trigger points. These trigger points can cause the whole muscle to be tight and painful, or even restrict movement in a joint. They can also "refer" pain to areas elsewhere in the body. In Trigger Point Therapy the Massage Therapist carefully seeks out the trigger points in muscles and uses specific compression techniques which allow the trigger points to release. This is a great method for relieving muscular pain and tension.

Deep Tissue: Deep Tissue Massage is a term that gets thrown around quite a bit. Deep Tissue Massage is a massage of the deeper layers of muscle and connective tissues of the body. Deep Tissue Massage is used to provide a more therapeutic effect by massaging all layers from superficial (closer to the skin) to deep (closer to the bone). It relaxes the muscles, rids them of built up metabolic waste, and helps release adhesions between muscles and connective tissues. It can also be useful in preventing scar tissue build up from injuries to muscles and connective tissues.

Hot Stone Massage: This massage is among the most luxurious of them all. The therapist combines a Swedish or Deep Tissue massage with the healing properties of Hot Stones. The energy and penetrating heat of the stones help tension just melt away as though it had never been there. The stones are used both to perform massage strokes and to bring relaxing warmth to the body. It's been said that one massage stroke with a hot stone is equivalent to ten strokes without the hot stone. Try it, it's wonderful.

Natural Reflex Therapy (NRT): NRT is a unique blending of reflexive therapy approaches including Ortho-Bionomy, Positional Release, Reflexology, and Chapman's Neurolymphatic Reflexes. NRT helps reduce pain and dysfunction by gently stimulating specific reflex points on the body and feet and safely moving bones, muscles, and joints into reflex positions. NRT is effective in helping a wide variety of conditions from sports injuries to headaches, scoliosis, whiplash, carpal tunnel syndrome, sciatica, and much more. NRT sessions provide needed relief from pain and stress, are relaxing, and are usually done with the client fully clothed.