CENTERED BODYWORK- STRUCTURAL INTEGRATION, CRANIOSACRAL AND ORTHOPEDIC MASSAGE
Please read the information below before scheduling:
Sick Policy: ALL CLIENTS NOW MUST WEAR MASKS DUE TO COVID. Please give me as much notice as possible by text. If you are contagious with an illness or skin condition, please contact me to reschedule at no charge. If you arrive with symptoms of a cold, cough, flu, stomach bug, sore throat or other viral illness no matter how mild, you will be turned away and asked to reschedule. Wait at least a few days after all symptoms have gone to reschedule your appointment. Then, I will get you in ASAP. If you have a rash or skin infection, contact me in advance to determine if I can see you. Coming to my office sick makes it very likely I will have to take significant unpaid time off or may cause illness for my other clients that I come into contact with before I realize I am sick. Massage is a very close contact endeavor. For this reason, clients who arrive and do not inform me of illness may not be allowed to reschedule. Thank you for respecting my clients' health, my health and my livelihood.
Sick Policy: ALL CLIENTS NOW MUST WEAR MASKS DUE TO COVID. Please give me as much notice as possible by text. If you are contagious with an illness or skin condition, please contact me to reschedule at no charge. If you arrive with symptoms of a cold, cough, flu, stomach bug, sore throat or other viral illness no matter how mild, you will be turned away and asked to reschedule. Wait at least a few days after all symptoms have gone to reschedule your appointment. Then, I will get you in ASAP. If you have a rash or skin infection, contact me in advance to determine if I can see you. Coming to my office sick makes it very likely I will have to take significant unpaid time off or may cause illness for my other clients that I come into contact with before I realize I am sick. Massage is a very close contact endeavor. For this reason, clients who arrive and do not inform me of illness may not be allowed to reschedule. Thank you for respecting my clients' health, my health and my livelihood.
What to know for your first visit:
Can I come in when I have a cold, flu, cough, sore throat, stomach bug, shingles, herpes, poison oak, wounds, etc.?
Massage is a very close contact endeavor. For this reason my sick policy is firm. Most skin conditions can be avoided by simply pointing out the affected areas. Most viruses in the early stages and for a few days after feeling better, are still contagious. Please cancel as soon as you feel possible illness coming on to reduce the impact on your therapists' livelihood. Please wait until a few days after all symptoms have subsided to come in. Both I and many of my clients have compromised immune systems. Clients who arrive sick will be asked to go home and may not be allowed to reschedule for the safety of myself and clients. Thank you for respecting my health and my livelihood.
Will this actually help and will I ever get better? Yes, many people get better even when all doors seem closed because other interventions have not worked. How much better depends on the length of time you've had your issue, how old you are physiologically, underlying permanent tissue changes, and how willing your are to participate in your own healing. The people who get better faster from serious conditions are very active participants in the sessions, asking questions, doing self healing in between, making lifestyle changes like I suggest in my blog, and creating a healthcare team to get better.
What's the difference between regular deep tissue massage and orthopedic or structural bodywork? Structural and orthopedic bodywork require much more training, which includes advanced assessment skills and a wide range of techniques to resolve challenging cases. This level of training and experience means you will likely receive more benefit from one session than from many regular deep tissue massages where the therapist may treat without assessment or specific techniques to address your condition, maybe not even in the correct problem areas. Most people are happy to realize that they will need fewer sessions when we find the root of your problems. Unlike regular massage, the results will be long lasting. It can also be dangerous for someone untrained in injury massage to address injuries and I use many different types of techniques. Structural integration focuses more holistically on the body's posture and movement and uses primarily myofascial release. There is a lot of overlap. It's more about your goals.
What is Craniosacral Therapy and can it help my condition? Please see my services page for Craniosacral. Craniosacral can help with many conditions. It's primary path of action is through helping the body to heal itself with a strong emphasis on working the nervous system and its fascia. Many people feel it helps with their issue whether it's TMJD, migraines, neck pain, back pain, pelvic/sacral pain, post-concussion syndrome or its an emotional issue that seems to be lingering in the body. However, it's not a direct path. For example someone comes in with shoulder pain and the body first asks me to work on a specific part of the neck first. I work mostly on what the body tells me it needs in this modality. For the nervous system, it can be the most relaxing massage you've ever had.
How many sessions will I need and how far apart should they be? It depends on: your goals (progress or maintenance), how long have you had the condition, how advanced or complicated or serious, how much are you willing to change your habits and do self healing on your own, and how many bodywork sessions can you do closely together, and how much discomfort can you tolerate in one session to work out areas of significant adhesion, spasm or neurological holding? I generally recommend a series of 3-4 sessions close together to start so that the progress really sticks. When sessions are spread out more than a month, we tend to keep the condition from worsening rather than making progress. The closer the sessions are together, the more benefit you receive from each one. That is, the cumulative benefit goes up. For structural integration sessions, anywhere from twice a week to once a month is okay, though once a week or every other week is the norm.
I just injured myself, can I come in? Yes, for mild injuries you can come in right away. If you are concerned about a sprained ligament, whiplash, broken bone, head/abdominal trauma or injured vertebral disc, consider going to see a doctor and getting imaging and/or orthopedic tests done. I also recommend going to a doctor or ER if the trauma was significant. If not, waiting a day to see how the symptoms progress. If you have signs of swelling, loss of muscle or joint function, intense radiating pain or numbness that are moderate to severe, please check with your doctor or urgent care as soon as possible. Once you have been cleared by doctor to know manual therapy will not aggravate your injury, coming in as soon as possible is better. Occasionally, I will need to give more gentle, supportive treatment at first due to the recent injury. For sprains, strains and tears, see the American College of Sports Medicine's guidelines. When tissues are torn, its important for the body to do its own healing for a few days to a week, sometimes more. For disc injury, you can check the Mayo Clinic's spinal injury guide and my upcoming article on back pain. For whiplash, see my article on whiplash. For intense headaches, see my upcoming article on headaches.
Can I workout soon after? Yes, its good to keep moving and exploring your new range of motion but don't do anything very strenuous. An analogy would be not running a marathon just after you bought new running shoes.
Is your bodywork style painful or relaxing? It depends on what you, the client, want to achieve. Pain depends on your goals, what shape your body is in, and your individual pain sensitivity. If your goal is relaxation, then that is what I will give you. If your goal is long lasting pain relief, then often some of the techniques I will use will be painful in order to achieve your desired results. Even then, you call the shots. You can say, “go lighter” or “stop, let’s do something else.” With deeper work, you may experience some soreness for a few days. Please ask if you would like suggestions for reducing soreness and we can adjust our work to go slower if you have low pain tolerance. Craniosacral is a no pain option available to even the most sensitive client.
What should I wear to a session and do you offer draping options? Orthopedic and structural integration sessions may be easier if you wear underwear, shorts or yoga pants, a tank top or bra, because you will need to move around and be put in unusual positions, including seated. I like you to feel comfortable and have access to skin. It is possible but harder to perform techniques through any clothing. A more relaxation oriented session will usually be unclothed and fully draped, but you can keep your underwear on if you feel more comfortable. I follow Oregon state law which requires draping with sheets at all times if the session is performed unclothed. Any sexual advances during a session will be immediately reported and I will not hesitate to file charges for a sex offense. I have a zero tolerance policy for intentional harassment. Normal, unintentional bodily reactions are a completely different story. And yes, I can tell the difference.
Can I come in when I have a cold, flu, cough, sore throat, stomach bug, shingles, herpes, poison oak, wounds, etc.?
Massage is a very close contact endeavor. For this reason my sick policy is firm. Most skin conditions can be avoided by simply pointing out the affected areas. Most viruses in the early stages and for a few days after feeling better, are still contagious. Please cancel as soon as you feel possible illness coming on to reduce the impact on your therapists' livelihood. Please wait until a few days after all symptoms have subsided to come in. Both I and many of my clients have compromised immune systems. Clients who arrive sick will be asked to go home and may not be allowed to reschedule for the safety of myself and clients. Thank you for respecting my health and my livelihood.
Will this actually help and will I ever get better? Yes, many people get better even when all doors seem closed because other interventions have not worked. How much better depends on the length of time you've had your issue, how old you are physiologically, underlying permanent tissue changes, and how willing your are to participate in your own healing. The people who get better faster from serious conditions are very active participants in the sessions, asking questions, doing self healing in between, making lifestyle changes like I suggest in my blog, and creating a healthcare team to get better.
What's the difference between regular deep tissue massage and orthopedic or structural bodywork? Structural and orthopedic bodywork require much more training, which includes advanced assessment skills and a wide range of techniques to resolve challenging cases. This level of training and experience means you will likely receive more benefit from one session than from many regular deep tissue massages where the therapist may treat without assessment or specific techniques to address your condition, maybe not even in the correct problem areas. Most people are happy to realize that they will need fewer sessions when we find the root of your problems. Unlike regular massage, the results will be long lasting. It can also be dangerous for someone untrained in injury massage to address injuries and I use many different types of techniques. Structural integration focuses more holistically on the body's posture and movement and uses primarily myofascial release. There is a lot of overlap. It's more about your goals.
What is Craniosacral Therapy and can it help my condition? Please see my services page for Craniosacral. Craniosacral can help with many conditions. It's primary path of action is through helping the body to heal itself with a strong emphasis on working the nervous system and its fascia. Many people feel it helps with their issue whether it's TMJD, migraines, neck pain, back pain, pelvic/sacral pain, post-concussion syndrome or its an emotional issue that seems to be lingering in the body. However, it's not a direct path. For example someone comes in with shoulder pain and the body first asks me to work on a specific part of the neck first. I work mostly on what the body tells me it needs in this modality. For the nervous system, it can be the most relaxing massage you've ever had.
How many sessions will I need and how far apart should they be? It depends on: your goals (progress or maintenance), how long have you had the condition, how advanced or complicated or serious, how much are you willing to change your habits and do self healing on your own, and how many bodywork sessions can you do closely together, and how much discomfort can you tolerate in one session to work out areas of significant adhesion, spasm or neurological holding? I generally recommend a series of 3-4 sessions close together to start so that the progress really sticks. When sessions are spread out more than a month, we tend to keep the condition from worsening rather than making progress. The closer the sessions are together, the more benefit you receive from each one. That is, the cumulative benefit goes up. For structural integration sessions, anywhere from twice a week to once a month is okay, though once a week or every other week is the norm.
I just injured myself, can I come in? Yes, for mild injuries you can come in right away. If you are concerned about a sprained ligament, whiplash, broken bone, head/abdominal trauma or injured vertebral disc, consider going to see a doctor and getting imaging and/or orthopedic tests done. I also recommend going to a doctor or ER if the trauma was significant. If not, waiting a day to see how the symptoms progress. If you have signs of swelling, loss of muscle or joint function, intense radiating pain or numbness that are moderate to severe, please check with your doctor or urgent care as soon as possible. Once you have been cleared by doctor to know manual therapy will not aggravate your injury, coming in as soon as possible is better. Occasionally, I will need to give more gentle, supportive treatment at first due to the recent injury. For sprains, strains and tears, see the American College of Sports Medicine's guidelines. When tissues are torn, its important for the body to do its own healing for a few days to a week, sometimes more. For disc injury, you can check the Mayo Clinic's spinal injury guide and my upcoming article on back pain. For whiplash, see my article on whiplash. For intense headaches, see my upcoming article on headaches.
Can I workout soon after? Yes, its good to keep moving and exploring your new range of motion but don't do anything very strenuous. An analogy would be not running a marathon just after you bought new running shoes.
Is your bodywork style painful or relaxing? It depends on what you, the client, want to achieve. Pain depends on your goals, what shape your body is in, and your individual pain sensitivity. If your goal is relaxation, then that is what I will give you. If your goal is long lasting pain relief, then often some of the techniques I will use will be painful in order to achieve your desired results. Even then, you call the shots. You can say, “go lighter” or “stop, let’s do something else.” With deeper work, you may experience some soreness for a few days. Please ask if you would like suggestions for reducing soreness and we can adjust our work to go slower if you have low pain tolerance. Craniosacral is a no pain option available to even the most sensitive client.
What should I wear to a session and do you offer draping options? Orthopedic and structural integration sessions may be easier if you wear underwear, shorts or yoga pants, a tank top or bra, because you will need to move around and be put in unusual positions, including seated. I like you to feel comfortable and have access to skin. It is possible but harder to perform techniques through any clothing. A more relaxation oriented session will usually be unclothed and fully draped, but you can keep your underwear on if you feel more comfortable. I follow Oregon state law which requires draping with sheets at all times if the session is performed unclothed. Any sexual advances during a session will be immediately reported and I will not hesitate to file charges for a sex offense. I have a zero tolerance policy for intentional harassment. Normal, unintentional bodily reactions are a completely different story. And yes, I can tell the difference.
