The video below is of my Medical Massage instructor David Morin demonstrating a typical Medical Massage session.

Medical Massage seeks to improve pain management, reduce inflammation, improve circulation, relieve nerve compression, improve digestion, improve flexibility, and other medical problems. Medical massage therapy is concentrated on a specific medical diagnosis. For that, medical massage makes use of a wide variety of techniques, based on the needs of the patient, the practitioner can use one or a combination of several of these techniques to alleviate the ailments of each patient.
The most commonly used techniques are:

• Swedish massage
• Deep tissue and trigger point therapy
• Myofascial release

The typical complaints that patients report to their massage therapists are anxiety and stress, pain, fatigue, depression, neuropathy, movement restrictions, fatigue, depression, stress, anxiety, and sleep disorders. All of these symptoms can be relieved by Medical Massage.

Clothed medical massage
Many people are uncomfortable or self-conscious by the fact of being undressed. Modesty, religion, culture, and even skin conditions, can cause a person to reject massage therapy and never see the benefits of it.
Medical massage is performed through the pressure of the practitioner’s hands on the muscles of the patient to be treated, therefore direct contact with the skin is not necessary. The pressure can be applied over the clothing. However, it is important to know that not all types of clothing can be worn when receiving a medical massage. The best options would be loose clothing, short sleeves, or sleeveless t-shirts and shorts. Thick fabrics are more difficult to work with.

Medical massage is very unique, it seeks to attend specific problems. The practitioner and client set a goal for the treatment having in mind the specific health issue for which the client is being referred. There are massage techniques that can only be done directly on the skin. However, some people prefer keeping their clothes on, if that is your case, it shouldn’t stop you from getting health care, you still can enjoy all these benefits. Medical massage can be done over the clothing. The value of the clothed massage is the possibility for the patient to feel more comfortable, with boundaries and gender differences. It gives the practitioner the possibility to ask the patient to stand or walk in order to check signs of progress. A medical massage is a powerful tool that will benefit your range of motion, heal and pain relief from an injury or surgery, restore function while working on a specific problem area, improve sleep, increase blood circulation, relieve tension headaches, decrease stress, and provide general well-being. If your Doctor, Physical Therapist, Chiropractor or Nurse Practitioner has not prescribed a medical massage treatment you can reach out to Don Girodo, LMT at Crossroads Wellness and schedule a Medical Massage and Don will create a schedule and treatment recommendation for you.