Your First Visit

On your first visit the massage therapist spends some time taking your personal and medical history. Your doctor's details are also required as a referral might be needed in some cases. Together you plan the treatment to best suit you. The massage therapist will use a light oil to reduce or control the amount of friction on the skin, and whilst a treatment usually requires some degree of undress pertinent to the body part being worked, the client is otherwise draped in towels for discretion, comfort and warmth. Treatments usually last an hour and all treatments are completely confidential between you and your therapist.

Before & After Your Treatment

Massage has a discernible effect on the body, both mentally and physically, and following some simple guidelines will help you gain the most benefit from your treatment.

• Avoid eating a heavy meal a couple of hours prior to receiving massage.
• Drinking plenty of water (1-2 litres more than normal) after your massage will help with toxin elimination.
• Stimulants such as alcohol and caffeine, as well as non-prescribed drugs, are best avoided both before and after massage, up to 24 hours if possible.
• Advise your therapist if you are under medical supervision.
• Some mild soreness or other temporary symptoms such as a cold or runny nose, may follow treatment. This is an occasional but normal part of the process but if the symptoms persist or get worse please contact your therapist.

My Approach

My approach is to use all of my skill and know-how to bring optimum benefit to the client's individual needs. Whilst my method may be based in Swedish massage, which offers a principal vantage for 'listening' to the body's response, deeper or advanced techniques are incorporated where deemed suitable; the strokes being smooth and firm with a positive sense of touch. For relaxation it is very soothing and people often fall asleep, whereas for symptomatic relief of recent or ongoing issues, some discomfort may be expected, which is entirely normal. Depending on the case presented, deep tissue massage, remedial or sports massage as well as other modalities including trigger point therapy, Somatics and muscle energy techniques may also be safely integrated as appropriate and assessed on an individual basis.

Tailored Treatments

Everyone is different which is why they deserve to be treated individually. Sessions are planned so that the client gets what they need from it, with recommendations from the therapist.

Practicalities

• Please let us know as soon as possible if you are unable to make your appointment out of courtesy to your therapist and other clients. Thank you.
• Appointments may be booked by phone call, text message or email. To avoid frustration, drop-ins are not available.
• When attending, please aim to arrive 5 or 10 minutes before time, as late arrivals cannot always be honoured.
• When arriving at the Firkin Crane, please let Reception know that you are here for massage, as you will be expected.
• You will be asked to switch off your mobile phone or set it to silent (not vibrate) for the duration of the session to allow you to relax into the massage and out of courtesy to your therapist.
• If this is your first visit, please prepare your doctor's details and make a note of any accidents or operations you've had, issues or conditions you have, and details of prescribed medication if any. This will be needed for the initial consultation.

The Healing Power of Massage

People have been performing massage on each other for thousands of years. A friendly human touch is believed to be important to psychological as well as physical health. Many people seek massage therapy purely for relaxation and comfort, but some people come to a massage therapist for deeper work, such as pain management, rehabilitation, or help with a specific problem. Many health complaints are the result of issues with the physical body such as tension, tight muscles, soreness, stress, and a variety of other conditions. Massage offers a natural and body-intelligent way of recovery.

Benefits of Massage

• Reduces stress
• Promotes relaxation
• Release of muscle tension and the pain it causes
• Helps identify and release the tension before it becomes a problem
• Improved circulation and lymphatic drainage for release of toxins
• Calms the nervous system and stimulates the immune system
• Provides a complete change of pace so the body and mind can relax and re-energise
• Emotional comfort and stress management
• Increased body awareness
• Assists natural healing

Please note that use of this site does not replace the need to consult a health professional - always seek professional medical advice regarding health concerns.

Where Massage Can Help

Many common complaints can be helped by massage besides just joint & muscle pain, for example: Back pain, neck pain, headache, migraine, blood pressure, whiplash, irritable bowel syndrome, frozen shoulder, insomnia, hunched shoulders, TMJ, repetitive strain injury, depression, calf pain, restricted joint range, loss of concentration. It is especially beneficial for numerous occupations including:

• Care-givers - for those who care for others, for example: mothers and fathers, teachers, recreation leaders, daycare workers, nurses, healthcare workers of all kinds.
• Physical workers - for those who stress their bodies in their work or trade, for example: construction workers, truck drivers, postal workers, plumbers, electricians, painters, professional athletes, dancers, musicians.
• Desk workers - for those whose work involved long hours of sitting at a desk using a computer, or talking on the telephone; or at a bench assembling parts, fixing things, or creating works of art.
• Travelers - for those spending long hours sitting in a car, truck, train or airplane, for example: sales people, commuters, truck drivers, business travelers.

Regular Massage

With regular massage therapy, a person will of course gain better muscle tone, function and repair. They will also eventually start to notice not just increased energy and less stress, but often relief in many ongoing problems that may be a little more serious. Concentration may also improve, while symptoms of fatigue or general sleep problems lessen. This brought on by promoting circulation to the body, removing built up toxins while releasing endorphins. It can also benefit in more advanced ways such as with helping to increase the immunity by promoting stimulation to the body’s natural defence system.

Treatment Plan

The idea of a treatment plan may be new to some people but holding patterns or other problems built up over time would tend to require a number of treatments to resolve or stabilise. A treatment plan is simply a way of planning a course of regular treatment, set out over a number of sessions that the client agrees with the therapist. Of course, just treating yourself to some quality time-out every so often is a good step in the right direction!