Who Are My Clients?
I love to tell people about my work.
Being a Certified Lymphedema Therapist is a very unique and rewarding job, but there aren’t a lot of us around.
So, it’s not surprising that
when I tell people what I do for a living,
they often respond with
Lymph-a-what?!?!?!
It’s a big topic,
so let’s start with the simple stuff.
Who are My Clients?
Before I launch into the specifics of conditions that can be improved with therapy at Pain & Swelling Solutions, it’s important to know that the therapies I offer can benefit nearly everyone.
My Clients Include Anyone Who:
- Wants to Jump-Start Their Health & Well-Being
- Wants to Feel Better
- Believes in Regular Maintenance for the Body
My primary therapy is Lymphatic Drainage. I provide a lot of other beneficial therapies, but lymphatic work is my passion.
What is Lymph?
Everyone has a lymphatic system, just like everyone has a circulatory system. The lymphatic system is a second circulatory system that is absolutely critical to our overall health.
It is responsible for the transport of the immune system (how we fight infection), the absorption and transport of fat-soluble vitamins, and the movement of fluid containing wastes from our tissues. Read in-depth about the lymphatic system here.
We Maintenance Our Cars –
Why Not Our Bodies?
After driving a car around for a few thousand miles it’s time to have the oil changed. It gets dirty and gummy and your car doesn’t function as well as it should if you don’t get fresh oil.
Our lymphatic system operates in a similar fashion. Under normal circumstances, our movement helps to purge the wastes from our lymphatic system. However, many of us don’t engage in much activity. We sit in the car; we sit at our desks; and we sit in front of the TV.
This lack of movement along with
dehydration, stress, fatigue, and infections
lead to lymphatic backup…and it can make us feel crappy.
Lymphatic Therapy can make you feel much better
by getting your lymph moving again.
How I Can Help People
with Specific Conditions
People who Want a Thorough Detox
Let’s face it. We don’t eat as well as we should. We don’t exercise as much as we should.
When we are still, our lymph gets sluggish. We find ourselves sitting at desks, sitting on the couch, and just being exhausted from our daily lives, too tired and too busy to get up and move around.
When we don’t consume enough water our lymph gets thick and doesn’t move effectively. This stagnation causes our wastes to stay in the body instead of being flushed out naturally.
Electro-Lymphatic Therapy is a simple and painless method for changing lymph that is the consistency of Jello back to a more water-like consistency so that it can flow better.
Manual Lymphatic Drainage is the more traditional, yet very effective method of moving stuck lymph through a technique that is similar to massage.
Pulsed ElectroMagnetic Field (PEMF) Therapy works at the cellular level to process waste out of the cells and increase levels of ATP (the body’s source of energy).
These therapies:
- Reduce Fatigue
- Boost the Immune System
- Help Clear Up Skin
- Eliminate Food Allergens from the Body
- Reduce Pain
- Reduce Facial Swelling and Puffiness
People Healing After Surgery
Whether you have had a knee or shoulder replacement, a hysterectomy, or plastic surgery, I can help you recover faster.
Surgery is a traumatic event to the body. It is usually followed by plenty of swelling, bruising, and pain.
The therapies I offer, such as Electro-Lymphatic Therapy and Manual Lymphatic Drainage can speed up the healing process significantly by:
- Substantially Reducing Swelling
- Clearing up Bruises Much Faster
- Speed Wound Healing
Cancer Patients & Survivors
A cancer diagnosis changes everything. Suddenly, you are going through treatments, surgeries, and you feel miserable.
Then, when what seems like the worst is over, you have more battles to face that no one warned you about.
Surgery, radiation, and chemo can alter your body by causing scarring, axillary cording (also known as Axillary Web Syndrome), fragile skin, and damage to your lymphatic system – even if no lymph nodes were removed.
I am specially trained in Oncology Massage, Breast Surgery Recovery Therapy, and Axillary Web Syndrome. While I specialize in working with people who have breast-related cancers, I also work on people who are being treated for various cancers including head & neck, prostate, ovarian, and more.
The therapies I provide to people who have or have had cancer:
- Provide Safe, Therapeutic Human Touch
- Improve Scar Appearance
- Reduce Pain
- Restore Range of Motion after Surgery
- Eliminate Tugging and Pinching from Adhesions
- Reduce / Eliminate Bumpy Areas and Stuck Fluid
- Heal Open Wounds Faster
People who Have Lymphedema
Lymphedema is a chronic, progressive disease involving uncontrolled swelling. At the least it can be a nuisance to some people. At its worst it can be disfiguring and put people at high risk for potentially life-threatening infections.
I provide a unique natural therapy for Lymphedema that is not offered in most clinics. Electro-Lymphatic Therapy is a profoundly effective method of draining lymph to reduce swelling, especially when combined with Compression Bandaging and Compression Garments (which are also services I provide). In addition, I provide traditional Manual Lymphatic Drainage for people who are unable to have Electro-Lymphatic Therapy.
- Clients who come to me for Lymphedema Therapy come for one of several reasons:
- They find the results of Electro-Lymphatic Therapy superior to traditional Manual Lymphatic Drainage
- They wish to add sessions of Electro-Lymphatic Therapy to their standard reduction protocol to help speed the process along.
- Their insurance benefits have run out and my sessions are cheaper than paying a Physical or Occupational Therapist out of pocket. My licensure is as a Massage Therapist. However, I hold the very same Certified Lymphedema Therapist (CLT) credential as some Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, and MD’s.
The Lymphedema-related services available at Pain & Swelling Solutions include:
- Client Education
- Electro-Lymphatic Drainage
- Manual Lymphatic Drainage
- Compression Bandaging
- Compression Garment Fitting
People with
Chronic Venous Insufficiency
Chronic Venous Insufficiency (CVI), also known as Ambulatory Venous Hypertension, is most often diagnosed in people who have varicose veins.
CVI is usually caused by failing valves in veins that allow blood to flow back towards the feet instead of being pushed back towards the heart.
The result of this backwards flow of blood is swelling in the legs and feet which can cause symptoms from mild discomfort and ill-fitting shoes to constant pain and burning.
CVI can even progress to where a patient develops venous ulcers, a type of vascular wound. Because blood flow around the area is compromised, the ulcers can easily become infected.
For people who have Chronic Venous Insufficiency I provide Electro-Lymphatic or Manual Lymphatic Drainage, Compression Bandaging, Compression Garments, and Pulsed ElectroMagnetic Field (PEMF) Therapy.
These therapies:
- Reduce Swelling
- Lead to Healing of Venous Ulcerations
- Reduce Pain
- Improve of Skin Health
