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Lymphatic Drainage
What is lymphatic drainage?
A lymphatic massage is a therapeutic
massage that specifically stimulates the flow of lymphatic fluid in
the lymphatic system. It is a firm but not deep tissue massage.
What actually is lymphatic fluid?
This is a clear watery fluid that goes to every cell in our body.
When it is not flowing freely because of injury, inactivity (or even
over-activity) or following surgery etc., it can cause swelling and
discomfort.
What is the lymphatic system?
Just as the circulatory system causes the blood to move and carry
nutrients and oxygen to the cells of the body and carry the wastes away,
the lymphatic system removes all fluid and other things, which leak
out of the blood system and into the tissues. The vessels of the lymphatic
system are very delicate and fragile and are easily damaged by trauma
as in accidents or surgery. The lymphatic fluid flows through nodes,
which act as a filter to stop cancer cells or bacteria from moving through
the body. The lymphatic system helps protect you and provides immunity
from everyday ailments as well as serious ones by functioning in surveillance
and defence.
How does it all work?
The flow of lymph is maintained primarily by your level of activity;
your respiratory movements (your breathing) and by the milking action
of skeletal muscles. The lymphatic system has no pump to help it as
the circulation does so if we have reason to believe it is sluggish
and our immunity is poor, it is a good indication that we need to stimulate
manually as with massage. Sometimes even athletes suffer from an overload
of lactic acids in the muscles and tissues of the body from over training
and the lymph system can't keep up with its cleansing work. That is
one reason why it is common for athletes to have a massage following
competing or training for an event.
What is an 'Oxygen Exerciser'?
When attending our clinic for lymphatic drainage massage, it is also
customary for our clients to use the Sun Ancon oxygen exerciser for
5 minutes. This is a very pleasant albeit a little unusual treatment!
The Sun Ancon oxygen exerciser has been designed to impart a gentle
wave-like motion throughout the whole body from the ankles upwards.
This rhythmic swaying of the body promotes blood circulation, tissue
oxygenation and fluid drainage while rapidly inducing a deep state of
relaxation.
