When people think of the benefits of regular massage therapy, they’re usually thinking in a general way; “I’ll get pain relief, I’ll get stress relief.” Maybe some people, athletes or people who are just generally active, might be thinking regarding pain therapy. Massage can address specific pain centers in the body and alleviate some of the pain. And that’s great! We don’t necessarily need to know absolutely everything about why massage works and how it works.
But listening to Dr. Kirschling on Podcast #128, which covered the lymphatic system, we thought we could build on some of her observations to explain exactly why massage can be of particular benefit to the lymph nodes. Because it can! I hope that some of these insights that we’ve accumulated in a few years selling our premium massager unit, the InstaShiatsu+, can benefit people in conjunction with Dr. Kirschling’s podcast. I’ll be referring to some of the things that she said as I go.
What is manual lymphatic drainage?
Dr. Kirschling already described the lymphatic system as a sort of “sister system” to the body’s circulatory system; they’re little sacs placed in various locations around the body that enable our body to fight off diseases. The circulatory system pumps red blood cells; — the lymph system helps circulate white blood cells, so it contributes to tissue repair.
In about 80% of the US population (and especially women), Dr. Kirschling said, our flows in our lymphatic nodes are at least partly “backed up” — our lymphatic fluids aren’t circulating as we need them to. When this happens, we’ll feel sluggish and have trouble getting fired up in the morning. Dr. Kirschling suggested some ways to address the problem: we can drink special teas at night, a hot cocktail in the morning or simply guzzle water (all of which work excellently).
But did you know that massages can specifically target the lymph nodes? This is what’s called “manual lymphatic drainage” – here are the steps. Note that while manual lymphatic drainage is most effective in cases of lymphedema, where surgical treatment has caused lymph nodes to unnaturally build up too much of their fluid, this massage technique can also be done as part of precautionary routines. Just make sure you do it gently if you haven’t had surgery or your clinician hasn’t said explicitly that you need manual lymphatic drainage. You can target all the areas of the body where lymph nodes are: your neck, your armpits and around the groin.
You can use conventional massage on the affected site if you want to, using a gadget or just your hands. Oh, and there’s two distinct steps to manual lymphatic drainage: an initial “clearing” stage, where you look to create a vacuum using very gentle pressures, so the affected area is prepped to receive new fluid (and therefore causing a “flushing” effect), as well as the “reabsorption” stage. In the reabsorption stage, where things are starting to work better, you’re encouraging habits in your body that continue after your massage which is conducive to better overall lymphatic health.
If regularly practiced, you’ll feel significant pain relief and stress relief going about day-to-day life. The initial clearing phase, in this particular exercise, targets supraclavicular lymph nodes that lie directly under the collarbone, axillary lymph nodes that lie directly under the arms and another cluster of lymph inside the elbows. This technique will target all of them.
- To clean your supraclavicular area, start by finding a comfortable, flat surface – the exercise takes a few minutes, so if you have a yoga mat, you can use that.
- Cross your arms over your chest, rest your hands underneath your collarbone.
- Lift up your elbows really slowly. Don’t tense the muscles in your forearm, as at this stage you want to work the muscles just enough to prepare the area to get a new intake of lymphatic fluid.
Next, you’re going to be clearing your axillary area, for which you perform two actions:
- Rest your hand above your head in whichever way feels comfortable for you at right angles to your body.
- With the hand that’s down by your side, make gentle scooping motions at your underarm, going from top to bottom. This should be over a very small area – all that’s needed pressure-wise is a force firm enough to move around your skin’s surface. Anything firmer than that and you’ll need to try to be a bit more gentle.
Now you’re going to finish with an exercise that clears the lymph nodes in the elbows.
- This time, flatten your arm down by your side. Make your arm straight as much as you can. This will make it easier to hold it steady and increase the massage effect. You should feel a surprising amount of pain relief and stress relief when you’ve completed the elbow massage, probably a lot more than you’d imagine for something so straightforward. We have a lot of clients using a massager in this technique because you want a really focused massage right into the bone of the outer elbow.
- With the fingers of the hand of the arm you haven’t straightened, gently caress the skin inside and around the elbow. You want to cover a few centimeters the first few seconds, then move onto another patch, then move onto another spot – take your time! This is your relaxation time. You might even start to feel relief from back pain if you’ve chosen something comfortable to lie down on. We will always recommend a yoga mat.
And now, finally, we’re going to guide the lymph nodes into entering the “reabsorption” phase. Remember that? This is where the body receives that new intake of lymphatic fluids, simultaneously flushing out the old fluid which may have been lodged there for far too long.
- Beginning at the furthermost tips of the fingers, especially if you’re massaging yourself or someone else to treat lymphedema, slowly run your opposite hand up one of your arms. Separate the fingers slightly, so it’s virtually a raking and sweeping motion. If you’ve done all the other parts of this massage technique, this final part, the “reabsorption” phase, should be bringing you your pain relief.
And that’s it! Gently bring your breathing back to normal, because it might be different momentarily if this is the first time you’ve done these exercises. We recommend more than ten minutes to complete the entire technique. The exercise might take a reduced time if you have an electronic massager gadget, but this isn’t necessarily the point; for good lymphatic health, you should be performing this massage technique slowly. Ten minutes out of your day is surely the most you deserve to give yourself peace of mind that such an important system in your body is well regulated and cared for.
Two Danish scientists, Dr. Emil Vodder, and Dr. Estrid Vodder, pioneered a massager therapy in the 1930’s which was very similar to the one you’ve just performed. While they had limited knowledge of all of the science behind good lymphatic health in those days, for the therapy to have continued to be so popular since then demonstrates its efficacy to give genuine stress relief and pain relief.
In 1936, the Vodders started teaching Paris a variation on the “manual lymphatic drainage” therapy and after the Second World War, they taught it to Copenhagen. On the strength of Dr. Kirschling’s podcast on the lymph nodes, we’re very happy to teach the technique to you. We hope it brings good health to you and your family. If you want to ask us any specific questions about our gadgets and how they work, you are always very welcome to head on over to our website. There will be someone on our live chat facility to aid you.
Author Bio: Anthony Izzo is Vice President of TruMedic.
Guest blogger for Beyond The Basics Health Academy. Lymphatic drainage is so important for overall health and usually a forgotten component. Like stated in this blog and Podcast 128, 80% of us have congested lymphatic systems. This is not ideal! Therefore, Dr. Meaghan promotes daily techniques that help to improve lymphatic drainage. She is so thankful that Anthony Izzo took the time to discuss techniques that can encourage optimal lymph flow and increase overall health and vitality. Do you want to know more? Definitely, check out their website at www.trumedic.com. -Dr. Meaghan Kirschling
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