Pregnant women are a niche group who are not included at all in the context of wellness, but have a great need to relieve the body. In the USA, perinatal or pregnancy massage has been part of the standard program of midwives, massage therapists and physiotherapists since the 1980s and is still enjoying increasing popularity. In Europe, too, pregnancy has become something very special and every pregnant woman wants to feel as good as possible during pregnancy. In order to be able to expand the existing range of practices to include pregnancy massage, it is important to attend well-founded further training. Not only to be available to your client as a competent therapist, but also to be able to react correctly in the event of contraindications.

Many masseurs and even some physiotherapists say they do not massage pregnant women. Of course you have to know and pay attention to certain things, for example with regard to positioning, the intensity of treatment and the massage technique. You also need experience and training. But pregnancy is a condition, not an illness, and when women have the conviction, "It's good for me, I want a massage," then there are few reasons not to have it. When a pregnant woman first comes to massage, the baby may move a little more for the first five to 10 minutes, but by the second or third massage, the baby will soon calm down. The mothers each say they have the impression that the baby is sleeping. The babies do well during the massage and seem to enjoy it too.

A back massage helps with muscular complaints and tension, for example lumbar or back pain and tension in the shoulder area, caused by the changed posture. Of course, it is never the case that all complaints are gone with the massage, but for example lumbar pain, shoulder and neck pain or sciatic pain can bring about a lot of relief. 

In the case of water deposits, you can also work with lymph tapes. 

These actually offer mini lymphatic drainage around the clock. The tapes stay on the skin for five to seven days and are a great help. The symptoms have not gone away, but there is a clear improvement. However, women who have vein problems or who are at risk of thrombosis must wear support stockings; the lymph tapes are not suitable for them.  

Who is the treatment suitable for?

Expectant mothers experience major physical and mental changes during pregnancy. Weight gain changes posture, which often leads to back pain and heavy joint strain in the legs. the pregnancy  or Prenatal Massage is a natural way to significantly relieve most of the common discomforts of pregnancy. Through gentle stretching, pressing and stroking, as well as supporting handles, the pregnancy massage becomes a holistic experience of body, mind and soul for the mother-to-be and promotes the bond with her baby. The mother-to-be can relax and perceive her body differently. With the pregnancy massage, the complaints in the upper back and in the shoulder-neck area as well as the hips can be alleviated. During the pregnancy massage, stress and anxiety can be reduced, the joints relieved and blood circulation in the lymphatic vessels improved.

Women who have a high-risk pregnancy should avoid it or check with their gynecologist whether a massage is possible. However, if there is a risk of thrombosis, for example, you should definitely refrain from a massage. Pregnant women should also avoid massages if they have contractions early or are in poor general health. If women would like a massage but are unsure, they can definitely ask their doctor or midwife at any time. Furthermore, I am very happy to be available to women at any time for more information. 

I recommend the pregnancy massage from the 4th month of pregnancy. Why shouldn't a woman get a massage in the first trimester of pregnancy?

This is because most of the changes in the body take place in the first three months. On the one hand there are all the hormonal changes, on the other hand the physical and psychological changes. The body forms more fluids and the child has to settle in well. For this reason it is better to give the body this time to change and wait a few weeks. 

jaw discomfort

If you have frequent headaches, problems opening your mouth and chewing, or cracking noises in your jaw joint, you may be suffering from what is known as craniomandibular dysfunction.

The term is made up of "cranium" = skull and "mandible" = lower jaw and means diseases that are related to the jaw joint and the chewing muscles. This disease is quite common in our culture. Interestingly, 80 percent of the patients are female. The disease usually occurs between the ages of 20 and 40. The disease, known in technical terms as craniomandibular dysfunction (CMD), is neither malignant nor dangerous.

However, these complaints are often associated with considerable local pain in the masticatory organ and lead to a significant impairment of the quality of life if they are not treated successfully in good time.

At the same time, the interactions with other parts of the body can cause a variety of symptoms, ranging from neck pain to tinnitus and dizziness to back pain.

The tennis elbow, the golfer's elbow

There are two known types of elbow pain;

Tennis elbow, technically epicondylitis radialis humeri, can be felt on the outer (lateral) thumb side of the elbow. The golfer's elbow (epicondylitis ulnaris humeri) on the inner (medial) side of the little finger.

It is an acquired, painful condition of irritation of the tendon attachments of muscles in the forearm. Both of these conditions often result from repetitive movements associated with limited shoulder mobility and stability. Other possible triggers are:

• one-sided stress (e.g. when using the keyboard/mouse, sport climbing )

• Poor posture at work, when doing housework and gardening or in your free time

• incorrect technique in racquet sports 

• Lying on your side (using your bent arm as a headrest)

Symptoms can include;

• Pain in the elbow, initially only under load, in an advanced stage also at rest

• Burning of the muscle attachments on the inside or outside of the elbow

• power loss

therapy

• local friction massages and massages of the entire back and neck area

• Physiotherapeutic treatment with ultrasound, electrotherapy, shock waves, muscle strengthening exercises, manual therapy

• Waiting

• Cooling with ice 

• Use of creams and gels containing diclofenac

• acupuncture

• Ev wear a cuff to relieve the tendons

Diseases of the cervical spine , e.g. B. Damage to intervertebral discs (especially level C5-7), or functional disorders of the lower cervical spine and the thoracic spine , which are predominantly to be found clinically, here then as a therapeutic consequence chiropractic, osteopathy and/or physiotherapy.

Trained therapist hands can feel them;  Trigger points, formerly also called myogelosis. These are hypersensitive spots in a palpably tight bundle of muscle fibers. When active, trigger points can cause pain with movement and even at rest. A typical characteristic of trigger points is that they radiate pain to other areas or only locally. For example, trigger points in the lateral buttock muscles can cause pain throughout the leg.
Active trigger points are very common. A study of American Air Force recruits found that over fifty percent of those examined suffered from it. The origin of the problem is usually constantly tense muscles, for example at computer workstations, or when constant movements are performed. Active trigger points are also often found in athletes. There they can either be caused by a sudden overload of the muscle or by an insufficient regeneration phase.
Many experts and researchers around the world are now convinced that acute trigger points that are not treated are a common reason for chronic pain in the musculoskeletal system, such as back pain.

Various medical theories about acute trigger pointsThe medical explanation for trigger points is that individual muscle fibers contract excessively. This process is probably caused by an excessive release of the neurotransmitter acetylcholine at the motor endplate. There are also other theories for these contractions. For example, that the autonomic nervous system exerts increased activity on the muscle. This has been proven with the help of various studies. People who live with increased stress for a long time are more likely to have trigger points.
Whatever the reason for the small tense muscle fibers, the fact is that the tension squeezes the fine blood vessels, which leads to reduced blood flow and a lack of supply to the muscle. This produces substances in the muscle that activate the pain sensors in the muscle - the muscle, or more precisely the trigger point, begins to hurt and radiate.
If trigger points do not disappear over a long period of time, neighboring muscle fibers or even muscles are affected and the pain spreads. The good news is that trigger points can be treated well, often even years later. However, if the points persist for a longer period of time, you have to reckon with a longer treatment time.

Do you know "cupping"?

In dry cupping, heated glasses are placed on the hardened or generally affected areas. During cooling, a negative pressure is created that sucks the skin. Alternatively, the negative pressure can also be created by sucking out the air. The suction dilates the vessels, the blood supply to the skin increases and bleeding into the tissue can occur ("bruises"). The cupping heads then remain on the affected area for a maximum of 15 minutes.

During the cupping massage, the skin is oiled beforehand and the cupping glasses are moved over the entire surface. The oil ensures that the glass can be moved back and forth easily. The cupping massage cannot be compared to a conventional massage. It is very uncomfortable and therefore only lasts a few minutes.

Are there any side effects?

After cupping treatments, circular bruises often remain (as can be seen in the 2nd picture), which are no longer painful and are a desirable part of the treatment. It may feel like a slight soreness, but other than that there are no known side effects.

Cupping should not be done in these cases:

Cupping should be avoided if you are taking blood thinners, have an increased tendency to bleed, have acute inflammation or injuries or suffer from allergic changes in the skin, generalized edema and severe heart disease, after radiation therapy, if you have skin changes after cortisone treatment or if you are pregnant.
Here you can see two pictures taken two days apart:

Image 1, fresh after the combination of a normal massage and the use of cupping glasses, selectively and extensively.

Image 2, back two days after treatment. The patient says she still feels a little soreness in her muscles.

Would you like to try the combination treatment?

Head massage with ear candles

Do you know the application with ear candles?
Ear candles are hollow tubes, about 20 to 30 cm long, made of woven cotton or linen that are saturated with various essences. There are three phases when an ear candle burns down: During the first phase, a negative pressure is created and the air column inside the ear candle begins to vibrate. This massages the eardrum. In the further course, during the so-called warm phase, there is a pleasant feeling of warmth in the ear. The blood circulation and the body's own defenses are stimulated. During the third phase, the chimney phase, excess pressure builds up in the ear: clogged pores open, skin breathing improves and waste products and secretions are transported into the interior of the candle. In all three phases, the pressure conditions in the head are also regulated, which should lead to better coordination of the two halves of the brain. The treatment is then extended with a relaxing head and neck massage.

The sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM) is a paired muscle in the superficial layers of the side of the neck. It is one of the largest and most superficial muscles of the neck. The main actions of the muscle are rotation of the head to the opposite side and flexion of the neck. The muscle tends to be overactive in many people we see. It is usually hired to stabilize the neck/head when we adopt bad postures and positions (front head posture). It is also an accessory respiratory muscle, so poor breathing patterns and habits will cause this muscle to become overworked throughout the day and develop too much tension and trigger points.

The SCM trigger points can cause a variety of symptoms, including headaches and facial pain, balance problems, blurred vision, ear and sinus discomfort, and other body-wide symptoms. You can also initiate trigger points in the TMJ muscles. In addition, the muscle can cause biomechanical problems in the cervical spine. It's the only muscle that causes such widespread problems!

The sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM) is a paired muscle in the superficial layers of the side of the neck. It is one of the largest and most superficial muscles of the neck. The main actions of the muscle are rotation of the head to the opposite side and flexion of the neck. The muscle tends to be overactive in many people we see. It is usually hired to stabilize the neck/head when we adopt bad postures and positions (front head posture). It is also an accessory respiratory muscle, so poor breathing patterns and habits will cause this muscle to become overworked throughout the day and develop too much tension and trigger points.

The SCM trigger points can cause a variety of symptoms, including headaches and facial pain, balance problems, blurred vision, ear and sinus discomfort, and other body-wide symptoms. You can also initiate trigger points in the TMJ muscles. In addition, the muscle can cause biomechanical problems in the cervical spine. It's the only muscle that causes such widespread problems!