I am so excited to add Manual Lymphatic Drainage aka (MLD) to my practice. I am going for my certification this month and will learn more about this wonderful non massage, therapeutic modality to promote drainage within the superficial and deep lymphatic system.
So what is MLD? MLD is technically not a massage in a traditional way, meaning it does not involve Efflurage or Kneading to do MLD. There’s also no use of lotion, oil or cream. Lymphatic Massage is a very light and gentle manual technique performed on the body to move lymph fluid along and help drain the tissues and reduce swelling. Some of the benefits include: Decongestive effect, meaning it can reduce edema in the tissues and restore normal tissue condition. Another benefit is, it also has analgesic effect thereby reducing pain. MLD helps detoxify the body of waste material and is helpful in post surgical recovery. Many surgeons actually refer their post surgical clients to receive MLD to help reduce tightness, swelling and to recover from surgery faster. MLD is also beneficial for cancer patients helping then relax, reduce pain and improve mobility as well as help with anxiety.
What are some of the contraindications of MLD? There are precautions and there are absolute contraindications. Precautions are observed on pregnant clients especially if they are high risk, diabetes, chronic inflammation, thyroid issues, congestive heart failure. Absolute includes, DVT, fever (bacterial infections ), malignant systemic condition.
I decided to learn and be certified in this technique because it’s highly effective for many conditions and honestly it’s also light work for my body. I’m amazed at how this light touch can work wonders in restoring the lymphatic system and bring balance to the whole body. I can’t wait to learn more about it and start practicing soon.
Have you tried MLD? Let me know what you think.
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