What Is Lymphatic Drainage?

massage technique

When you go for a massage, you perhaps don’t always think about what’s happening to you physically beyond being incredibly relaxed while your therapist is kneading your muscles and bringing relief to your aches and pains.

However, one of the biggest benefits of being massaged is that it helps clear out the lymphatic system and detoxifies the body – something that is particularly advantageous if you’ve sustained an injury of some kind, have had surgery or have certain health conditions like breast cancer, all of which can lead to swelling and a buildup of waste like bacteria and excess fluid.

More traditional massages may well achieve a certain level of lymphatic drainage, going for a specific manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) massage will make sure that your lymphatic system is given a serious boost, all through the combination of firm pressure and various techniques to help clear fluid retention.

During the massage, the excess fluid is pushed towards the lymph nodes so that it can be more easily eliminated, reducing swelling by making space for the fluid to flow away from more congested parts of your body.

Trained professionals like physiotherapists and massage therapists can carry out MLD and they’ll also be able to provide you with a series of techniques you can do easily at home to help ease your symptoms.

Benefits of MLD include reducing swelling, improving the function of your immune system, detoxification and the removal of excess fluids and metabolic waste products and stress relief.

It’s been found to be effective in treating a range of health conditions, everything from fibromyalgia and lymphedema to headaches, constipation, IBS, stress, sinus congestion and so on.

 

If you’d like to find out more about this kind of massage technique, get in touch with the Clear Physio team today.