West Kent Sports Massage (WKSM)

Deep tissue massage is a type of massage technique which uses deep pressure and focuses on a specific problem. Combining slow strokes and finger pressure, the purpose is to release the tension and tightness held deeply in your muscles and your connective tissues. A deep tissue massage will typically focus on your primary areas of discomfort. The increased pressure helps to alleviate any soreness or imbalance caused by injury or tension. The list of conditions that can be effectively treated with this technique is extensive and includes whiplash and repetitive strain, postural problems and sciatica, sports injury, recovery from falls, muscle tension and spasm.

The goal of holistic (or Swedish) Massage therapy is to ease muscle tension and increase blood flow to your heart and around your body. Holistic massage helps to eliminate toxins from muscle tissue, increases oxygen levels in the blood, and with regular treatments can improve your body's flexibility.

Therapeutic massage combines all massage forms with the goal of producing an improvement in your well being. This can be achieved through treating specific areas with deep tissue therapy alone, or combining it with holistic style massage more generally.

This is a full body prenatal massage that is suitable for those in their second or third trimester. The mother-to-be will be positioned in a side-lying position, or any other position that feels most comfortable to them at that time. The treatment focuses on the special needs of the mother-to-be as her body goes through the changes of pregnancy and will help relieve muscular tension, as well as other physical and emotional discomforts resulting from the body going through the physiological changes of pregnancy as the baby grows.

Post natal massage can be done as early as the first few days following a natural delivery to help assist with the transition into motherhood, and is equally as important as pregnancy massage.Post caesarean full body massage should only happen when the wound is almost healed and pain levels are controlled – usually at least 2 weeks post surgery – to avoid risk of infection. If you have an infection while breastfeeding, then this will affect the baby’s immune system. Even though the scar may seem healed on the outside, it may still be healing on the inside. Leg, foot and back massages are, however, fine.

Kinesiology taping (KT) – or functional movement taping – is used to facilitate motion and inhibit pain and spasm. Kinesiology tape is a flexible material that moves when you move. When properly applied, the elasticity in the tape gently lifts the skin from the tissues below. This lifting creates a space to improve blood and lymphatic flow, which helps to alleviate pressure, reduce swelling and therefore, enhance healing.

ScarWork Therapy is a gentle, painless technique developed by Sharon Wheeler that restores functionality to scar tissue and improves visual appearance. Scars as young as six weeks or those that are decades old can be helped, whether they be from trauma or surgery. Common surgical scars that benefit from ScarWork include those arising from joint reconstructions, appendix removals, c-sections, scoliosis correction, hysterectomies or failed piercings, but any scar tissue can be addressed. Restoring functionality can result in changes to biomechanics, which can be helped with sports therapy and remedial soft tissue techniques to restore muscle balance. WKSM undertake treatments sensitively and within your comfort zone, both from a physical perspective and also a psychological perspective, as scars often carry significant emotional memories.

This is modifies existing massage therapy techniques in order to safely work with complications of cancer and cancer treatment. Many of the changes that will be made to your session may be imperceptible to you (and others may be quite obvious), but they are essential to safety and the proper support of your well being. Essential aspects of an oncology massage therapist's skill set are an informed understanding of cancer itself and the many ways it can affect the human body; the side effects of cancer treatments, such as medications, surgery, chemotherapy and radiation; and the ability to modify massage techniques in order to adapt for these side effects, as well as for the condition. Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) is a very specialised and specific type of massage that is used for lymphoedema and also for more general conditions. Lymphoedema is a build up of fluid due to the lymphatic system not draining properly.