Massage Therapy In Victoria

Our Registered Massage Therapist's in Victoria provide primarily therapeutic massage and orthopedic massage therapy. We can also offer relaxation massage,  sport massage and pregnancy massage in a warm and welcoming clinical environment. Each treatment is uniquely tailored to your needs on the day you come in. 

All of our massage therapists in Victoria are Registered Massage Therapist. Registered Massage Therapists in BC are the most highly trained in all of North America. They are regulated by the CMTBC (College of Massage Therapists of BC) and the MTABC (Massage Therapists Association of BC). We can direct bill most extended health plans for massage, which is super convenient for you!

Our RMT's are trained in a variety of techniques and will likely use a combination of them in your treatment. We recommend you read each massage therapists profile, in order to ensure you get what you're looking for when it comes to massage therapy treatment style.  ​

What To Expect At Your Massage Appointment

Your RMT will review your health history form and treatment goals in a short interview at the beginning of your appointment. Some massage treatment goals are straight forward, some are more complex and may require more orthopedic, postural, strength, neurological and/or lifestyle assessment to determine the cause of your symptoms.

These details are important and every bit of information we get during this assessment is important for the outcome of your treatment. Its important that you tell us about your past injuries and surgeries, even if they seem irrelevant. If your symptoms started after a big life event that was stressful or traumatic, this could be linked to your physical pain. We don't necessarily need all the details, if you're not comfortable talking about it. Just knowing there was trauma at the time is enough.

All of these things help us put the whole picture together, from a biopsychosocial perspective, so we can figure out what's driving your pain and dysfunction. 
Your RMT will explain the treatment plan with you so you can provide informed consent. He or she will give you instructions for positioning on the table and will leave the room for a few minutes so you can get comfortable. In most cases, people disrobe down to their preferred comfort level which could be removing only necessary clothing, leaving only underwear on or disrobing completely. If you are coming in for Neurokinetic Therapy or if you prefer to keep your clothes on to be comfortable, you will be treated through/around your clothing. In this case, please wear comfortable clothing that is easy to move in. 

Your massage therapist will knock before they enter and will then provide the treatment, as discussed. Shortly before the end of the treatment, your massage therapist will excuse them-self and leave the room for you to get dressed. Upon returning, you will likely be given some recommendations for exercises or stretches and a follow up treatment schedule.

How Many Massage Treatments Will I Need?

​If you are coming in with a specific problem, we typically recommend about 3 treatments, each about 1 week apart to start. You are welcome to book these 3 appointments all at once to ensure you can get in and get you're preferred time slots. If it turns out you don't need them, they can easily be cancelled or rescheduled with as much notice as possible (Min 24 hours).

Why? When you get a massage, we are primarily affecting your nervous system, which controls the resting tone of your muscles and fascia, and your perception of pain. The massage is telling  your brain to dial down the tone and pain in the area being treated. Typically, just one input isn't enough to make a lasting change. It needs to be repeated to achieve a lasting change. This is a why your massage therapist will also recommend some stretches, strengthening exercises, self massage, self joint mobilizations or other things for you to do at home. These are ways that you can recreate the same therapeutic input to your nervous system at home. 
How long will it take to see results? This is different for each patient. Some people will feel better right away, others will need more treatment and investigation into what is driving the problem. The good news is that even when you don't have a significant improvement after a massage treatment, this still gives us a lot of useful information. We know that the focus of that specific massage treatment wasn't effective for you, and we can move on to trying the next most logical treatment focus. We rely on our clinical experience and knowledge of bio-mechanics to make educated decisions about what makes sense to treat next, based on your symptoms and history. This is why it's important to make a mental note of how you feel after your massage, especially the first 48 hours. Its normal to be a bit sore the next day, but not more than 24-48 hours before it lets go and you can tell how you really feel. 

How Deep Should My Massage Be?

During the treatment your massage therapist will want you to give feedback about the pressure or depth and how things feel. With therapeutic massage work, we are aiming for that zone where in might hurt a little bit but it still feels good and relieving. With most areas of the body, if you have to tense up in response to the pressure or depth, that's too deep. There are a couple of deep releases we do including the iliopsoas, subscapularis, lateral pterygoids and longus colli, which are deep and may be very tender and uncomfortable. You will always be asked to provide verbal consent and lots of feedback if we think treatment of these areas would be beneficial.

There's a very common misconception that massage therapy should be really deep and painful to be effective. That it has to be, in order to break down adhesions. Our RMT's all have advanced training in modern pain science and are required to stay up to date on modern clinical research, so we know that this is not true. In fact, it's impossible to "break down adhesions" with our hands or to make any physical change to the muscles or fascial tissue. ​The massage is affecting your nervous system which communicates with your musculoskeletal system and regulates literally everything (pain, tone, tension, range of motion).

Who Should I Book My Massage With?

We recommend you take the time to read through our Registered Massage Therapists profiles under the TEAM tab. This will give you an idea of what to expect from this practitioner. RMT's in BC are required to complete continued education courses every two years so we end up diversifying quite a bit. Some RMT's do more swedish and deep tissue style, others are primarily myofascial or craniosacral or neurokinetic therapy. 

We have some patients who form a very strong therapeutic relationship and are loyal to that specific therapist and some who hop around based on what their needs are. You don't have to stick with one practitioner here. Its not like cheating, lol.  

Massage Therapy Modalities & Techniques

Deep Tissue/Swedish Massage

Deep tissue/swedish massage is a very commonly used technique by Registered Massage Therapists. Its what most people picture, when they think of getting a massage. There's oil or lotion on the skin to provide some glide as the massage therapists hands knead and flush your muscles with the goal of releasing tension and "knots."

This style of massage is very fluid and flowing, and promotes circulation through the tissue. It can be done very slowly, which is more relaxing or more vigorously, which is stimulating, depending on what the treatment goal is. Your RMT will often use a theratherm heating pad to warm the area up, as well as some gentler techniques,  before applying deep tissue pressure. Its important to communicate with your RMT about the depth of this type of treatment, as the old saying "no pain, no gain" is outdated and completely inaccurate. 

Myofascial Release Massage

Myofascial Release is a technique applied to both the fascial connective tissue and muscles. Fascia is a web of connective tissue intertwined between all other parts of the body. It surrounds and supports all the organs, bones, joints, vasculature, nerves and muscles of the body. Fascia doesn't contract, like muscles do, but it can become adhered. Adhesions are areas where the fascia is "stuck" and restrict range of motion, cause postural dysfunctions and cause pain.
 
To release these adhesions the therapist applies a stretch into the restriction and holds it while the tissue releases. The effects are cumulative and long lasting. Imagine slowly pulling a plastic bag in two directions so you are stretching it out without breaking it. Some specialized forms of MFR you may have heard of include Heller Work and Rolfing.
​The image shown below is some of the myofascial meridians. These are ways of organizing the tissue of the body by function and kinetic chains. It helps us to determing where the problem is coming from. For example, sometimes a neck problem is coming from the lower legs or feet. If the fascia became adhered or restricted along the green line, for example, it would pull the head and neck closer to the pubic bone, causing a hunched forward posture. The person would be carrying their head too far forward and their shoulders would be rounded forward as well. This person would likely have pain between the shoulders and the back of the neck. Releasing this line can therefore correct a hunched posture, allowing the person to comfortably stand up straight.

Trigger Point Release

A Trigger Point is essentially a "knot" in a muscle or fascia that is locally painful and may refer pain to a distant site. For example there are TP's in the trapezius muscle that refer pain up the posterior neck and into the head, specifically around the temple and jaw. This TP can be a major cause of tension headaches. Releasing it and others around the head and neck can provide relief from tension headaches.
 
At Remedy Wellness Centre we use our knowledge of trigger points for both treatment and determining the cause of your symptoms/determining where it's coming from. In many cases the source of the pain isn't where it hurts. There are many conditions that are misdiagnosed, like carpal tunnel syndrome and tennis elbow, which turn out to be trigger point referral pain coming from somewhere else in the kinetic chain. Releasing trigger points in the neck and shoulders will often relieve these symptoms and can prevent the patient from having unnecessary surgery.
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The trigger point is indicated with an "x" and the pain referral pattern in red. Diagram courtesy of Trigger Point Manual By Travell & Simons.

Contract-Relax Stretching

Contract Relax Stretching (also called PNF or Isolytic Stretching) is a technique used to gain length in shortened muscles, therefore increasing range of motion and flexibility. The massage  therapist takes the target muscle to the point of a gentle stretch.  The patient is asked to contract against resistance provided by the therapist for 10 seconds, then to relax for 5 seconds. This triggers a reflex response that resets the connection between the brain and the muscle spindles (stretch sensors in the muscles), allowing the muscle to lengthen more. The process is repeated 3-5 times or until the desired length is achieved. This approach can be very effective to relieve tension and pain. 

Caution: this type of stretching should only be done with an experienced partner or with a certified therapist as there is risk of overstretch and injury. Please do not attempt at home without professional advise.

Therapeutic Exercises

Movement is so important. When they said "if you don't move it, you lose it," they were absolutely right. Muscle and postural imbalances need to be corrected in order to truly achieve your health and wellness goals, especially if recovering from injury. If you alleviate the symptoms, but don't correct the imbalance, it's just a matter of time before the symptoms return. It's essential to eliminate the cause to achieve lasting results.

Therapeutic exercises are prescribed by your massage therapist for you to perform either in treatment or at home, or both. Strengthening exercises are used for weak, underused areas. Stretching is used for tight, shortened, overused areas. Functional exercises can be used to reintegrate movement patterns that were dysfunctional.

Our RMT's also work closely with our Physiotherapists and Kinesiologists to build you the right treatment plan. 

Hydrotherapy

Your RMT may use heat or cold therapy in your treatment if therapeutically appropriate. (During the Covid Pandemic use of hydrotherapy in treatment is not an option, unfortunately.) But we can still make recommendations for you're own personal use of hydrotherapy at home. 

Heat encourages circulation, which means the area is bathed in nutrient and oxygen rich blood, while toxins and cellular debris are washed away.
Heat is most commonly used for chronic injuries.

Those with cardiovascular conditions like hypertension should consult their MD before using heat, especially on the torso.
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Cold is typically used to combat inflammation, pain and swelling. Ice should only be used for 15-20 min maximum at a time, and there should always be a cloth/towel between the ice and your skin. Ignoring these precautions can lead to nerve and skin damage.

Anyone with impaired ability to sense hot and cold should exercise caution with hydrotherapy. Everyone should avoid extremes in temperature.

This is a brief summary of the techniques you can generally expect any of our RMT's to be trained in. Some RMT's have more focused areas of practice and more extensive training in things like Muscle Energy Technique, Neurokinetic Therapy, Advanced Myofascial Training, Craniosacral Therapy and More.
The longer an RMT has been practicing, the more skills and techniques they acquire. We have several RMT's who have over 10 years to 30+ years in clinical practice. You can find this info in their practitioner profile.