A trip to see a registered massage therapist (RMT) today will result in much more than a relaxing experience, says a Trail professional who is settling into her new downtown office.
It will also focus on relieving pinched nerves, muscle spasm, a lack of blood to soft tissues and any biomechanical problems a patient may suffer from.
“We have a more sedate life than the hunter gatherer life that we used to have,” said RMT Lizette Tucker. “Massage therapy is coming more therapeutic in nature than just the spa.”
Watching the evolution of her practice and patient results before her eyes has kept Tucker glued to the profession since 1998, when she graduated from West Coast College of Massage Therapy.
But it wasn’t until she fell in love with the region and set up Trail Integral Therapeutics last spring that she truly felt blessed.
“My whole goal is that you won’t see me again,” she said. “We’ll be friends for a while but you have to have your own life and appointments are not always a nice lifestyle.”
Taking a team approach, Tucker and fellow RMTs deliver a diverse style of care but with the same focus on rehabilitation and structural dysfunctions.
“My clinical experience has given me the treatment skills to address such conditions as back pain – ranging from muscle strain to disc and joint dysfunction – Osteoarthritis and Rheumatoid arthritis, repetitive strain, sports injuries and rehab, tendonitis, motor vehicle injuries, headaches, prenatal and postnatal, ALS, MS, Fibromyalgia and stress reduction,” said Tucker.
She also does custom fit compression hosiery and outside her scope of practice is trained in SCENAR therapy, a hand-held medical device that delivers electrical stimulation through the skin to trigger the body’s own healing process.
“When you come into the office, you’re not bound to one therapist,” explained Tucker. “We’re going to try and help you as a group.”
Depending on the patient’s need, co-workers Damian John or Ryan Carnahan could have their hands in treatment.
John concentrates on rehabilitation, relying on treating the fascial structures in the body by manipulating the soft tissues away from discomfort and into a free range of motion.
He uses Kinesio taping – a stretchy tape used to relax overused syndromes or spasms that also decreases pain and swelling or stimulates weak muscles – to help aid in the healing process.
Carnahan works at relieving chronic pain by drawing on his knowledge of osteopathy, homeopathy, nutrition medicine, herbal medicine, energetic medicine and Chinese medicine.
He is not only an RMT but also a registered homeopath and is currently completing his doctorate in traditional Chinese medicine, including acupuncture.
“Many unresolved health problems need more than one approach so I begin by evaluating the person’s entire constitution and use whatever tools I need to bring the whole system back into balance,” he said.
“When the body is balanced, it heals itself.”
Education is key to keeping passionate about what they do.
It’s an exciting time to practice massage as the profession moves more toward evidence-based methods of treatment.
Canadian Researcher Dr. Mark Tarnopolsky has found that massage helps relieve pain in damaged muscles by sending anti-inflammation messages to muscle cells, blunting muscle pain in a similar way of anti-inflammatory pills.
Trail Integral Therapeutics is located in Suite 1 at 860 Eldorado Street and is open Mondays and Tuesdays from 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., Thursdays from 9:30 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Fridays from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Trail office can be reached at 364-1433.