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MASSAGE, continued from 7 same time, massage on the hands and feet can help with the neuropathy— a tingling/numbness—brought on by chemotherapy. “What we’re trying to do is support someone’s immune system,” which is typically compromised by cancer treatment, Blank said. Chemotherapy, for example, depletes the number of infection-fighting white blood cells in bone marrow. Massage doesn’t replenish white blood cells, but increasing blood flow boosts a patient’s overall well-being, Blank said. A carrier of disease-fighting white blood cells, the lymphatic system is also a critical element of our immune response that can be damaged by cancer treatment. Not technically massage, lymphatic drainage is a popular technique therapists use on breast cancer patients whose lymph nodes have been removed during a mastectomy. These patients run a 50-percent chance of developing lymphedema, a
It doesn’t make the pain go away … but by the time the session is over, the pain may be in the 3 to 4 range,” on a scale of 1 to 10. -Nichole Ruffin, massage therapist
condition where a blockage prevents lymph fluid from draining, causing swelling and potentially infection, said Jill Nelson, LMT, certified lymphedema therapist and owner of Integrative Therapies in Bethesda. Lymphatic drainage, which involves gentle stretching of the skin, is designed to reverse the flow of lymph fluid so it’s redistributed through the body, said Nelson. “Lymphedema isn’t curable, but it’s manageable,” she said.
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A GAZETTE PUBLICATION
FOR CHRONIC PAIN Of her many illnesses, Johnson described fibromyalgia as her “biggest challenge.” The pain is “deeply ingrained,” “constant,” and “feels like walking around with weights .... There are times when a hug hurts, when brushing my teeth hurts,” she said. Women make up almost 90 percent of the 5 million Americans who suffer from fibromyalgia, and their symptoms include fatigue, insomnia, widespread but diffuse pain, a tingling
sensation in their fingers, and “tender points” along the body that are painful when touched, according to the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases. With Johnson and other clients with fibromyalgia, Ruffin doesn’t “go to the center” of a tender point, but will massage around it to release some of the pain. Clients, including Johnson, have reported better sleep, greater range of motion and an uplifted mood, Ruffin said. “It doesn’t make the pain go away … but by the time the session is over, the pain may be in the 3 to 4 range,” on a scale of 1 to 10, Ruffin said. Clients with multiple sclerosis (MS) also benefit from massage as it relieves tightness and muscle spasms, the results of a disease that attacks the central nervous system and disrupts communication between nerves and muscles. “What I do is a lot of stretching [since] she feels scrunched in,” said Ruffin of a client with MS. “She’s continued to do the things she wants to do, and she believes massage has helped her do it.”