Treatments – Massage

Once my knee swelling starting going down, and the nerve blocks started kicking in, my chiropractor suggested I start getting massages on my leg. Since the avascular necrosis was caused by lack of blood flow, the thought was that massaging the area would stimulate blood flow. And! Massaging the area would also help drive out the inflammation as well.

At first I started going twice a week. I’d go into the chiropractor’s office and the massage therapist would work for about 15-20 minutes on my left leg. Once the swelling started going down I switched to once a week. To be completely honest I didn’t see much progress happening – so I asked what would happen if I stopped the massages. We decided I’d go for a week and see how my knee/leg felt. It really didn’t feel much different at all… so I decided I’d stop and start doing something else.

So in conclusion my opinion on my massage therapy experience was ‘ehhhhhhh’. It did help with the inflammation, but it’s hard to say if it was that or if it was a combo of that and anti-inflammatories and the nerves. I think that each person would have a different experience depending on their CRPS case, so I wouldn’t discourage anyone from trying it. I just wouldn’t try it until your sensitivity goes down – if I would have tried it back in December, when a simple breeze would cause me pain, I’m pretty sure I would have been screaming bloody murder while receiving the massage.

After being introduced to Doterra Essential Oils I have become versed in the Aromatouch technique. I really really really wish I would have known about this earlier because looking back I think it really would have helped me. Not only would have helped my leg with the pain and swelling, but also the anxiety and depression I was facing at the time!

The following definition has been borrowed from Doterra training materials:

What is the AromaTouch® Technique?

The dōTERRA ArōmaTouch Technique is a clinical approach to applying essential oils along energy meridians and visceral contact points of the back and feet to help balance sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems of the body. Developed by Dr. David Hill, a leading expert in integrative medicine and therapeutic applications of essential oils, the ArōmaTouch Technique improves well-being by reducing physical and emotional stressors and by supporting healthy autonomic function. The technique is simple and intuitive and uses dōTERRA CPTG Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade® essential oils for an unparalleled grounding experience.

AromaTouch® Procedure

The ArōmaTouch Technique includes four primary steps designed to minimize systematic stressors to autonomic balance. Each step includes the application of two essential oils or essential oil blends specifically formulated to support healthy emotional and physiological functions for well-being. The technique requires 40 minutes per application, and multiple applications can be serviced with one set of dōTERRA essential oils.

This massage technique helps calm your entire body down and can have profound effects on all aspects of your health. If you google search Aromatouch massage in your area there is bound to be at least one person who has been trained in the technique. I’m all for all natural products and you can rest assured that the oils used within the massage are of the highest quality! They’re CPTG certified – which is Certified Pure Therapeutic Grade – aka they’re meant for therapeutic purposes! When I was going through exploring massage therapy I wasn’t aware of the Aromatouch technique.

A few months after my massages my therapist introduced me to the Aromatouch oil blend. I ordered the Aromatouch oil blend and would rub it on my leg. I would do it every night before I went to sleep – even just doing this on my own I found to be beneficial! I started imagining what my leg would have been like if I would have started with the Aromatouch Technique massage from the get-go!

AromaTouch® Massage Blend: dōTERRA®’s proprietary massage blend combines the therapeutic benefits of oils well-known to relax muscles, calm tension, soothe irritated tissue, increase circulation, smooth and tone. AromaTouch® combines our CPTG® essential oils of basil, grapefruit, cypress, marjoram, peppermint, and lavender in a perfectly relaxing blend which adds many important benefits to various massage techniques. For topical use.

Hey! The worst that can happen is that nothing happens – The products are from nature!

The other type of massage I was told may help me was an energy massage. I wasn’t exactly sure what that was and upon further investigation I found that was Reiki. Well, I went and had that done, but I feel like that should be a whole other post 🙂 Long story short, I believe it helped set me on the right path!

If you have any questions on massage therapy don’t hesitate to ask! I really loved my massage therapist so I’m definitely willing to give a good recommendation 🙂

Wishing you a pain free day!