Knead Holistic Massage

01/10/2025

Topical steroid withdrawal?
Sharing from another lymphatic therapist..
Have a look at the difference

29/09/2025

More great info from Bianca:)
As you may know I offer lymphatic and myofascial Release;)

🕸️ The Fascial Web and Your Lymphatic System: A Hidden but Powerful Connection

The human body is a marvel of interconnected systems, and few relationships are as underrated — yet as vital — as the link between fascia and the lymphatic system.

🔍 What is Fascia?

Fascia is a specialized connective tissue that surrounds and interweaves with every structure in the body — muscles, bones, nerves, blood vessels, and even organs. It's like a continuous 3D spiderweb that maintains structural integrity, transmits mechanical tension, and facilitates movement.

There are three main layers of fascia:

Superficial fascia: Just beneath the skin, rich in lymphatic capillaries and fat.
Deep fascia: Surrounds muscles and neurovascular bundles.
Visceral fascia: Wraps internal organs and holds them in place.

🌊 What is the Lymphatic System?
The lymphatic system is your body’s drainage and detox network. It removes waste, excess fluid, metabolic byproducts, and pathogens while also playing a crucial role in immune defense. Lymphatic vessels, which carry lymph fluid, are especially abundant in superficial fascia, running parallel to veins.

⚡ The Fascia-Lymph Link: Why It Matters
1. Fascia Houses Lymphatic Vessels

Lymphatic capillaries are embedded within the superficial and deep fascia. Fascia acts like a soft highway system through which lymph travels. Any restriction, adhesion, or thickening of fascia (due to trauma, surgery, inflammation, or inactivity) can impede lymphatic flow, contributing to stagnation, swelling, or toxin buildup.

2. Fascial Glide Supports Lymphatic Movement

Healthy fascia is elastic, hydrated, and allows for smooth gliding of tissues. Lymph relies on this movement — because unlike the circulatory system, it doesn’t have a central pump like the heart. Body movement, breath, and tissue mobility are key drivers of lymph flow, and that’s where fascia plays a starring role.

🩺 Research Insight: A 2021 study in Frontiers in Physiology highlighted how fascial restrictions could compromise lymph flow and immune surveillance, emphasizing the importance of myofascial release and manual therapy in restoring both mobility and drainage function.

3. Inflammation Affects Both

Fascia is rich in sensory nerve endings and immune cells. When inflammation is present — due to injury, autoimmune disease, or infection — fascia can become fibrotic and sticky, trapping interstitial fluid and further burdening the lymphatic system. This forms a vicious cycle of stagnation, swelling, and discomfort.

4. Fascial Health Enhances Detox

Healthy fascial tissue means improved lymphatic drainage, better nutrient delivery, and efficient toxin clearance. This is especially important in conditions like:

Lymphoedema
Fibromyalgia
Autoimmune disorders
Post-surgical swelling
Chronic fatigue and “toxic load” syndromes

💆‍♀️ What Can You Do?
To support both fascial and lymphatic health, consider incorporating:

Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD) and Myofascial Release Therapy
Stretching, Pilates, or fascia-focused movement like Yin Yoga
Hydration (fascia needs fluid to glide!)
Castor oil packs to soften fascia and reduce congestion
Dry brushing and gentle compression therapy
Anti-inflammatory nutrition to reduce fascial tension and fluid retention

✨ The Hidden Wisdom of the Web
Your fascia and lymphatics aren’t separate systems — they are partners in resilience and recovery. One moves with fluidity, the other carries fluid with purpose. And both are essential to maintaining your body's balance, detoxification, and healing.

When we release the fascia, we unlock the lymph. When we move the lymph, we revitalize the body.

📚 References:
Stecco C, et al. "Fascial Disorders: Implications for Lymphatic Drainage." Frontiers in Physiology. 2021.
Schleip R, et al. "Fascia: The Tensional Network of the Human Body." Elsevier. 2012.
Pischinger A. “The Extracellular Matrix and Ground Regulation.” 2007.

📌 This article is for informational purposes only and is not a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always consult your healthcare provider before making changes to your diet, exercise, or health regimen.

©️

29/09/2025

.. I am often remind of this book when I work with people with many scars, operations, and let's not forget the emotional landscape.

Our bodies hold the stories of our lives, not sure where that quote is from.

"...Weeks passed, and the little Rabbit grew very old and shabby, but the Boy loved him just as much. He loved him so hard that he loved all his whiskers off, and the pink lining to his ears turned grey, and his brown spots faded. He even began to lose his shape, and he scarcely looked like a rabbit any more, except to the Boy.
To him he was always beautiful, and that was all that the little Rabbit cared about. He didn't mind how he looked to other people, because the nursery magic had made him Real, and when you are Real shabbiness doesn't matter."
Margery Williams - The Velveteen Rabbit, 1921.

picture clipped from a Witcouls advert in case you think about purchasing it

22/09/2025

I started living at 58.
Yes. At 58.
When no one expects a woman to “change her life.”
When everyone tells you to settle, to be grateful for what you have, to sit in the rocking chair and watch the days go by.

But I didn’t want to settle.

Until 58, I was what I was taught to be:
a devoted wife, a self-sacrificing mother, a woman of silences.
I was the one who held everything together… except herself.

I married young, as was common back then.
I fell in love with a man who never knew my worth.
I became a shadow. Routine. Background.
I swallowed tears in the bathroom, swallowed anger in the kitchen.
I juggled the kids, the meals, the bills, the sadness…
And still, he said that I “wasn’t the same anymore.”

He was right. I wasn’t the same.
I was more tired, more gray, more empty.

And one day, without warning, he left.
Just like that.

I expected it to hurt.
But it didn’t.
What I felt was something else…
a kind of breath that scared me.
A silence that wrapped around me like a clean sheet.

For the first time, I found myself alone.
But not empty.
Alone… and alive.

I discovered I didn’t know who I was.
I couldn’t remember my favorite color.
I didn’t know what I liked for breakfast if I wasn’t cooking for someone else.
I didn’t know what to do with my hands when they weren’t busy serving others.

And that discovery was hard.
But also beautiful.

One day I didn’t make the bed.
Another day I went out walking alone.
Another, I bought a train ticket without asking anyone.

And when I sat in front of the sea for the first time without hurry, with no one to tend to… I cried.
I cried for all the times I forgot myself.
I cried for the woman I had been.
And also for the one who was being born.

Because yes… I was reborn at 58.

Today I don’t have a partner.
But I have peace.
Today I don’t cook out of obligation, but out of craving.
Today I don’t clean for someone else’s approval, I clean for me, to feel comfortable.
I no longer wait for someone to give me permission.
I no longer dress to please.
I no longer fit into a routine that doesn’t represent me.

I reconnected with old friends.
I made new ones.
I became my own best company.
And I learned to enjoy myself.

A neighbor once told me:
—Traveling alone at your age?
And I smiled at her.
Because for the first time in my life, I felt sane… and happy.

Today I look at myself in the mirror and yes, of course I see the wrinkles.
But they no longer bother me.
Because each one tells a story of struggle.
And also of freedom.

Because even if I bloomed late…
I bloomed fully.

And now I know:
It’s never too late to return to yourself.
It’s never too late to start again.
And if that new beginning is with yourself… then it’s worth it.

21/09/2025

Lymphatic Drainage stress: Dr Vodder MLD is very relaxing, this encourages the body to move into rest, digest and renew. I have had many clients come to me when they have received bruises from other lymphatic practitioners.

This may create more inflammation, not help heal the problem.

I am very proud to be a Dr Vodder Therapist, at the end of this month, I head off for another 5-day course of hands-on tuition. I think this brings me up to having over a month of hands-on in-person Dr Vodder lymphatic training. I have also taken online courses, regularly update with webinars, journals and revisiting books and original articles.

Hands you can trust.

When I teach MLD we talk a lot about the way the body responds to stress. We're all familiar with the symptoms, sweaty palms, knotted stomac

16/09/2025

POTS? If you have it you know
This is really interesting reading.. ....

Do click through to the link on the shared post!!

For a lymphatic therapist I know how Lymphatic Drainage helps the nervous system regulate, and how it helps Posts, chronic fatigue, brain fog....

A key thing I find is how many people are not using the diaphragm well to breath, this alone can change so many symptoms.

15/09/2025

Breast Cancer Recovery -- Kelly is someone to trust! In this, she shared a Breast Cancer Recovery Roadmap for free!

Please do share with others if you know anyone that may benefit.

Thanks Fiona

13/09/2025

Our daily choices: be it what we eat, how we move, how we manage stress, and the company we keep, may directly influence the way our genes are turned on or off.

This capacity to affect gene expression means we are active participants in shaping our long-term health and vitality.

https://lifestylemedicine.stanford.edu/nutrition-epigenetics
https://jlpm.amegroups.org/article/view/10317/

13/09/2025

The very inspiring Kathy Bates.

What a beautiful story ! She has and still fights for us! 🩵🦋

In 2003, Kathy Bates was quietly undergoing grueling treatment for ovarian cancer, choosing to keep the diagnosis a secret while continuing her acting career. The Oscar-winning actress, known for her powerful roles in films like "Misery" (1990) and "Fried Green Tomatoes" (1991), showed no signs of struggle on screen. But behind the scenes, she was fighting for her life, enduring surgery and chemotherapy without letting the public in on her private pain.

Nine years later, in 2012, Kathy made a stunning revelation. She had been diagnosed with breast cancer and had undergone a double mastectomy. This time, she chose transparency. By sharing her experience publicly, she wanted to take back control and give strength to others who were fighting similar battles. Kathy said she did not want pity. She wanted to talk about strength, survival, and the reality so many women silently endure.

Following her mastectomy, Kathy developed lymphedema, a condition where lymphatic fluid collects in the limbs, often causing pain and swelling. Many people who undergo lymph node removal experience it, but it rarely receives attention. Kathy refused to let it stay in the shadows. She decided to speak out, educating millions about a condition that remains misunderstood even within the medical community.

She became the national spokesperson for the Lymphatic Education & Research Network (LE&RN), lending her voice, name, and energy to an often-ignored issue. She began appearing at LE&RN events, participating in awareness campaigns, and advocating for funding and research. Her message was clear: this condition was not rare. It was underdiagnosed, underfunded, and underrepresented. In interviews, Kathy would roll up her sleeves and show the compression garments she wore daily, breaking the silence with honesty and courage.

Kathy also returned to work with renewed purpose. She took on roles in "American Horror Story" and "Harry’s Law", often during or shortly after treatment, without allowing illness to slow her passion for performance. Her portrayal in "American Horror Story: Coven" earned her an Emmy Award, proof that illness had not dimmed her talent or drive.

What stood out about Kathy's journey was not just her survival, but her transformation. She did not retreat from the world or her career. She leaned into advocacy, lifting others as she climbed. She used humor in interviews to talk about body image, womanhood, and recovery. She told one audience, “I used to be afraid of the word survivor. Now I wear it like a badge of honor.”

In a world where illness often sidelines people emotionally and professionally, Kathy Bates chose to rise. She brought lymphedema into mainstream conversation, encouraged women to take control of their health, and reminded fans that vulnerability and strength can exist in the same space.

Her decision to fight publicly helped reshape how Hollywood and society view survivors. She was not asking for sympathy. She was demanding attention for a cause long ignored. Kathy once said she did not want anyone else to suffer in silence the way she once had.

Even as she dealt with physical limitations, she continued attending red carpets, speaking at conferences, and playing fierce characters onscreen. Her life offscreen became just as powerful, proving that advocacy can be as impactful as art.

Kathy Bates did not simply endure illness. She transformed pain into a mission, turning her most personal battles into a powerful voice for those who needed it most.

11/09/2025

Modern science shows us that our thoughts and emotions influence our physiology and wellbeing. Louise Hay’s wisdom reminds us that by becoming aware of our inner dialogue, we can create a healthier, more compassionate future for ourselves.

🙌 Pause for a moment today. What is one positive thought you could carry with you into the rest of your day?

10/09/2025

Just in case ...

Today on World Su***de Prevention Day we stand with communities around the world in raising awareness of the power of connection.

At Community Wellbeing North Canterbury Trust, we connect people with the right support every day: from counselling referrals to youth mentoring and support groups, to helping families feel less alone.

If you or someone you know needs to talk, please reach out to one of the helplines listed below.

Need to Talk 1737
Free call or text anytime for support from a trained counsellor.

THE LOWDOWN 0800 111 757
Free call, or text 5626 anytime for support for young people experiencing depression or anxiety.

Youthline 0800 376 633
Phone, text and email support for rangatahi on any issue, any time.

Parent Help 0800 568 856
Help with everyday parenting challenges as well as serious issues.

And if you’d like to strengthen our local safety net, consider supporting Community Wellbeing’s work: www.wellbeingnc.org.nz/donate