Ava's Massage and Myoskeletal Therapy Studio

11/11/2021

Combating COVID-19 with heat therapy (Saunas)

Good morning everyone. I just want to thank all my friends, massage clients and especially those persons who have been referring others or spreading my online presence for your help and support. You can't understand how much joy it gives me to be able to provide my clients with much needed pain relief, to see their improvement after each therapy session and to hear their stories of recovery from whatever physical challenge we were working on together.

We have started providing saunas now and have been getting positive feedback from the clients who have tried it. Please see this link on research into using saunas to combat the COVID 19 virus, it’s called: Turning up the heat on COVID-19: heat as a therapeutic intervention https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7372531/ I have provided a copy of the abstract here for ease of reference.

ABSTRACT
Enveloped viruses such as SAR-CoV-2 are sensitive to heat and are destroyed by temperatures tolerable to humans. All mammals use fever to deal with infections and heat has been used throughout human history in the form of hot springs, saunas, hammams, steam-rooms, sweat-lodges, steam inhalations, hot mud and poultices to prevent and treat respiratory infections and enhance health and wellbeing. This paper reviews the evidence for using heat to treat and prevent viral infections and discusses potential cellular, physiological and psychological mechanisms of action. In the initial phase of infection, heat applied to the upper airways can support the immune system’s first line of defence by supporting muco-ciliary clearance and inhibiting or deactivating virions where they first lodge. This may be further enhanced by the inhalation of steam containing essential oils with anti-viral, mucolytic and anxiolytic properties. Heat applied to the whole body can further support the immune system’s second line of defence by mimicking fever and activating innate and acquired immune defences and building physiological resilience. Heat-based treatments also offer psychological benefits and enhanced mental wellness by focusing attention on positive action, enhancing relaxation and sleep, inducing 'forced-mindfulness', and invoking the power of positive thinking and ‘remembered wellness’. Heat is a cheap, convenient and widely accessible therapeutic modality and while no clinical protocols exist for using heat to treat COVID-19, protocols that draw from traditional practices and consider contraindications, adverse effects and infection control measures could be developed and implemented rapidly and inexpensively on a wide scale. While there are significant challenges in implementing heat-based therapies during the current pandemic, these therapies present an opportunity to integrate natural medicine, conventional medicine and traditional wellness practices, and support the wellbeing of both patients and medical staff, while building community resilience and reducing the likelihood and impact of future pandemics.
Keywords: Heat stress, hyperthermia, sauna, steam inhalation, balneotherapy, COVID-19

You can check out this article on sauna safety during COVID if you like. https://www.ihrsa.org/improve-your-club/pool-hot-tub-sauna-safety-during-covid-19/ We only put 1 person at a time in our sauna and it is sanitized after use despite the high heat that is used during

Enveloped viruses such as SAR-CoV-2 are sensitive to heat and are destroyed by temperatures tolerable to humans. All mammals use fever to deal with infections and heat has been used throughout human history in the form of hot springs, saunas, hammams, ...

11/11/2021

MASSAGE SERVICES

Your first massage appointment can take up to 90 minutes and costs $400. After that massage treatments cost $300 an hour.
My specialty combination massage also lasts 90 minutes and costs $600. See below for a description of my special combination massage as well as the other massage modalities that I practice.

SWEDISH MASSAGE
Swedish Massage is a modality that promotes total physical and mental relaxation. It is based on a combination of light to firm gliding strokes, integrated with stretching and manipulation of the joints to increase the range of motion.

LYMPHATIC MASSAGE
Manual lymphatic drainage is a type of gentle massage that encourages the natural drainage of lymph, which carries waste products away from the tissues and promotes health and well-being.

DEEP TISSUE MASSAGE
Deep Tissue Massage is designed to apply pressure to layers of muscle, fascia, tendons and ligaments other tissues deep under the skin. Deep tissue massage can be very effective in relieving problem areas and is highly therapeutic. Deep tissue massage is an excellent modality that is equally applicable for athletes and people who develop occupational injuries from their eight-to-four desk jobs. Muscles easily become tense and deep tissue massage can relieve some chronic patterns due to posture, pain and tension.

MOBILITY MASSAGE
Mobility Massage allows muscle fibers to relax and loosen, which increases elasticity and allows the muscles to access a greater range of movement with less pain. This form of massage is recommended for persons who are bed ridden, recovering from strokes or living with aches and pains associated with arthritis.

MYOSKELETAL ALIGNMENT THERAPY (MAT)
Myoskeletal Alignment Therapy is a client-centred, results-based therapy in which the Certified Master Myoskeletal Therapist combines physical assessments, orthopedic movement and massage to find and address the root of the problem. The Therapist works to systematically release deep spinal muscles, ligaments and fibrotic joint capsules that torsion and compress spinal joints to get the client moving towards a fully pain free life and general physical wellness.

AVA'S SPECIAL COMBINATION MASSAGE ($600 per 90 minutes)
Ava’s Special Combination Massage is an intense 90 minutes of physical therapy that includes a variety of modalities in a combination uniquely designed by Master Myoskeletal Therapist Ava Carter to provide her clients with the best possible long-term results based on the unique needs of each client.

ADD ON SERVICES
Add on services are services that can be added on to a massage session and include:

Hot stones ($50)
Infrared Sauna ($150 per 30 minutes)
Cupping ($50).
Clients can also get a combination of a massage and TENS therapy session at no extra charge.

06/10/2021

Ahh... back pain the great scourge of our times. Thank you Julien B. Best for your request to learn more about this issue. Unfortunately it's difficult to say that X or Y is the cause of back pain as each person's cause is unique.

Back pain may be postural e.g. you have to sit on a poor chair that offers no lumbar support at work. Or It may be situational e.g. you were in an accident or maybe a bad fall. It may be work related e.g. you lift and move things all day, every day without the proper safety equipment. It may be gender related e.g. ladies often move heavy pieces of furniture by pushing it with their hip or butt; it gets the job done but it also has side effects. It may be related to life choices e.g. you like to wear your pants low so then you have to walk with your legs open to keep them up. You see what I mean each case is unique and must be assessed and treated individually.

The key therapeutic approach to back pain includes understanding the real cause of back pain and designing a course of manual therapy to assist in pain reduction. As usual, there will also be some homework if you want to see real improvement. This involves strengthening important muscle groups and retraining pain causing habits.

I hope that this provided a little insight into the ubiquitous problem of back pain. One of the main aims of Myo-skeletal therapy is pain reduction. If you are experiencing back pain, it can really affect your quality of life. At Ava's Massage and Myo-skeletal Therapy (AMMT) we have a good track record of providing the kind of short and long term pain relief that will improve your wellness and quality of life. Feel free to reach out to us or even ask one of our clients to share their experiences. As we like to say, everyone needs to be kneaded. LOL

25/09/2021

Hi everyone, This was a week for rejoicing at Ava's Massage and Myoskeletal Therapy. On Wednesday, we provided therapy for 8 of our clients which was amazing, considering that we try not to see more than 5 clients daily. We are humbled by the confidence that you continue to place in our ability to contribute to your physical and emotional wellness.
Thing have been so busy that I have not been able to post any advice on dealing with various types of injuries and chronic pain. Let me know if you want me to continue posting those and I will make a special effort to start back. The last post was about neck pain. If you want me to post about a specific issue, you can let me know as well.

12/09/2021