Debbie Graham LMT

Debbie Graham LMT Being of service to all people seeking healing of the mind, body and spirit. Through massage, bodywork and meditation.

12/03/2016

OK Facebook followers, it has been a while!! I am now teaching. If any of you have an interest in Couples Massage training I am focusing on this for now.

It is a full day class, one couple at a time. The cost is $500.00. You will learn the names, locations and attachments of the most culprit muscles and how to massage them.You will learn the 5 strokes of Swedish massage and their variations. You will learn how to implement them safely. We will cover boundaries, what to do with certain illnesses, and how to identify some minor conditions to be treated safely at home.

Learn how to help yourself and your partner with headaches, tingling hands, inflexibility and minor aches and pains.

You can PM me or contact me at 503-522-5237. Classes are held at my office in Lake Oswego. Hope to hear from you soon.

To you and your good health........

02/01/2016

OK, a quick note today. I want to express my gratitude to all my clients. I am blessed to have the bests clients ever. So, if you are one, (you know who you are!), thank you. More to come soon!!

01/08/2016

How important is stretching?

So this is a big subject. Receiving a massage is a passive stretch to the muscle fibers when they are pressed on, but this is not the same as stretching the whole muscle or a muscle group. After a massage, when a client leaves, they have only been treated (most often) for one hour. You spend at least a week away from your therapist and any other treatments for the musculoskeletal issue you came to treat in the first place. Patterns in life can bring back the same stiffness, pain and neuropathy you may have come to your therapist for in the first place, so stretching in the mean time is important. Also, people choose not to stretch because it can hurt to stretch. While a great deal of pain is not recommended when stretching a LITTLE may be necessary to achieve a result depending on how stuck and tight you are. So because most of us are busy sitting for our work and looking down at cell phones or computers our bodies take on those positions we hold all the time. Add into the equation gravity which adds 4x the weight to whatever body part is being held up you get some sore stuck muscles. A one hour visit to your therapist can work miracles, but if you don't back it up with some stretching you will never be ahead of the problem, it will stay ahead of you! Are you tired of people like your therapist or your parents or your doctor telling you to work on your posture? My recommendation is an adjunct therapy to massage called yoga. If you're near me and see me I would recommend Twist Yoga, if not look for a studio in your neighborhood or ask a friend for a good studio. Also, there are good videos and some gyms offer this. When you get your muscle tension worked out and train your body to be in the position it should have been in all along, you will be amazed at how good you feel. Most often also surprised. Remember though, stretching can harm torn muscles, ligaments and tendons by adding to much stress to something that is injured so consult your doctor before getting aggressive.

12/14/2015

How much do you know about homeostasis?

Homeostasis is the bodies way of monitoring and maintaining balance. If anything is to far out of balance you could die. So the body has a feedback response for things when we are internally out of balance. Such as, if we are to cold our body makes us shiver. This helps generate energy and heat. When you are TO cold the body will shift most of the blood supply to the internal organs to keep them warm and to keep the blood supply away from the outer surfaces of your body and away from the cold as much as possible. Another example, if you were to hot, when you get to hot the body makes you sweat so a breeze will help to cool you off. These are two very obvious and easy to understand choices to look at, however, there are many other ways the body needs to maintain balance. Our ph levels would be another. The feedback response is our bodies way of recognizing something is out of balance, it is a threat to our survival and something needs to be done to put it back in balance.

12/10/2015

What is a muscle attachment called?

Muscle attachments are called origins and insertions. These are the originating attachments of muscles. There can be many or just one. Also, the insertions can have one or many attachments. Usually the origins are in the least movable area from the joint they are to affect and the insertions are closest to the most movable part the joint they are to affect. For instance your biceps originate at the coracoid process and the supraglenoid tuberosity (there are two heads, their origins are just over the top of your humerus) and inserts at the tuberosity of the radius (just after crossing your elbow on the radius). When the two heads of the biceps contract (muscle fibers shorten) your arm flexes (comes up toward you).

12/04/2015

What does "itis" mean?

When you hear the term itis on the end of an ailment it means swelling. So tendinitis is swelling in a tendon. If you over stretch or over work a tendon and it starts to hurt, you could be told it is tendinitis. Other examples might be bursitis, sinusitis, etc. Often to alleviate this swelling rest and ice are prescribed. Check in with yourself and ask yourself if you have over done and could it be I need to rest and ice.

11/19/2015

What are agonist and antagonist muscles?

Ok, so when your bicep (the muscle that flexes your elbow!) shortens to make your arm come up towards you, your triceps the muscle on the back of your arm behind your bicep has to relax. If the triceps does not relax to let the bicep work, your arm would be frozen. This is an agonist and antagonist relationship. Although, there can be many reasons why a muscle could be sore and feeling weak one might be this relationship is out of balance. For instance if the bicep is sore and weak and you don't have the usual strength when using it, it could be the triceps is to tight, causing a pull in the opposite direction you want your arm to go. It could mean loosening the triceps will help the bicep. Get it? If this makes more questions for you, drop me a line.

11/05/2015

Ok you guys, ask me a question!

07/01/2015

How do I communicate with my Massage Therapist?

If you want to get your moneys worth you need to talk to your Therapist so he/she knows what you want. If you say deep tissue and you don't get it, speak up and ask the Therapist for more pressure. Although we are professionals, we sometimes have differing perspectives. If you want all the work done on your upper body, say so. If you have health care issues, let them know. This piece is very important. Some drugs and some health care issues make giving you massage inappropriate. Don't leave anything out on your intake form. For instance if you take any one of the many blood thinning drugs such as Coumadin, the Therapist will let you know they cannot give you to deep of a massage because you are more susceptible to bleeding. The more you cover everything you expect before and during the massage, the happier you will be. The happier you are, the happier we are!!

06/23/2015

Do I have to take all my clothes off to receive massage

You should ALWAYS disrobe to YOUR level of comfort when receiving a massage no matter where you are. The reason for removing clothes, is it makes it easier to feel what is going on under the skin with your clothes off. Don't forget a therapist will NOT touch you anywhere you do not want to be touched as long as they know. So, speak up and own your session. Most massage has a gliding motion over the skin in order for it to be relaxing and for the therapist to get an idea of what is going on with your body. Your clothes can get in the way of this. Also, a therapist may want to facilitate some stretches for you while you are on the table and your clothing may restrict this movement. Communication is key between you and your therapist.

Address

1270 Parish Street Suite C
Lake Oswego, OR
97034

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 8am - 8pm

Telephone

+15035225237

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Debbie Graham LMT posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Practice

Send a message to Debbie Graham LMT:

Shortcuts

Share

Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Share on LinkedIn
Share on Pinterest Share on Reddit Share via Email
Share on WhatsApp Share on Instagram Share on Telegram

Category