| What is massage? |
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Massage therapy is recognized as one of the oldest methods of healing, with references in medical texts nearly 4,000 years old.
Now days, massage therapy is often referred to as bodywork and the application of various techniques to the soft tissues of the body that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, vibration, rocking, friction, kneading and compression using primarily the hands, although massage therapists do use other areas of the body, such as the forearms, elbows or feet.
All of the techniques are used for the benefit of the musculoskeletal, circulatory-lymphatic, nervous, and other systems of the body. In fact, massage therapy positively influences the overall health and well-being of the client: |
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| How can massage help improve pain and movement? |
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| Yes. By relaxing the soft tissues (muscles, tendons, ligaments), improving blood flow and circulation, and relaxing nerve tissues, massage therapy can have a dramatic effect on both short and long term pain and discomfort. |
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| What disorders is massage commonly used to treat? |
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| Insomnia, Muscular tension, work related stress, repetitive strain injury, depression, whiplash, sports and dancing injuries, pre-natal pregnancy conditions, eating disorders and digestive dysfunction, arthritis, headaches and migraines. |
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| What types of massage therapy are available and how do I choose the right type of massage to suit my situation? |
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| There are many type of massage therapy available at our clinic. We offer Combination Massage & Stretching techniques, Medical massage, Remedial techniques, Myofascial release, Relaxation massage, Swedish & Advanced Swedish massage, Trigger point therapy, Sports preparation and post sports massage |
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| What should I expect from a massage session? |
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FIRST TIME
After being greeted at our clinic the therapist will take care to understand that you know what is to happen during your stay with us at our clinic. If there is something that you do not completely understand, please do not hesitate to ask further questions until all concepts are understood.
TIME
Massage sessions vary. You can choose from sessions ranging from 30 – 90 mins. With a 60 min session the usual length of stay. Please discuss with your treating therapist
BODYWORK
To attain benefits from massage, the tissues involved in the treatment areas need to manipulated adequately. This may lead to some soreness during and after each treatment. All efforts will be made to reduce any possible effects from treatments. Please discuss with your treating therapist |
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| How often should I have a massage? |
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When you first visit our clinic, this will be discussed with you by your treating therapist. However as a general guide there are 2 ways that you can choose to have a massage.
1. The First is to have a regular massage – you may choose to maintain your gains made from initial treatments by weekly, fortnightly or monthly basis.
2. The second choice is to book into the clinic on a “needs basis”
Please discuss this with your treating therapist or with reception staff on your first appointment or any visit to our clinic. |
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| Is massage safe? |
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| Yes! Massage is very safe. ALL conditions are taken into account prior to the commencement of any treatments. NO matter what your condition, the therapist will discuss options, and give you the opportunity to communicate any concerns before, during and after the treatment session. |
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| What is Occupational Therapy? |
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Occupational Therapy (abbreviated - "OT"), incorporates meaningful and purposeful “occupation or work” to enable people with limitations or impairments to participate in everyday life and activities. Occupational therapists (OT’s) can work with individuals or populations to maintain activities / tasks. This encourages health, function, independence and participation through engagement of such tasks, taking into account the location and environment in which that task is situated and the abilities of the individual.
An occupational therapist focuses on developing and maintaining people's skills to carry out their everyday occupations such as work/school, self care, leisure and play.
Occupational therapists work with clients who may have temporary or permanent disruption to their lives caused through illness or disability. They are also involved in health promotion. Therapists work with clients, families and carers and are a key member of health care teams.
Occupational therapists work with people of all ages from infants to the aged. They work in community centres, pre-schools, schools, charitable organisations, industry, hospitals, rehabilitation centres, private practice, universities and pharmacies.
Some of the core service provided by occupational therapists include:
- Retraining and functional activities to address factors such as cognitive and perceptual disabilities; enhance upper limb use
- Home assessment to enhance safety
- Therapy to adapting, designing and prescribing specialised equipment and seating
- Task simplification
- Vocational rehabilitation
- Stress management and relaxation
- Social skills training
- Assessment of early development in children
- Therapy to enhance development and participation in school activities
- Driving assessment, retraining and modification to vehicles
- Promotion of health lifestyles
- Pain management
- Consultancy to Industry
- Collaboration in policy development in health and other related areas
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| What is remedial massage? |
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Remedial Massage is a form of a number of specialised massage techniques to locate, repair damage, and encourage the body’s self regulating repair mechanisms.
The key benefits of Remedial Massage include:
- Toning and relaxing of muscles to improve joint mobility.
- The removal of toxins through stimulation of the circulatory system (increased blood supply)
- Calming of the nervous system, easing emotional / psychological pain and discomfort
Improvements to the body at the cellular level through, repairing cells and tissues, easing muscle and connective tissue/s stiffness, providing a therapeutic relaxation effect.
Complementary and alternative medicines are attracting more and more attention within the context of health care provision and health sector reform. The term ‘complementary’ is used to refer to a broad set of health care practices that are not generally integrated into a dominant health care system.
Massage or manual bodywork comes under the category of complementary or allied health in Australia. Massage Therapy can be described as the manipulation of soft tissues by trained massage therapists for therapeutic purposes. Massage Therapy promotes relaxation and eases emotional and physical stress, relieves headaches, and improves the function of the skin, the lungs and digestive organs. The AAMT has adopted a broad scope of practice that outlines massage therapy.
Scope of Practice
The intent of the Scope of Practice is not to be a restrictive description of massage therapy but an inclusive expression of the core characteristics of massage therapy.
The following points are what the AAMT believes to be the essential characteristics of massage therapy in Australia.
- Hands on practice
- Touch (which may, or may not involve physical touch)
- Direct and immediate communication on possibly several levels between client and practitioner
- Commitment to client wellbeing
Massage is known as the systematic and scientific manipulation of the soft tissue of the body and is used to promote health and well-being and is probably the oldest healing art known to man, recorded as being used by the Chinese, Greeks and Romans in ancient History. |
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| What is exercise physiology? |
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Exercise Physiology is a science involving the study of how activities or exercise can alter the structure and function of the human body. Exercise Physiologists need diverse knowledge of the body’s structure and workings to understand the various components and physiologic responses to exercise.
Exercise physiologists can care for people from a number of various situations through the intervention of an activity program to maintain or increase the persons level of function.
The Exercise Physiologist will assist with concepts such as chronic medical conditions (both short and long term), co-ordination and motor function, exercise testing and prescription of athletes and less active populations, functional and work related activities, physical fitness and flexibility, muscle strength and endurance, and poor health and the management or rehabilitation of their disease / illness.
Exercise Physiologists are 4-year university qualified allied health professionals who specialise in the delivery of exercise, lifestyle and behavioural modification programs for the prevention and management of chronic diseases and injuries. EPs provide physical activity and behaviour change support for clients with conditions such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, osteoporosis, depressions, cancer, arthritis, COPD and many more.
The Exercise Physiology industry is a mainstream allied health profession widely recognised in the healthcare sector. EPs are eligible to register with Medicare Australia, the Department of Veterans Affairs and have recognition among a number of health insurers. At state level EPs are included within health professional awards and in compensation schemes akin to other mainstream health professionals. The term Exercise Physiologist is a term protected by title under the Health Insurance Act 1973.
AAESS has developed clear skills and competencies for Exercise Physiologists. |
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| How do I know what treatment to ask for? |
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| When you talk to the staff at The Body Care Specialists, they help you understand what possible treatments there are and which treatments would suit you best. As you are educated into your needs, you will then be able to tell the therapists what treatment direction would be best for you to take. |
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| How long do most treatments go for? |
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| Standard treatments are usually covered within the hour however, non-standard treatments could last up to 1.5 hours |
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| What do I wear during a treatment? |
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| All people visiting our clinic are encourage to wear what they feel comfortable in. Mostly, people wear gym clothing over regular underwear. This is important because it will assist the therapist with their treatment. Please call us to discuss this prior to your arrival at the clinic or discuss this with your therapist on the day.
Please note. If your attire is not suitable, ALL steps will be taken to discuss this with you, and in some cases we may be able to provide the correct types of clothing for you to be comfortable and have a safe and effective treatment. |
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| What if I am pregnant – are treatments safe? |
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| ALL health issues will be addressed on "a needs basis". If you are aware of, and have certain requirements, please don’t hesitate to call the office to discuss issues prior to your arrival. |
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| How many treatments do I need? |
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| Treatments will vary from person to person. If your problem has been long standing then some people will need additional treatments allowing for greater recovery and removal of the problem areas |
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| What time frame between appointments do you recommend? |
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| Treatments will vary from person to person. If your problem has been long standing then some people will need greater time to recover. If you have many problems the therapist will work on different sections per time and therefore condensing the number of treatments therefore decreasing recovery time in sessions per week. |
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| Should I eat before a treatment? |
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| No. Food ingested directly before the treatment could upset the gut. A minimum of 1 hour is required after eating for treatments to occur effectively. |
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| What if I am on medication? |
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| You must tell your treating therapist. On your initial assessment, the therapist will talk to you about your health in general and specific condition that may require medication. If the therapist forgets to ask you these questions, please raise the issue with them. |
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| How do I get the most benefit from treatments? |
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| Easy. Just follow the steps laid out by your treating therapist. They will inform you of any additional steps needed to assist you with your recovery. |
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| How do I best work together with my health therapist for maximum results? |
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| For best results, you should always listen to your therapist for their healthcare advice. If you have something that you are not sure about, please do not hesitate to ask questions, so you properly understand the information provided. The therapist will help you get the most from your treatments and sessions with us. |
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| How far in advance do I need to book? |
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| Our booking system caters for urgent and regular booking times. Please call us to check availability of session times. We may even be able to fit you in, if there has been a cancellation. |
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| What if we work and need a night appointment? |
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| The Body Care Specialists staff are flexible. You only need to make your appointments with enough time so we can schedule a therapist to suit your needs. |
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| When do you operate? |
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| The office is open Monday to Friday 8am – 5.30pm. Outside of normal working hours the office answering machine will take any calls. You can call anytime. We will call you back as soon as possible. |
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| How do I make an appointment? |
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| You have a many options to get in contact with us.
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| What should I wear? |
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People usually come into the clinic in their normal street clothes. Massage Therapy at The Body Care Specialists is performed under a “Code of Conduct” written by our governing body A.A.M.T (The Australian Association of Massage Therapists) LINK. The Body Care Specialists adheres strictly to these codes.
It is important that you are comfortable and feel safe at all times. We do however need you to wear underwear or athletic shorts to enable us to affix covers to protect your clothing from massage oils and cover modest areas adequately.
Underclothing is usually always kept in place. If it is required that the underwear be removed, you will be asked if this is comfortable for you to do so. You will be instructed into the process of garments removal and replacement will be carried out, and you will be supplied with a wrap or special coverings to maintain modesty and professional codes at all times.
The therapist will instruct you in matters, once inside your treatment cubicle. |
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| If treatments are uncomfortable, can I let the therapist know? |
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| YES. It is important that you and your therapist communicate well during all activities and treatments. The therapist is there to assist you in the best way possible. You can assist them by discussing any and all needs before, during and after the sessions. |
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| What should I bring to appointments? |
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| Please feel free to bring along any personal effects, medical or relevant information you think necessary to assist us with your treatment. |
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| Do you provide massages under Workers Compensation? |
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| YES. The Body Care Specialists has WorkCover Accredited Remedial Massage Therapists. |
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| Can I cancel an appointment? |
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| YES. Please call the office as soon as possible. |
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| How far in advance to I need to cancel prior to a scheduled appointment? |
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| We would appreciate your efforts in calling the office as soon as possible when needing to cancel an appointment. The minimum timeframe is 24 hours. |
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| Is there a cancellation fee? |
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| We have a fair policy re the cancellation of appointments. If you are fair with us, we will make all attempts to re-schedule you a next appointment. For those that repeatedly miss appointments, the payment from the previous appointment will be requested prior to the delivery of you next appointment. |
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| What payment methods are available? |
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| When do I need to pay for my treatment? |
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| Treatments are paid for on the day of service, usually before or at the end of each session. |
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| Can I claim through my health care provider or Medicare? |
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We endeavour to maintain as many of the private health insurance company endorsements as possible. Due to the large number of Private Health Insurance companies involved in healthcare today we do not cover all of them to date.
Also, some of the services you may be seeking, may not be covered in your health insurance policy or through Medicare Australia. Please feel free to contact us or your health care provider to confirm your eligibility. |
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Please feel free to Contact Us if there are any unanswered questions. |
