Lymphatic drainage massage in Brunswick, Melbourne

A very light, slow, rhythmic technique that works on the lymphatic vessels sitting just beneath the skin rather than on muscle. The pressure is closer to a stretch of the skin than a squeeze of the tissue underneath, and the direction and sequence of the strokes are the point of it. At Brunswick Health it is booked as a massage appointment in 30, 40 or 60 minutes, from a therapist trained in the technique.

Almost entirely in pressure. A remedial massage works into muscle and connective tissue firmly enough that you feel it working, and often leaves you a little sore the next day. Lymphatic drainage is light enough that people booking it for the first time frequently ask whether the therapist has started yet. If you want knots worked out of your shoulders, book a remedial massage instead — this is not a gentler version of that, it is a different treatment with a different purpose.

Most often for puffiness and fluid retention, for legs that feel heavy or swell through the day, for the swelling that follows an injury once the acute stage has passed, and for recovery after surgery once the surgeon has cleared hands-on work. Some people book it simply because they find it deeply relaxing, which is a perfectly good reason and does not need dressing up as something medical.

No. Your liver and kidneys handle detoxification and they do it without assistance, and no massage technique removes fat or causes weight loss. Any reduction in girth after a session is fluid, not tissue, and it returns. Brunswick Health will not sell you a course of lymphatic drainage on either of those claims. What it does do is move fluid that is sitting in the tissue, which is why people book it for puffiness and swelling — and that is a real, immediate and honest effect.

Not as a specialist service, and this is worth being direct about. Diagnosed lymphoedema — the persistent swelling that can follow lymph node removal or radiotherapy, most commonly for breast cancer — is managed by a certified lymphoedema therapist using a defined protocol that includes compression bandaging, garment fitting and measurement over time. Brunswick Health does not have a certified lymphoedema therapist. If that is what you have, tell us when you enquire and we will refer you to a certified practitioner rather than book you into the wrong appointment. The lymphatic drainage massage offered here is for general puffiness, fluid retention and post-surgical or post-injury swelling in people without a lymphoedema diagnosis.

Once your surgeon has cleared hands-on work. That timing depends on the procedure and on how you are healing, so it is genuinely their call rather than ours — ask them at your next check and book once they say yes. Bring any instructions they have given you about pressure, positioning or areas to avoid, and your therapist will work within them. If you are unsure whether what you have been told covers this, ring the clinic and describe it; the front desk would rather have that conversation than have you guess.

Tell us before booking if any of these apply, because several are reasons not to move fluid around the body. One of them is urgent rather than a booking question: sudden swelling in one leg, especially with calf pain, warmth or redness, can be a clot — do not book a massage and do not wait for us, go to a hospital or call 000, because massage over a clot is dangerous. For the rest, say so when you enquire and we will either adapt the session or refer you to whoever should be seeing it first.

• An active infection, fever, or hot red skin such as cellulitis
• A current blood clot, or a history of deep vein thrombosis
• Heart failure or a heart condition affecting fluid balance
• Kidney failure or dialysis
• Active cancer or cancer treatment, unless your oncology team has approved it
• Diagnosed lymphoedema, which needs a certified lymphoedema therapist instead
• Unexplained swelling that has not been looked at by a doctor

It is priced as a standard massage appointment at Brunswick Health: $85 for 30 minutes, $105 for 40 and $120 for 60. Because it is delivered by a remedial massage therapist who is registered with the major health funds, it is claimed under remedial massage and we process it through HICAPS at the counter, so you pay the gap on the day. Rebates vary by fund and policy, and how much comes back is between you and your fund.

Current massage fees

No — they are a different, machine-delivered treatment. Sleeves fit over your legs and inflate in a sequence to squeeze from the foot upwards, and people use them for heavy legs and for recovery after training. They cost $40 for a 30-minute session and are booked through chiropractic or physiotherapy rather than massage. They are not a substitute for hands-on lymphatic drainage and they are not a treatment for lymphoedema, but they are considerably cheaper and many people find them useful for exactly the heavy-legged feeling they book a massage for.

For post-surgical or post-injury swelling, a short course over a few weeks is usual, tapering as the swelling settles. For general puffiness and fluid retention, most people book as they feel they need it rather than on a schedule. Nobody here will sell you a package of ten up front. The honest test is the same as for any massage: if you are three sessions in and each one resets you to exactly where you started, something else is causing the swelling and it is worth finding out what.