Welcome!
Hi, my name is Keri Hickey, and I’m a certified Geriatric Massage Therapist. Your first question might be, “Just exactly what is a Geriatric Massage Therapy?”. Geriatric Massage is quite simply the massage of an elderly patient. Massage Therapy, or Therapeutic Massage, can be differentiated from general or standard massage in that it is intended to relieve more than the typical aches and pains caused by sports or stress.
Geriatric Massage Therapy versus Standard Massage:
What comes to mind when most people think of massage is Swedish massage. The more common types of massage include: Deep Tissue, Hot Stone, Thai, and Acupressure. Actually there are dozens of varieties of standard massage, which include Shiatsu, Reiki, Lomi-lomi, Chakra Balancing, and Hakomi among many others. In reality, all massage is therapeutic to one extent or another. They all are intended to relieve aches and pains, stress, and discomfort.
Geriatric Massage therapy, however deals with the many more challenges that typically exist in the elderly population. These can have physiological, psychological, and sociological components that aren’t normally a concern in standard massage. Older patients frequently have diseases like cancer, arthritis, heart disease, and even surgeries to contend with. They may also be having difficulties with being in an Assisted Living or Nursing Home situation, or simply are angry at getting old.
Geriatric Massage is typically shorter in duration than standard massage, and it is usually more gentle and soothing in its movements. There are many benefits for older patients such as increased blood circulation, accelerated healing from illness or injury, increased joint range-of-motion, relief of anxiety, depression, and loneliness. Please see our pages on benefits, methods, and precautions for a more complete discussion of these issues.
For Individuals:
Geriatric Massage Therapy works with clients on an individual basis in the comfort of their own home. If you would like to learn more about our services for yourself or perhaps for a family member or friend please call or e-mail us to set up a free consultation. We are happy to work with you to design a plan that meshes easily with your schedule and financial situation. We understand the difficulties faced by elders, and as a small company we know budgetary constraints as well.
For Managed Care Facilities:
Geriatric Massage Therapy works with assisted living, nursing home, and retirement communities, plus hospices, palliative care, and rehabilitation centers. We can visit the facility on specific days on a scheduled basis providing a marketable added service to your community. Having worked in an assisted living facility for several years, we’re well aware of the many competing interests for employees and residents alike. For more information about our services, and their value to all sectors of your community please call or e-mail us today.
Benefits, Methods, Precautions:
Benefits:
Geriatric massage offers the following benefits:
- Increases blood circulation, which helps to prevent such complications of diabetes as leg ulcers or gangrene.
- Alleviates or reduces headache and a wide variety of types of pain.
- Speeds up healing from injury, surgery, and illness.
- Partial restoration of mobility lost due to Parkinson's disease or arthritis, and increased range-of-motion for the majority of patients.
- Facilitates Mental and physical relaxation.
- Improves the length and quality of sleep.
- Relieves stress, anxiety, depression, and helps fight loneliness.
- Improves the patient's quality of life and self-esteem.
Methods:
Geriatric massage uses the same basic massage techniques as general massage. It is, however, tailored to the specific health conditions and needs of the elderly population. Geriatric massage has the following characteristics:
- Most often given in shorter sessions. A geriatric massage session usually lasts around 30 minutes, as a longer session may be too tiring for an elderly person.
- Uses more gentle hand motions. These motions are comfortable and soothing to the body. They are designed to improve blood circulation and heart function, prevent diabetic complications, relieve muscle tension, and relax both the body and the mind.
- Passive movement and gentle stretching of shoulders, legs and feet are used to improve joint mobility and flexibility.
- Gentle massaging of the hands and feet helps to prevent stiffness and relieve pain.
- Occasionally, stronger movements such as friction and pressure strokes are used to massage such areas as the shoulders to improve flexibility.
Precautions
Geriatric massage should not be used as a replacement for exercise programs or medical treatment in nursing homes. In all cases the clinical condition of the patient must be taken in to consideration. In addition, it should either not be given, or given with extreme caution, to elderly patients with the following conditions:
- Broken bones or body areas that are inflamed, swollen or bruised
- Open or unhealed bed sores or other wounds
- Varicose veins
- Recent surgery
- Severe acute pain
- Certain heart conditions
- Certain kinds of cancer
- A history of blood clots – blood clots may become dislodged and travel to the lungs as a result of massage.
- Drug treatment with blood thinners – these medications increase the risk of bleeding under the skin.
