Self-Massage Techniques For Neuropathy

June 01, 2021

Information

With Michele Grand, LMT. Treating numbness, tingling or pain in your hands and feet.

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00:05Hello everybody and thank you
00:07so much for joining today.
00:09My name is Michelle Grant.
00:10I'm a licensed massage therapist
00:13at Smilow Cancer Hospital.
00:15It's my honor and privilege to every week
00:18work with some of the most charming,
00:20sensitive, determined,
00:21and beautiful people everyday that are
00:25going through all sorts of challenges
00:29related to their oncology treatment.
00:31It's also my pleasure to join with you today.
00:34Whoever is logging on on line to just
00:38listen a little bit about neuropathy,
00:40peripheral neuropathy and how some just
00:44simple massage techniques can help with
00:47the issues with your hands and your feet.
00:51A little bit of background,
00:53the peripheral nervous system
00:54carries signals from the brain and
00:57spinal cord to the rest of the body.
01:00Any problems along the way
01:02can affect the skin,
01:04muscles and joints of your hands and
01:07feet and other parts of the body.
01:10Now peripheral neuropathy is a term for
01:13pain and discomfort to the peripheral nerves,
01:16and those are the nerves that extend
01:19away from the brain and spinal cord.
01:23During treatment,
01:24chemotherapy can of course
01:26kill the cancer cells,
01:28but at the same time it can also
01:31affect these nerves that connect
01:33the spinal cord to the muscles,
01:35skin and internal organs.
01:38Certain types of chemotherapy affect small
01:42sensory nerves in the feet and hands,
01:45and that can of course,
01:46cause numbness,
01:48tingling and pain in the fingers and toes.
01:54This damage to peripheral nerves by
01:56these drugs is called chemotherapy
01:59induced peripheral neuropathy.
02:01But you may have heard that term before.
02:04One or more of the symptoms
02:07may appear suddenly,
02:08but typically they build overtime
02:10and they worsen with each dose of
02:14chemo peaking at about 3:00 to
02:16five months after the last dose.
02:19The agents and chemotherapy.
02:20They tend to obstruct the Kappel
02:23Aries in the fingers and toes,
02:24and these are of course are the furthest
02:27points in our circulatory system.
02:30When these nerve endings in the hands
02:32and feet don't get enough oxygen
02:34nutrition from blood circulation,
02:36they can become painful, sensitive and numb.
02:42Less often,
02:43radiation induced peripheral neuropathy
02:46can affect the patient or yourself.
02:49Several years after that treatment
02:51an with the radiation induced
02:54peripheral neuropathy.
02:55Nerve compression due to soft tissue
02:58fibrosis that may cause the nerves to
03:01become damaged along with the blood vessels.
03:04That's not as immediate
03:05effect is the chemotherapy,
03:07and it does happen much less often.
03:10So now we're going to get into,
03:12well walking,
03:13massage do to help with the symptoms and.
03:16Each person dealing with this neuropathy
03:19has a completely different experience.
03:21There's no two patients that
03:25experienced the same exact affects,
03:28so just know that what you're
03:30feeling could be different than
03:32what somebody else is feeling,
03:33but it's all a normal part of the process,
03:37and the massage techniques we're
03:38going to do today can aid a little
03:41bit in some of those symptoms.
03:43On what are the benefits to this
03:46massage treatment for neuropathy
03:48you may experience some increased
03:50comfort in the affected
03:52areas of your hands and your feet
03:54and your toes in your fingers.
03:56Amor return of normal sensation more quickly
04:00over time and some improvement in your
04:03activities of daily living such as walking,
04:06food preparation, handling of objects,
04:08an hobbies I know so many of you that I
04:11meet you have your hobbies you like to
04:14draw you like to guardian you like to cook.
04:17And I know it gets frustrating when
04:20you have these feelings going on,
04:22so hopefully this will aid and get you back
04:25to more of the things that you love to do.
04:28Just a few things to keep in mind.
04:31Now deep tissue massage
04:32is not advised at all.
04:35Whether you're doing this massage
04:36on yourself or you're having a loved
04:38one or a friend do it for you.
04:40Just always keep in mind it's not like
04:42somebody a friend of yours or family member.
04:44They like to go for massage.
04:46I love deep tissue massage.
04:47The harder the better.
04:48You know this is not the sort of massage
04:50that you want to do for your neuropathy.
04:53The skin could be very,
04:55very delicate and it could be a little thin.
04:58You could feel some swelling.
04:59You could feel some hardening,
05:00and you certainly feel some
05:02some pain and tingling,
05:03so we're gonna go really light and just
05:06adapt to your own personal sense of pain
05:09and to your own personal experience.
05:12If somebody is doing it to you
05:14or your massage yourself,
05:15you know,
05:15just go with how it feels you want
05:18to have a little bit of pressure
05:20like you want to feel your hand
05:22moving along your skin,
05:23but you definitely don't want
05:26to feel any sensation of pain.
05:29And this massage can be done
05:30with or without lotion.
05:32That's your your preference.
05:33And if you use lotion,
05:34just something light and a
05:37very very very small amount.
05:40To get the most benefit from
05:42massage for neuropathy,
05:43ideally you'd want to do it
05:44daily for about 15 minutes,
05:46but whatever you have time
05:48to do is absolutely fine.
05:50An every little bit will certainly help.
05:54So now we're gonna start with the massage.
05:57On the hands.
06:02So what we're going to do to begin
06:06with is just kind of warm up here.
06:08Warm up your hands just a little bit.
06:13We're gonna begin by taking a
06:16rest and just getting a little
06:19bit of range of motion going.
06:22This call in both directions.
06:27And as we massage, you know,
06:29just have a comfortable seated
06:30position and just your breath
06:32should be relaxed and easy,
06:34so you're not feeling legit or
06:36tighter holding in your shoulders.
06:38The next thing we're going
06:40to do for the hands is.
06:42We're going to stroke beginning
06:44with the wrist and just.
06:47Up from West to elbow.
06:50Just to get a little circulation going.
06:56So you could take the sides of your fingers.
06:59That's a good flat area press
07:01in to the skin and the muscle
07:04if you're not feeling any pain,
07:07or if you're watching this to
07:08help a family member or friend
07:10and you don't have neuropathy,
07:12you know you can go a little
07:13deeper and give yourself a nice
07:15massage today as well working.
07:16Otherwise just be mindful.
07:18And then turn to the other side.
07:21And again from West up to elbow.
07:29Just get that circulation going.
07:35You might even feel areas
07:36that tingle a little bit.
07:37You could have some contracted
07:39muscles there yourself.
07:41Now. At the wrist where it
07:43connects with the with the arm.
07:46Just make little circles.
07:47You can use your pointer finger
07:50and you could even feel.
07:52Where the bone connects to the wrist.
07:56It just make little circles.
07:59Do that a couple of times
08:00if you prefer to use the
08:02thumb for a little deeper,
08:03a little deeper pressure,
08:04go ahead and do that.
08:09Excellent. Now when we get into the hand,
08:14there is a good sized little meaty muscle.
08:16Here you just want to get in here and give
08:20that some pressure in a circular motion.
08:27It's kind of move the tissue
08:30around the areas where you feel
08:32you feel something like muscle.
08:35You can go a little more there.
08:38Where it feels a little bonier.
08:41You want to be a little bit more gentle.
08:45And just go ahead in circles.
08:49And you could even begin
08:51already to feel the blood flow.
08:54Gonna turn to the other side.
08:57And we're going to go upwards from
09:00the wrist towards the fingers.
09:02Just bring that skin up and again,
09:06if you're suffering yourself from
09:08the apathy or you're working with
09:10somebody who is just be really,
09:12really gentle.
09:13This skin is thin to begin with, so.
09:15Light pressure is is fine.
09:19Almost almost no pressure is also fine.
09:24In that situation.
09:27You can get in here into the crease.
09:29There's an acupressure point here that
09:31can stimulate a lot of benefits to the body,
09:34so it's nice to go in here a little
09:38bit and work this little web area.
09:41Could even feel spotlight here.
09:43That could be a little tingley and sensitive.
09:44You're activating that acupressure point.
09:51And then another really important area
09:53to help are the fingers, the fingers.
09:57Sometimes it's hard to even bend them.
09:59They get so rigid so.
10:03Wonderful results can be achieved from
10:07just kind of going up and down the finger.
10:12In court had impressed there.
10:15If the person you're working on or you
10:17yourself experiences pain or discomfort,
10:19just lighting it up but just get in
10:22there around the little Bony joints make
10:25little circular friction motions just
10:28to stimulate circulation and release.
10:31I've any connective tissue that
10:33may be sort of jumbled up in there.
10:36And then of course, the tips of the fingers.
10:40And then give a nice pull.
10:43And you can go ahead and do that
10:46on each finger, even on yourself.
10:48This is wonderful if you yourself
10:50are not suffering from neuropathy,
10:53but you have a little arthritis
10:55or just kind of sore fingers.
10:58This massage is very very beneficial.
11:03Would use is pain increases circulation.
11:07Scroll all around up and down and
11:09motions around that little joint there.
11:14And the tip of the finger. In a nice pull.
11:21And just keep that going for every finger.
11:26When you do this on your own,
11:28take your time. There's no rush.
11:3115 minutes is ideal.
11:34But we're just gonna go through
11:36the motions today so that you
11:38have the routine that you can do.
11:43And their ring finger.
11:47Feel around the joint here.
11:50Any tenderness skin?
11:52Little little circular friction.
11:59And up to the tip of the finger as well,
12:01and a nice little pool and the pinky.
12:09Steam.
12:12With the body, of course,
12:14it's always important to balance.
12:16If you're gonna do one side,
12:17even if you have nothing
12:18going on the other side,
12:20always do the other side as well.
12:24So we're going to get the circulation
12:27going from the wrist up to the elbow.
12:30Just sort of wake up your body.
12:32Let it know that you're
12:33gonna be giving it some TLC.
12:38God.
12:41Excellent.
12:47Very good. Kind of round the wrist.
12:50Just work a little bit around the joints.
12:56Is there where the connection
12:59is made? At the rest.
13:07Keep the breath relaxed.
13:09And then begin massage
13:12ING the palm of the hand.
13:14You can get into that nice
13:17muscle meaty area here.
13:22And all the soft tissue.
13:33The other side.
13:37Not forgetting that little web area here.
13:41Stimulating my acupressure point.
13:50And then attending to each of the fingers.
13:53As needed. Up and around. The joints.
13:58And the tips of the fingers very much.
14:02Sometimes you'll feel a
14:05little cold sensitivity there.
14:08So this will help to warm up the hands a bit,
14:11increasing the circulation again
14:14Max nice oxygenated blood flow.
14:17And we're going to continue.
14:21With each other fingers.
14:24Just as we did with the other hand.
14:36Good. And the pinky,
14:38and give that a nice pool.
14:43Excellent, take a deep breath.
14:47Just a minute a second,
14:49you just feel notice little tingling,
14:52a little nice circulation going.
14:55Just take a moment and feel bad.
14:58And that this is what's gonna help.
15:01Moving forward with the symptoms that
15:03are experienced with the neuropathy.
15:05And again spending more time
15:07will give you more benefit.
15:08But this is just an overview so that you
15:11can do the routine on your own at any time.
15:14Now we're going to get into the feet.
15:16It's a similar experience to
15:17what we did with the hands,
15:19but we're working with the feet,
15:21the toes, and the soft tissue down.
15:24That way I'm going to take my screen
15:26down so that you could see what
15:28I'm doing with my feet as well.
15:30So just like we did with the arms
15:34were gonna first start make circles.
15:37At your ankles,
15:38just to get a little range of motion going.
15:43Good. And then we're going to give
15:48ourselves a little massage the same
15:51way from the ankles up to the knee.
15:54Just to increase the blood flow,
15:56let your body know that we're going
15:59to be starting to work on this soft
16:02tissue and increase the circulation
16:04and the same way it's nice to use
16:07like this side of your finger because
16:09you have a little little print.
16:11You can give it a little pressure.
16:13You have a little momentum here to
16:15press into the soft tissue again.
16:18If you're experiencing tenderness,
16:20pain, swelling a tightness,
16:23super super light.
16:25Literally, it's fine to just touch
16:28the skin and just move it this way,
16:31so this is a very, very,
16:33very personal experience.
16:34No two people are going to have the
16:37same symptoms and every massage is
16:38going to be different and cater
16:40tored your own personal needs.
16:45OK, excellent.
16:51And again we move in an upward
16:53direction when you massage here.
16:54It stored the heart.
16:56So we move the tissue.
16:58Upwards from ankle to knee.
17:02Now as we get into the foot,
17:04we're just gonna give it like a
17:07nice squeezing motion to begin.
17:09Just as we did on our Poms.
17:11We're gonna do similar on our feet.
17:14So we're going to just get in
17:17here and move the tissue around.
17:20We can go in emotion from the heel upward.
17:25We can go sideways.
17:28From the outside to the inside.
17:35And you could feel you
17:37could feel a nice release.
17:39Sometimes there's a little not here
17:41at the arch, so as you modify your
17:44pressure to your personal experience,
17:46you could just make like nice
17:48little circles here around the arch.
17:51Some have a larger arch,
17:53some have a flat foot,
17:54some have something in the middle,
17:56so just be mindful to
17:58what your experience is.
18:03So gently squeeze and
18:05massage the soft tissue.
18:08Now, this area here if you are experiencing
18:12peripheral neuropathy, wait here.
18:14At the base of the toes on the
18:16bottom of the foot sometimes.
18:19Is an area that is very,
18:21very constricted and doing a massage
18:25here can be extremely beneficial
18:28to relieving some of your symptoms.
18:32So modifying your pressure as needed,
18:34you can go in here at the base of
18:37each toe and just make some circles.
18:41Allow circular friction motion
18:43at the base of each toe.
18:50An anybody will experience benefit from
18:52this no matter what the symptoms are,
18:55because this area sometimes does
18:57need additional help with some
18:59circulation as you go closer to the to.
19:03You may even feel a little
19:05knots an A lot of tenderness,
19:08and to release that is extremely beneficial.
19:12There's acupressure points here.
19:15That releasing them can offer.
19:20Benefits of circulation and
19:22oxygenation and just good energy flow.
19:26Going to the front of the foot the
19:28same thing as we did with the hand.
19:30We're just going to make upward motions.
19:33Thunder. To.
19:37Upward a nice release.
19:48Excellent.
19:51And now attending to the toes
19:53themselves, just like we did the
19:55fingers the same thing, just.
19:59Will squeeze emotions.
20:02With each toe and a nice little pull.
20:05Do that with every towel.
20:11Excellent and like a little pull when
20:15you're done. And a final squeeze.
20:20Excellent. Again, we're going to do what
20:23we did on one side to the other side about
20:27the body requires balance. And again,
20:30you could feel already in that foot.
20:32Maybe it's warming up a little bit,
20:34it just feels good.
20:35Your breath is light and this
20:38is excellent energy release.
20:40So again, we move the soft tissue from
20:43the ankle upwards towards the knee.
20:46Modifying your pressurized,
20:48appropriate and just know whatever
20:50you're experiencing is your own
20:53personal experience, and it's fine.
20:56Everybody's reaction to
20:57chemotherapy is different.
20:59Some people experience neuropathy only
21:01when they're receiving their chemo.
21:03Some have it all the time.
21:06Whatever your experience is is fine,
21:09and it's just your reaction
21:11to the drugs and this massage,
21:13hopefully will give you
21:14some comfort and relief.
21:18Good. And then moving to the foot.
21:23The bottom of the foot we
21:26just give it my squeezes.
21:28My circular massage just really
21:31get in there to the soft tissue.
21:34As appropriate.
21:41Circles around the urge.
21:48And then paying my full attention
21:50to that area here below the toes.
21:54Often this massage will very very,
21:57very quickly give you feeling again.
21:59If you have numbness,
22:01you may begin to experience
22:03like a tingling feeling,
22:04which is a good is a good thing.
22:08And from there you might say
22:10feel more sensation beginning
22:12relatively quickly after massage.
22:17And the longer that you do the massage,
22:21the more benefits you'll receive.
22:26And again, we don't want to
22:27forget the front of the foot.
22:37Excellent. And of course the toes.
22:52Excellent.
22:55Each child and again at the base of that.
22:58Oh, there's a lot of
23:00acupressure points there.
23:01You may feel little little hard areas,
23:04and you could just spend a
23:06couple of extra minutes and just
23:08little slight circular friction.
23:10To release that,
23:11and then I'm pulling on the toe.
23:16With each one.
23:22Very good.
23:25And at last squeeze.
23:31OK. Beautiful.
23:36Alright, so just maybe take up,
23:37take a couple of seconds here and
23:39just kind of see how you feel.
23:41You feel a little blood
23:44flow going to the foot now.
23:47Maybe you just feel your whole
23:49body a little more relaxed.
23:51And if you are experiencing
23:53some peripheral neuropathy,
23:54maybe you're feeling a little more sensation,
23:58a little less numbness, a little less pain.
24:02So this is again just an
24:05overview of what you can do.
24:08You can do this on yourself,
24:10which is wonderful at anytime
24:11you can have a friend,
24:13a partner, a family member.
24:15Do that for you.
24:16Again, always being mindful
24:18of your personal situation,
24:20your level of pain,
24:22and the condition of your skin.
24:25In conclusion and closing,
24:26we're just going to do a very,
24:28very simple exercise to ground.
24:33Take a deep breath and close your eyes.
24:37An imagine a beautiful white light.
24:41Entering the top of your head.
24:45Imagine that white light going down
24:48through your head to your chest.
24:51Out both arms down through your belly,
24:55down through your legs and out to
24:58each foot into your toes. An exhale.
25:05A deep breath in and feel that white
25:08light coming through your toes.
25:10Up back through your legs to your chest,
25:13from your fingers to your arms,
25:15up your chest, up your head,
25:17and back out the top of your head.
25:23And exhale. OK everybody,
25:28I hope that helps.
25:30Whatever you're going through.
25:31I wish you well.
25:33I wish you happiness I wish you peace
25:35remember to drink lots of water.
25:37Of course healthy food choices and
25:39just remember how unique and how
25:42beautiful and how special you all are.
25:44I love working with you.
25:46Thank you for joining and be well.
25:48Take care. Bye bye.