Scar Tissue Massage

I don’t think of scar tissue as extra material to get rid of.  I think scars are made up of stuck together valuable stuff you want to liberate to become the vital three-dimensional web of fascia again.” -Sharon Wheeler

What Is It?

Scar Tissue Massage can include using the Avazzia Pro-Sport 3 device and manual touch that is light and casual and rarely feels painful (for both new and old scars).  Sometimes the first touch might be sensitive and may be numb, but this sensitivity will go away usually within a few minutes of the scar tissue massage.   This type of massage will feel like the practitioner is using bread dough kneading techniques.  That is exactly the intention the practitioner is using while working on scar tissue.

Who Does It Help?

Scar tissue can help with burns from fires and any other types of scar tissue creates from injuries and surgeries.

Almost any and all scars can be addressed with scar tissue massage including old and new scars from accidents, surgeries, radiation, burns, cuts, tears, piercings, etc.

I work with people and their scars on case-by-case bases. Examples of some of the manual touch scar tissue massages I have worked on:

  • Knee replacement surgery scars.
  • Breast reduction scars.
  • Thyroid removal scars.
  • Titanium clavicle surgery.
  • Lower leg and ankle surgeries including a titanium tibia.
  • Belly button and ear piercings.
  • Abdomen scars from radiation, Crohn’s disease surgery scars, and a variety of scars from intestinal surgeries (with scars from sternum to pubic bone, scars from left to right above and below the belly button).
  • An adult tongue – he was playing around and was kicked in the mouth and he bit his tongue when he was 9 years old. Got rid of the knot and smoothed out his tongue.

All these people felt their “bodies come back” to life, they are able to touch their scars, actually feel their scars with no numbing, etc.

What To Expect From A Session

During the scar tissue massage, the scar progresses from lumpy, stringy,  unevenly textured, and discolored into smooth even pink tissue with relatively little time, effort, or discomfort.  The work starts with the surface layers of the skin but eventually goes deep under the skin affecting the connective tissue.  Usually, the nerve sensations are repaired, too.  Many times when the work is completed, the whole body will feel more integrated and the trauma associated with the scar is released.  However, each person will have their own unique experience with this work.

Sometimes, I use cupping therapy similar to traditional Chinese cupping.

Many times it takes a series of sessions to have the connective tissue reorganize along in the same direction as the surrounding connective tissue and have the scar blend into the skin.  Depending on how complicated the scar tissue is, the scar tissue can reorganize with the surrounding connective tissue in 1 session and up to 10 sessions (and possibly more, like 2nd-3rd degree burns).   The frequency of sessions can range from every 2-to 7 days depending on the type of scar tissue and where we are at in process of scar tissue relief.   Sometimes a maintenance phase is needed which is 1-2 sessions/month.

Resources For Further Learning

None at this time.