Manual Lymphatic Drainage

Manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) is a type of gentle massage which is intended to encourage the natural drainage of the lymph, to reduce swelling and inflammation in the body. MLD is appropriate post- surgically, for prenatal and postpartum care, and for general health and wellness. Clients can book a full body session or a focused session that includes hydrotherapy and targets head/neck/face/decolletage for lifting and decongestion.

Full body MLD sessions can focus on overall wellness and can include:

  • abdominal massage

  • reduction of swelling around joints of limbs

  • breast/chest tissue massage

For an upper body focused spa-like experience book our

MLD / Facial Massage + Head & Neck

When incorporated in a facial massage, MLD can help decongest and lift the tissues in the head, neck, shoulders, and décolletage areas.

This session includes warm and cold hydrotherapy and a facial sheet mask.

Who can receive MLD massage?

Folks who are recovering from surgery, folks who want to reduce swelling and inflammation in their body, folks who are active and want to increase range of motion of their joints, folks who want to relax and improve overall wellness.

Who can’t receive MLD massage?

Folks who have systemic or local infections, viruses, fevers, cellulitis, kidney disorders, congestive heart failure or other heart conditions, metastatic cancer, DVT’s and other undiagnosed conditions. If you have any questions about whether MLD is right for you, please email kiera@mamassage.org before booking.

Why are there different names for this work?

Some use the abbreviation MLD, while some folks call it the full name- Manual Lymph Drainage, or Manual Lymphatic Drainage, and some refer to this work in the tradition of Vodder Technique, which is the type of training Kiera has, versus the Chikly Technique, which is another method. On TikTok and other social media sites a lot of what is shown as and called MLD is actually either Lypossage or Brazilian Lymphatic Drainage which are much more vigorously applied techniques, neither of which have searchable scientific evidence to support their efficacy. Manual Lymphatic Drainage techniques do have searchable evidence based studies to support efficacy.