Studio Chat
This is where conversations about self care and life happens, to help you to become an expert in your own life when it comes to self love and self care. To trust your gut and have your own back and to strengthen your mind/body connection."To fall in love with yourself is the first secret to happiness".
Studio Chat
Business, Facial Massage, Lymphatic Drainage with Cecily Braden
Unlock the secrets to a healthier you as we uncover the power of the lymphatic system with my guest Cecily Braden from New York City. Cecily J Braden is the Founder of CJB Spa & Wellness. Cecily has been in the spa and wellness industry developing protocols and spa treatments since 1994, teaching and preaching the benefits of facial massage since 2003.
Discover how understanding and caring for this often overlooked system can lead to transformative benefits like improved sleep, reduced brain fog, and enhanced mental clarity. Cecily shares her 30 years experience with her expert insights on lymphatic drainage massage and introduces her specially designed brushes (The Lymphatic Brush) that make self massage both accessible and effective for everyone, offering a new approach to holistic self care.
For those seeking practical advice, we delve into the specifics of the lymphatic pathways, highlighting the importance of starting lymphatic drainage at the terminus and the profound journey towards better health through self awareness and emotional release. Join us for a transformative episode that promises to enhance your overall well being.
@cecilybraden
@the_lymphatic_brush
@cjbthaimassage
For the diagrams we mentioned in this episode click on the link below to download a copy or yourself.
https://thelymphaticbrush.com/tutorials/#self-care-lessons
Welcome to the Studio Chat podcast, the podcast designed to be your companion in the journey of self-discovery. I'm Barbara Thompson, your host and a dedicated therapist. I'm the founder and owner of Self Care Studio, a private counseling practice With my clients and courses that I create. On this podcast, I'm committed to ensuring that you have the support that you need. I created this podcast as a space for you to feel a sense of connection and a reminder that you're not alone in this thing that we call life, this adventure. This podcast is your weekly reminder to trust yourself, live life authentically and embrace the path that is uniquely yours. Together, we'll explore ways to break free from people pleasing, overthinking, allowing you to claim your time and energy to live life on your terms. You'll be joined by myself as I take you through some episodes or, during the year, I'll have some special self-care experts as guests on my podcast. So, if you're ready to step into a life that's truly for you, join me on this journey. Let's navigate the twists and turns of life together and, more importantly, live your life for you. So thank you so much for choosing to spend some time with me today. Let the studio chat begin.
Speaker 1:Welcome back to the studio chat podcast. I'm your host, barbara Thompson, and I'm so glad that you're here with me today and, if you're new to my podcast, we delve into everything. That's everything to do with self-care, self-discovery and learning how to truly live your best life and understanding yourself. I find it so interesting that as we grow up, we learn things about finances or we learn things about history, but something about ourself, our body, how our body works, how our mind works, how the two intertwine. That kind of gets left off and as a therapist, I'm always looking for ways that not only I can help myself, so I can be a better person, to be present for all the clients that I see.
Speaker 1:I was looking for a way of how do I help people. I talk about brain health a lot and I talk about just health in general and our minds and our body and intuition. I work a little bit differently than a lot of therapists and today I have a very special treat for you. I have an incredible guest joining us, all the way from New York City, and this is all about lymph. You may have heard of the lymphatic system, lymphatic massage, lymphatic self-massage, anything to do with that. This is what we're going to be talking about today, and I'm so honored to have Sussalee Braden here with me today.
Speaker 2:Welcome to my podcast me today. Welcome to my podcast. Thank you, happy to be here and honored that you asked me to be a guest and just appreciative that you're going to take the time to talk about lymphatic health and bring awareness to it.
Speaker 1:It's something that a lot of people know, but it's such an important system and a part of our health and and just our daily lives and our function right yeah, I was trying to think this morning when I was preparing for our chat how did I first find you and your brushes and just the lymph in general, and I actually can't remember which is so interesting um, with the whole lymph thing, uh, I don't know how I discovered it, but once I opened this chestnut of information I was like how did we not, how did I not know about the lymph system? How do I not know that? I've had self massages. I've learned how to massage myself with your beautiful brushes, but also I've gone for professional lymphatic drainage massages and I can tell you now the difference is huge for me. Just one treatment I've noticed, just one area of doing it myself and that's something I want to let people know is even with my clients I work with. Once we do this kind of alongside the mental side, clients come back to me and say they sleep better, they feel better, they have less brain fog. Clients come back to me and say they sleep better, they feel better, they have less brain fog, and I don't think I've ever seen a modality or a treatment that the list of benefits is like a page long, more so, and you kind of scratch your head, going really Like could something like this really help all aspects of our life?
Speaker 1:And why I found your brushes was because I'm very heavy handed. So when I did a short course online about the lymph system and using your um you know, using touch and using your hands onto your skin the lady that was teaching the course was like be very light. No, no, you're still going too heavy. Be very light. And the whole time I was like I know my light is very heavy. And then it was just so interesting that I think the algorithm of the universe and the social media bought me your brushes and I saw your brushes. I was like oh my gosh cool, I can use your brushes and not have to worry about Barbara, you're being too heavy. Are you being too light? Are you doing it right? So you can tell, I'm very passionate about this and I'm very excited to speak to you. One thing I would love for us to start with is just can we know a little bit about you and how you got into this area of work that you do Sure?
Speaker 2:Yes, you know I always say that I equate my story to a game of chutes and ladders, and I don't know I'm dating myself with that reference, but it was this game that I played with as a kid, or played as a kid. You'd land on a square and it takes you up this really tall ladder and then you go a couple, you know, a couple more squares and then it shoots you all the way down this slide to the bottom again and then you, you know, maybe you work your way up a couple more ladders and there's another slide and and I guess that's pretty typical entrepreneurship, right? Definitely it's life in general, in general, um, ups and downs, um, and I think the one thing, looking back, I've I'm celebrating my 30th year in the spa and wellness, um, industry and, um, this year I really took a moment to to stop and take a look back and just kind of seeing where I started, kind of appreciating all of my failures and appreciating the struggle to get me where I am, because it actually led me to where I am, and I think of all the twists and the turns and and, and you know again, climbing that ladder and going down these slides. It's almost as if it was fate, um, that brought me to this point, and it's something that I allowed myself to do. Um in business was follow my heart, follow my passion, um, and try to stay true to who I was and what I was really feeling. Listening to my gut instinct definitely was not about the money, I can tell you that and Really believing in what I was doing, even if I didn't completely understand it. And even if I didn't completely understand it, I had that feeling that I'm going in the right direction, if not for anything else, but for myself. Right, and one thing led me to the other, which led me to the other, which actually led me to the space that I'm in right now, talking with you, and, um, it really warms my heart to to have you say um one, the fact that, um, you're holding my brushes, you're holding the lymphatic brush, that you used it, that it helped you, um, and that you're, that you're taking the time to share it as well, and and and to share um. You know my passion, but it's even more than my passion. It's something that I really worked towards, um, for the last 30 years.
Speaker 2:So, um, I originally. How did I get here? So I originally, and it's kind of funny never wanted to be in skincare, that wasn't, that wasn't my goal. Um, I have a degree in journalism, um, broadcast journalism and, um, when I kind of started going down that route, um, it wasn't for me. One Um, I'm more of an introvert, I kind of like just being in the background, so I'm much more of a behind the scenes um, you know, in my head, developing things and working with small groups, and so I also I didn't really like the industry, and that's another story.
Speaker 2:But from there I thought, well, I do like telling stories and I do like writing, and that was really I do like writing and that was really writing was really my strong point. And so, um, and I liked production, and so what I thought I would do is I would do, um, training videos for corporations. And I really thought of myself more in that corporate realm of creating videos and training videos for corporations, and I don't know what that would really entail, because I never actually did it. I got sidelined and kind of sidetracked into the spa business right away with like my first job, and I went with it and again, one thing led to the other and you know to really to where I am and kind of just kind of you know, stringing me along in that way. But I think I never wanted to be in skincare and it came to me.
Speaker 2:And how I actually got involved in skincare was because I was connected with a company and the Thai herbal poultice company and the Thai herbal poultice and I loved the Thai herbal poultice and for those who are listening and they're not familiar with it, it's organic herbs that are wrapped in this muslin cloth and then it's steamed, kind of looks like a mushroom, and the compressed portion is filled with Thai herbs and ginger and lemongrass and all kinds of different Thai herbs and we steam it and we use it for massage. So you get the heat, the herbs, plus you know that DP and plus the massage techniques and I really fell in love with it, love with it. And, um, they, the, the. The company, um, that I worked with and that I had been introduced to had a smaller poultice for a cranial kind of a head, neck, um, recovery massage and included massage on the shoulders, the neck, the face and the crown and I was like I want that and they said, well, it goes with the skincare. And I was like I want that and they said, well, it goes with the skincare, and I was like I don't want that, but I want that, I want the herbal poultice. I I loved the whole thing.
Speaker 2:I was just, you know, hook line sink, I was there and um, so anyway, I couldn't have one without the other and so I was like, okay. So there I was, um in skincare, but in a round about way, because it wasn't about the skincare, it was about the facial massage, and this was back in 2003. So this isn't like, oh, this was five years ago. This was back in 2003 when facial massage really wasn't a big part of facials. Um, when I began training, I would, you know, ask the therapist or I'd ask the spa, um how long is your facial massage? Because my protocol and the protocol I was there to teach them and and try and integrate into the facial um or massage, uh, treatment was 20 to 30 minutes and that was a struggle and so they would say, well, it's about eight minutes, it's really only about five, but you know, it just kind of depends.
Speaker 2:And I was like, okay, and they said we kind of just use it as a filler. And so for years I actually struggled and fought to get them to take a five-minute facial massage to a 30-minute facial massage. If they gave me 20, I was happy, I would take it fast forward. Um, you know, 20 years and in working and just like I said, just kind of keeping at it and believing that there was something to this, I am hearing from therapists now who say, oh, how do you do this in 60 minutes? How do you do this in 90 minutes? Like I don't think 90 minutes is enough time to do this facial massage. And to me I'm like, wow, like it's music to my ears and it's such a dream come true. Because you know I started really the challenge was to get them to be open to facial massage, for, you know, 20, 30 minutes, and now it encompasses the majority of the facial and there's so many different modalities out there for it. So you know I'm one of of you know a dozen or more different facial massage modalities that are really focused on caring for the function of the skin, and so that's really how I got into skincare. That's really how I got into skincare.
Speaker 2:My focus to this day I don't put focus on products. Products have their place Making sure that you use, you know, good products, you know really well researched and you know organic, botanicals and clean skincare. I'm just going to kind of put it under that umbrella. But it's not about the products. And a lot of so many people put so much emphasis on the products that they're using and they kind of put all their hopes and dreams into this is going to help me with my rosacea, and this is going to help me with my puffiness and this is going to take my fine lines and wrinkles away. And then they turn from one product to the next and well, that didn't work. And then that didn't work. Well, that didn't work. And I tried that and you know, and it's depressing and it's it starts to well, one, it gets expensive, but two, you can kind of start to lose your hope, right, and you think you just have to live with the skin. That I could try and continue to develop protocols and develop products and develop tools is that we're focusing on the function of your skin. So it's not that the products aren't working, it's that your skin's not working at its optimal levels, and so that's where I'm at. So, when people say, oh, I have this and I have that, I'm like, okay, so there's a reason for that, right, but it's within and it's probably, you know, a lot of times we just get in the way, so, um, it's, it's where it's led me, um, it's just kind of down that path, um, and I have to say, always kind of taken the path traveled.
Speaker 2:This definitely was not, you know, an area that was popular, and I didn't have social media when I started, so I kept just thinking, you know, I'm going to find my people, I'm going to find my people, I don't know how, but they have to be out there. And social media did lend that to me, and I think without that, it would have continued to be a much harder task. You know, especially when you're up against these large companies that have, you know, high budget advertising, and you know you have this holistic market that, while it's growing, it's a lot of small companies and it's a lot of individuals, and so the message really, we needed a platform like that and the message is easier to spread and we can show the results and really bring awareness that there's another way, there's a different way, right? And one thing that you brought up when you started with your introduction, that I love and this comes with the lymphatic system as well, which is one part of what I do is when you start focusing on the function of your skin, what you realize is how well everything else starts to work. Right, you, you mentioned it.
Speaker 2:You sleep better, you have less brain fog, you feel better, you know your skin brightens and, and with that, that means that the internal function is better and the regulatory systems of your body are working to be able to give you that glow.
Speaker 2:And it's not just about the glow and it's about the inner function, and that's why you're sleeping better, that's why everything kind of it sets off a chain reaction with all these other regulatory systems, right? And so you know, I kind of say aesthetics, I don't know, I kind of don't like to say beauty, but maybe it's the vanity, right Wrinkles wanting to brighten the skin, wanting to get rid of puffiness and dark circles. If that's the gateway to caring for your lymphatic system, fine, I welcome you, because once you start, you're going to go down that rabbit hole and you're just going to find yourself in a better place. So I'll you know, I always tell people, like when people say, oh, like, what can it do for me? Or how can you know I benefit? Or is it for me or is it just for women, or like no, it's for anybody that has blood coursing through their veins one thing I want to say first of all congratulations on 30 years.
Speaker 1:Oh, thank you. Something I didn't say earlier, um, when I was talking to you before we started recording, is I respect you so much in being this trailblazer, being a woman in business who, like you said, rises the ups and downs and, for me, having my own business, even though we're in adjacent industries. I respect and admire you so much because I learned so much from you. And one thing I didn't say in the introduction I want people to know like lymphatic, what you do is only a part of what you do. You also offer global spa resources for professionals in self-care, and the American Spa magazine also has called you the educator of the year.
Speaker 1:So I didn't, I didn't want to let that go by, and I also want to say congratulations on 30 years, because that is a milestone. So, thank you, that's that's. We need women like you in our lives. You do so much more than just the globe, the, the spa and the self care and and educating all of us on how to take care of ourselves. You are someone that, um, I really admire as well in business.
Speaker 2:Thank you, it's uh, yeah, just you know, if I don't know who needs to hear this, but if you have a dream and you have an idea, just don't give up. You might have to shift and change and pivot. In my bio, the first thing I say is I've had more success. I've had more failures than successes. I create, I create, I create. That didn't work, that didn't work. That didn't work, that didn't work. It's fine, just keep going.
Speaker 2:And you know you can't get stubborn in your ideas, um, and stubborn work. You at where you're at, um, and you have to pivot and change and keep your eyes open and and and, but don't lose sight of your goal. And even if it's not popular, I've never done anything that was popular, um. In fact, if it was a trend, I didn't want to do it. I was like Nope, that passed down. I'm going to go down this one. It looks like Rocky and, you know, needs some wear. So I'm just going to head over here, um, which is great, because those are all opportunities and so you know, you look for those and if it's a dead end, it's a deviant end try another path.
Speaker 1:Yeah, try a different. It's interesting, though, that we talk about this as we're leading more into the lymph side now, because everything is connected. So when I'm in my I'm a therapist and everything I'm talking to someone is I just don't listen to the words they say. I watch their body language, I find out as much as I can about them and find out what they're saying or what they're doing is the last, final presentation. It's not the root cause and that's what I love about what you do too it's finding that root cause. But also, everything is connected.
Speaker 1:So you know how you said in business, you go down this path and this path, but all those paths have led you where you are today, to be able to do what you do today. The lymph system and the body is exactly the same. One thing's connected to the next. The brain is connected to the body, and so many of us and I was, and this was me, because we're all learning there's no perfection, there's no being perfect here. Well, there's no end. You don't get to the end and go. Oh, I know everything about myself, but I was so disconnected from my body If I ever felt off or whatever, I'd be like, oh, it's just an off day, I would never go, why. And even the fact of learning all this lymph stuff about my body and about myself using the brushes fact, learning all this lymph stuff about my body and about myself using the brushes I use my hands and my brushes, but especially with the brushes is I can't believe how I need to sit down, especially on my face when I use your brushes. Instantly I'm like I need to relax. So it's just the bristles on the skin, especially around. So what part of what is that called around by the nose and the mouth? But nasolabial, fold it, it's like your laugh line. Yeah, so around my laugh line.
Speaker 1:I noticed that when I use the brush, I instantly just put it down. I'm like, oh, my body actually says I need to sit down. And it's just interesting that that one movement and how many times do any of us? Yes, we may go for a massage, we may. Probably it's too deep for us and the fact that this beautiful modality is so soft and gentle but it actually has so many health benefits Like I just put my hand on my head and go. How did I? How did I not know about this earlier? But I'm so glad I've developed it. And you know what? I tell every one of my clients about it. Every single person I come in contact I go hey, do you know about the lymph? Do you know? And I'm still learning, I'm very new at this, but I just think it's such a game changer.
Speaker 2:Yeah. So you know, when people ask me what the lymphatic system is, I kind of get tongue tied and I stutter because I'm like it's such an all encompassing question, because it's an all encompassing system, right. And so it's like well, where do you want me to begin? Because it has so many benefits. When I was doing our writing, our training manual, I started out and I thought, okay, you know, let's list. I'm an esthetician, so of course you know, right away I'm going to list the skin benefits. So you know, um, let's start talking about, um, you know, the benefits for puffy eyes and for, um, clearing acne and diminishing hyperpigmentation and sinus congestion, and, you know, minimizing sagging skin. And you know, then you can talk about, oh, you know, attention. Well, then you know you have tension and and we talk about headaches. And then from there I was like, well, it reduces inflammation, so that's good for pain relief, and then that helps improve digestion and and then you know, with that it's going to help, um, you know, with all that excess fluid. And then I kept going down this list and then you know I had it and I was like, okay, and I mean this list is like three or four columns long with all of these indications, and then I was like, oh wait, I have to add the brain, like I'm not even done yet. Because in the end I was like, oh wait, I have to add the brain, like I'm not even done yet. Because in the end I was like, oh my gosh, I forgot about brain health and so we can even, yeah, and that you know your specialty there too is like then we get into. So it's physiological, it's psychological, it's, you know, with brain health and body health and then facial health.
Speaker 2:So when people ask me, you know, what is the lymphatic system?
Speaker 2:How can I benefit? What's the? I'm like, oh God, where do I start? Where do I start? Where do I start? Because it really is one of the most important systems of the body and, as you said, everything in our body is connected and the lymphatic system is really part of all of the metabolic processes in our body because it's closely related to blood, right, and the fluids of our body. And so if we're 70% water, right, there's a lot of water, that's a lot of fluids that are washing throughout our body on a daily basis, right, and what that means for the tissue health. And then you go oh, tissue health. Okay, Well, why is that important?
Speaker 2:Well, what's in the tissue? Right, those are our cells, and the fluid that bays all of our cells is the precursor to lymph. That's where lymph starts, right, lymph starts as blood. But the extracellular fluid, this extracellular matrix, this ground substance, right, this tissue fluid, it's called interstitial fluid and it's the immediate environment that bays our cells and is the communication and transportation network for our cells to receive nutrients and for the cells to communicate with each other. So you can kind of think of it as our own like cellular intranet, right? And that once we start working within that kind of that cellular network or this interstitial fluid, and we start manipulating that fluid and cleansing that fluid and really working to provide a pristine environment for ourselves to live in, well, of course all the other processes are going to function better, right, and so I mean everything is connected and we're actually dealing with loose connective tissue. So, you know, connection, connective, like all of these words, but when you start working with that, right, so we start working with the tissue, and then we think, well, what's in the tissue? Okay, well, those are all the cells and that's actually where we have. You know, the lymphatic system is part of keeping the fluid around our cells clear and, like I said, pristine. I call it clearing the clutter right. It removes all of the waste products, all the cellular debris, abnormal cells, fats, any harmful substances, that out of the tissue right and then it takes it into this network, this lymphatic vessel system that filters it and processes it and repurposes it, makes it over and then eventually returns it back into the bloodstream. So when we start to talk about that, it's the, the you can choose any component you can talk about. Circulation is going to set off a chain reaction that's going to have an indirect effect on the bloodstream. You can work on the tissue fluid which is going to have an immediate influence on the flow of fluids right.
Speaker 2:The tissue fluid that this, that again bathe the cells, can go from this gel like a caught spongy kind of uh, um, in some areas that might kind of feel like it's hard. I say like sometimes it even feels like you have little gummy bears, you know, underneath your skin, because it can be, um, a gel-like spongy, it can be tender and that can go from this gel-like state to a liquid state, which is going to create better flow, right, and it provides the ability for the lymphatic system and these little initial lymphatic capillaries that that kind of appear blindly in the tissue. So it kind of looked like a hand, like little octopus tentacles that come up and they absorb the excess fluid along with all the waste products from the tissue. Okay, so, so, and we can focus on each one of those right For the blood, the tissue fluid, or one of the things that the lymphatic brush does is focuses on the lymphatic vessel system, the superficial lymphatic vessel system and the tissue.
Speaker 2:But what happens is it sets off a chain reaction in the body because everything is connected, off a chain reaction in the body because everything is connected. So when we start working and supporting the lymphatic system, we're supporting our tissues and all of those metabolic processes that happen when the cells are able to communicate, when they're able to receive the nutrients that they need and when we're catering to providing them the environment for them to thrive. And then, if we back up, that creates space for blood flow so the blood can come in and do its job. So when we start supporting one system of the body, it's going to have a positive effect on other parts and other systems because it's all connected. It just so happens that the lymphatic system is this net, this whole net network, right, that comes, that goes from the tips of our toes all the way up, um, to our our head, so, and it's a one-way system, so it doesn't matter where we're working. We're having this influence and a positive effect with the flow of lymph, um, and and, and you know everything that means from supporting our immune system to clearing the clutter, and and means from supporting our immune system to clearing the clutter and and, um, kind of, uh, cleansing out the, the waste, um, irrigating the tissue to maintaining fluid balance, and all of this is going to have, um, I say it's kind of like there are, um, you can go kind of on this upward spiral, right, all the benefits that happen when you care for your lymphatic system, or a downward spiral, and those are all the things that potentially can go wrong, or disease or illness, or health issues, when you don't care for your lymphatic system, and so it it goes. It goes either way because, again, everything is connected.
Speaker 2:And so I think when I start to get excited about the lymphatic system, and and where also is challenging for me is because I'm an esthetician. I start out my, my focus was skincare. I was like, okay, this is great, because this served a need. I'm an educator. I developed this course called Gua Sha Facial Fusion and it fuses multiple modalities, multiple techniques with multiple tools. And if I'm to go back to the beginning, when I started in skincare, I began teaching with the Thai herbal poultice. I started developing this, um, the, the, the protocol for the Thai herbal poultice, and it took me about two years.
Speaker 2:I'm, I'm, I work, I'm, I'm very, um, intuitive, um, I really the way that I learned and the way that I developed protocols is just watching the skin, seeing how it changes, and then really working. Each movement dictates the next movement, right, because as the skin shifts and the skin changes, it's going to change the next step and it's going to change the next technique and the next thing that I'm going to choose to do because the skin is changing and shifting in a particular way. So when I developed the protocol, there was this technique called pump and pull, and anyone that's taken my class they know this technique the hardest technique to master. Taken my class, they know this technique the hardest technique to master. It was a very difficult technique to teach because it's hard to get the appropriate pressure and the appropriate technique and the shift and pull with the skin which you're going to relate to, because that you said. Well, one of the reasons you like the lymphatic brush is because it takes the work out of it for you, right, you're heavy handed, the pressure's too much, you don't know. You know in the right pathway, what am I doing, what am I feeling? And anytime we'll work with their hands, we always want to go deeper, like this light, like, okay, I'm not doing enough, more is always better, right, that's, that's the, that's kind of the thought. It's not more, it's not better. But, yeah, um, so this technique that I was teaching and I taught it for over 10 years, this pump and pull technique was the most effective technique, um, within this, this range, and it was the hardest technique to teach, but it was the most effective. So I kept at it and then later, when I started introducing the Gua Sha tools, I transferred that technique to the Gua Sha tools. So for years well, almost I guess nearly two decades, nearly 20 years I'm teaching lymphatic drainage techniques with tools not intended for lymphatic drainage. However, I didn't know lymphatic drainage, I was not trained in lymphatic drainage. I developed this pump and pull technique. That was so effective that I kept transferring it to other tools because the skin would shift and there would be these amazing results Acne would clear, rosacea would calm the inflammation, puffiness, clear rosacea would calm the inflammation, puffiness. Everything just started to improve when it came to skincare and it was a game changer.
Speaker 2:Going through this and I guess, and talking with about the lymphatic system, but transferring these techniques from the herbal poultice to the Gua Sha stones, and then ultimately what happened is I didn't have a tool that was made for lymphatic drainage, specifically Designed to focus on the lymphatic system and focus on the superficial lymphatic vessels and mimic that natural contraction. I was doing it with other tools, but it was very difficult to teach professionals and then for professionals to take that and carry that on to educating their clients and then from their clients to actually doing it at home. It was lost in translation. The amount of people that were able to benefit from that was small. I started out with the whole. My whole goal was to incorporate this into facial treatments and it was a tool for me to include in my um Gua Sha facial fusion course and make it easier to implement and and um these techniques into a facial and for clients.
Speaker 2:And so, once that happened, I started reading more about the lymphatic system, I started studying more and I started getting feedback from people saying, wow, this has really helped with my inflammation, this has really helped with my lymphedema, this has really helped my brain fog. This has helped my grandfather who has dementia. This has helped my kids who have ADHD, this has helped my kids with autism. This has really helped my patients with Parkinson's. And so, all of a sudden, I felt like I was in asteroids, right, and I was just like whoa.
Speaker 2:And so I've been on this like fast track of well, let me learn about ADHD. Well, let me learn about autism. Well, let me learn about, you know, dementia, and so and they all come back to the lymphatic system, and it's like all of these, all of the chronic inflammation and all these chronic diseases, whether it's cognitive or physical, they all have this common denominator of inflammation and with that, they all have a common denominator issue stagnation in you know, that inhibits, whether it's inhibits the blood flow or inhibits the ability of the cells to get to research destination or, for you know, whatever it might be. And so it's really been mind blowing. And, like you said the lymphatic system is. It's this it really is mind blowing because it all leads back to the lymphatic circulation and lymphatic health, um, and really the health of, uh, the, the flow of fluids within our body and supporting that when I say fluids, it really do mean fluids, because one of the misconceptions and this is something I've kind of spent the last week thinking about is and a message that I probably have not that I need to do better at kind of sharing and communicating sharing and communicating is that we we often talk about the lymphatic system and we talk about lymph, and I love that we're singling that out, because prior we talked about blood circulation, right, and blood flow and increasing circulation, increasing blood flow and blood flow and increasing circulation, increasing blood flow, and so lymphatic system was kind of it's now seeing the light of day. It's kind of, you know, it's the lymphatic time to shine.
Speaker 2:But one of the things that gets skipped over and I think maybe a misconception and that with lymphatic drainage is what I was explaining before is that when we're using the lymphatic brush and we're doing manual lymphatic drainage, what we're really doing is we're focusing on the tissue and we're focused on the kind of taking and manipulating and providing directional flow to the fluids in the tissue, and that tissue has the ability to go from this gel-like substance to a liquid, which a liquid's going to flow a lot better. And so what we're doing with a lymphatic brush and these little nubs, these little finger, little paw-like when people relate them to like a cat's paw right that kneading and that pulling and that tugging and that shifting in the skin, is we're softening the tissue right, the tissue right, and we're creating motility within the tissue so that all of that regulatory metabolic processes can happen. But even though lymphatic brush and manual lymphatic drainage focuses on manipulating and the propulsion of lymph within the vessel system, the precursor to lymph is that tissue fluid, it's the interstitial fluid that bays all of our cells. So one of the things that we really need to do as practitioners and also at home, is be familiar with our tissue but realize that we're not just focused on lymph. We talk about the lymphatic system, we talk about the lymphatic vessels, but they live and they are hosted within this, the tissue fluid right, and that's that's that's where they are really doing their job and that, and because of the changes in that, in that, that tissue, we really just need to.
Speaker 2:We need to expand how we talk about lymphatic drainage and realize that it's more encompassing than just lymph, than just lymph, it's the tissue fluid and then, once it's in the lymphatic vessel, it becomes lymph. And so each, each part of its journey, we can work differently, right? So lymph actually starts out as blood, right? So if we look at the life cycle of lymph, we can start to focus on each aspect, knowing that they're connected and why it's going to set off a chain reaction, and and and each portion matters, um, as we care for the health of our lymph. That's why the tissue, that's why our skin brightens, that's why our skin clears, because it's that tissue fluid, right? And in that fluid, that's where we have the fibroblasts that are spooling the collagen and that whole scaffolding and network that supports our skin, and then that's where the blood gives nutrients to the cells. So we can kind of just get in this kind of loop-de-loop of how one thing affects the other, is going to affect the other affect the other, that upward-downward spiral.
Speaker 1:Beautifully said. Thank you, thank you. There is, with my limited knowledge, I have picked up that there is a certain if you are working on the body itself, there is a certain place that you start. You start here to open up the pathways, is that correct? Just above your collarbone?
Speaker 2:Yes, so we have there's lymphatic.
Speaker 2:So one of the things with lymphatic drainage is it is important to follow the pathways right. So we have these lymphatic pathways that are connected, these lymphatic vessels, this network throughout our whole body and they're connected by these lymph node clusters along the way and, brilliantly, they're in strategic places and um, I call it the bendy parts right. So they're in the bendy parts because they need movement and stimulation to to help activate them. So our body is just absolutely brilliant. So we have them at the back of our legs, we have them at our, at our groin, where we bend, where we sit, when we stand, we have them under our arms, we have them in our neck, which is really important. So the lymphatic system is a one-way system. It doesn't loop like the blood and there's no heart that pumps it. So it starts um it there's, like these initial lymphatics, that these little um, like I said, they come like little uh fingers, like an octopus right, um and the tissue um, and they run parallel with with um, with um, the, with the blood, the capillaries. So what happens is within that tissue fluid, the lymphatic system takes in that fluid through the um, through a series of of different through the lymphatic vessel system, through the lymph nodes, and then uh, returns the filtered lymph back to the bloodstream. Okay, where that happens, the return from the entire body is at the subclavian vein, which is what we call terminus. Okay, so when the lymph, as the lymph is, um, as the lymph flows through the lymphatic vessel system, goes through the lymph nodes, where it's it's filtered and washed Um and um. Then it continues, um, on its way back to the bloodstream. Lymph in the entire body. Its way back to the bloodstream, lymph in the entire body returns back to the blood at terminus. And this is at this. There's this triangle, it's the hollow of your neck right and you can kind of feel it, so that soft hollow at the bottom of your neck. It's a supraclavicular triangle. That's terminus and that's where lymph in the entire body terminates and that's where it returns back into the blood.
Speaker 2:Face, the neck and also our body is open. It's just like traffic on the highway right, if I'm at work and I want to get home, I know the route that I need to take right. And so if there is traffic or if there is an accident, or you know, if there's something along the way, some type of a blockage or a detour and I'm not able to get there right. That slows everything down. If I don't clear that blockage then it's going to be very difficult for me to reach my destination. So lymph's destination is terminus, right, this is its final destination.
Speaker 2:And so what really what we're doing is we're just slowly working to clear the pathway, and that's why working along the pathways are really important. So if I'm working on my neck or, you know, if I have fluids up around my eyes and I know the destination is my neck and there might be some blockages, then I need to start at that destination and kind of work and overlap my strokes up to where my eyes are so that I know that that path is clear and I can get that fluid from my eyes down through the pathways, down through the neck to terminus, to that final destination. And that happens everywhere in the body. So we always want to start.
Speaker 2:If I'm, if I'm working my arms and I'm trying to clear and and and move fluid in my arms, then I want to start with the lymph node clusters that are underneath my arms. That's, that's the local destination from under your arms, that the lymph that, that, that that flows through those lymph node clusters under your arms is going to go to terminus, right. So we have stops along the way. So if I let's say I'm working my arms, I still have to start at terminus. Yeah, yeah, because the, the, the, the lymph that that is directed and goes to my arms is going to eventually go to terminus, um and the same thing.
Speaker 2:So. So lymph comes up through our thoracic doc, kind of takes a left turn, goes into um to go back into the blood and all along these pathways we have these lymph channels, and then we have these lymph nodes and ducts, and along the whole way we're just really what we're doing is slowly making sure that each path, each road, each street, each highway is clean and clear and that that fluid and everything that it's transporting can get to its destination. So the lymphatic system is a transportation system, it's a circulatory system, as is the blood, right, so there so, and the communication system, right, so it's. When we talk about a transportation system, that's just it. It has to keep moving, yeah exactly In order to transport.
Speaker 1:Yeah, and that's a beautiful way I love. Have you got the stop off? So you've got the different points, but then the main point is up around you feel your collarbone. It's kind of up in the triangle up there, and I'll put a diagram up of the even if you just google the lymphatic system, you'll notice there'll be a skeleton with all these lines running down it, with these like little circles, and little circles are those, like you said, the stop-off areas. Um, and that's interesting, everyone's so concerned about doing it the right way.
Speaker 2:The hollow at the base of your neck. You want to start there and it's really easy. I mean, you can just, even if you just kind of rub your hand on it and just warm it up and create some movement there. That's going to help, right, um, but yes, start at terminus and then work from those regional clusters and then just bring everything towards those clusters. I'm happy to provide you with some downloadable maps. We have them on the website the face and the body. That gives you that directional flow. And that's really what we're doing, right, directional flow. And that's really what we're doing right.
Speaker 2:When we're doing manual lymphatic drainage or we're working with a lymphatic brush, we are providing directional flow for the fluids, we're guiding them, we're softening the tissue so that it can flow and then, when we start to follow the pathways, we're just giving it directional flow.
Speaker 2:So we're saying, okay, this puffiness under my eye, let's give this some directional flow, because right now it's pooling and it's puddling underneath my eye and that's not where it belongs, right.
Speaker 2:So I'm going to take the brush and I know the destination is at the bottom of my neck and I am going to give it some directional flow. And I'm going destination is at the bottom of my neck and I am going to give it some directional flow and I'm going to work along the pathways that lead to terminus on my neck. So, along the bridge of my nose, the laugh line underneath my jaw, line outward towards the side of my head, in front of my ears, and then down my neck, I call it the lymphatic waterfall. Think of that trickle down of fluids that's going to take the fluids from where you don't want them to where they should be, and with that it's going to also take any waste products, abnormal cells, dead skin cells in anything that's not supposed to be there either or that you don't want back in the blood. It's going to take it to that destination where it's filtered and processed and cleaned um, before it returns back to the blood yeah, it's also great.
Speaker 1:I know you do a lot of traveling when you educate people and I can't wait for you to come to Australia because I'm going to come to one of your courses but when you fly this, knowing how your body works and knowing how to do this self massage is fantastic for pre and post flight, isn't it?
Speaker 2:Oh, it's been such a game changer. So, you know, as long as I have been in health and wellness and the spa and beauty industry and as much as I've traveled, it's only until I had the lymphatic brush Did I do any lymphatic work before or after a flight. And I don't even know how I ever traveled without it. Yeah, and you know, and and one of the things, so my legs on flights always hurt, like I make sure I exercise before I make sure I get, you know, a lot of circulation going. I'm, I have this whole routine. Um, and then I was like, okay, I'm going to do compression socks and then I go through a whole lymphatic workout or routine because of workout with the brush. So I do my lymphatic brush routine, making sure that I really focus on my legs, all the lymph nodes clusters, you know, in my lower extremities, and then on the plane, I'm focusing on terminus, I'm focusing on terminus, I'm focusing on my neck, I'm focusing on and I just do, and it doesn't even have to be long, right, you can do this in five, 10 minutes.
Speaker 2:If you have anxiety while flying, this is perfect One. It's a great distraction to do it, but it also taps into the parasympathetic nervous system and helps you calm anxiety. And it helps you, you know, feel safe and, um, and, and, and it helps, um, you know kind of uh, um, take those fears away, um, and and and, really calming you down. So it's working on a, you know on on the mental level as well, um, but it just keeps things flowing. And it's working on a you know on on the mental level as well, um, but it just keeps things flowing and it's so important because flying it it really is one of the worst things for your body, yeah, um, yeah so, yeah, no, it's, it's.
Speaker 2:It's definitely been a game changer, and there's two more things I want to talk about before we wrap up.
Speaker 1:This is how I want to kind of fit this all in uh want to talk about before we wrap up. This is how I want to kind of fit this all in uh. Perimenopause is. This is a fantastic way. If anyone's experiencing any of those signs or a lot of women see me and you just get to that age where you just don't feel like yourself or you feel off, or maybe sometimes you've never struggled with sleep and now you are, or sometimes you're biting your husband's head off or your kid's head off, and you're not that person, or things are just getting under your skin when they wouldn't normally. If any of that resonates with you, I highly recommend getting a brush and learning how to do this stuff, because it's going to help you through the change of your body as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I also think you know anytime that that that you're going through changes, um, I'm 54, I'm past all that, um, but I wish I had the awareness of it and I wish I had the brush when I was going through it. That just one, the irritation. I could have used it and I'm sure there was probably be a dozen people in line to give me one and make sure that I was using it. Because it is, it's just, you know, it's. You know that irritation where you're like I'm mad but I'm not mad, but I am mad but I'm not. It's just like, you know, that's so frustrating.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but I think I think that when you start using a lymphatic brush and you start learning about the lymphatic system and probably more importantly, when you start seeing changes cause, that's when we really go, oh, okay, you see the change, and then that's like your reward, right, um, and then you want to do more. It's like if you're losing weight and you're like, okay, I've been working out for three months and I'm literally have not lost any weight, and then all of a sudden, five pounds drops off, like, oh, okay. And so when you're doing with the lymphatic system, I mean when you're working with the lymphatic brush one, you see and feel the immediate benefits of it. But so it's very rewarding. But I think also what it makes us do is we have to engage the tissue to create change, and it's really truly making us use it to become familiar with the areas of our body Right, and it's it's allowing us, and giving us that tool to connect with the tissue and to go, oh, wow, I really feel stagnant here, like I didn't realize my neck was so tight. And then as you start to work and you're like, oh well, that inflammation went down, oh, I can turn my head, and then the next thing you start working along your jawline, you're like, wow, I have some tension in here. I wonder what this little, you know what this little blockage is right here. Or you know, it kind of feels like I just started walking in mud and you're like, and then you start to kind of work and feel and you become very self-aware of how your tissue feels.
Speaker 2:And that's what we're talking about. That's where those metabolic processes, that's where all the magic happens right Is within that tissue. So when we feel that and go, oh, I thought I was just fat, you mean, that's just fluids, and then you start to clear this and you're like, hmm, all right, I didn't go to the gym but I look like I lost five pounds because it's just fluid, it's stagnation, it's just a buildup of excesses. And that's what the lymphatic does is it helps us clear, irrigates the tissue, helps us clear the excess fluid, helps us clear the excess waste right, helps us get rid of all those accumulations that contribute to inflammation, which is the precursor to aging, and most chronic degenerative and cognitive diseases are due to inflammation and have kind of a root cause with stagnation in the lymphatic system. So it's always a good place to start.
Speaker 2:And I say I refer to as clearing the clutter and and you can, whatever that means to you, whether it's cleaning the house, clearing, you know whatever that might be and that's really what we're doing is kind of cleaning house with it. If you focus on the lymphatic system and you clear the clutter and things are starting to function better and you feel better, that was probably does that stagnation and those blockages and that lack of flow and all of the processes that it supports. That's probably what the issue was. If you clear all the clutter and you're still having other issues and you know kind of some detrimental health issues. Then there's additional issues, but a lot of people. It's just a lack of movement. It's a lack of not just lymphatic flow but fluids, mobility within our body. Right, people ask me all the time what's your number one thing for skincare? Movement, movement. You're going to do better going and walking a mile than putting on a face mask, right For the health of your skin.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you know what I love all about this. I'm just going to share with you a little bit about what I do with my clients and why I love this system so much and your brushes so much is it gets people to slow down. We are not connected with our bodies anymore. People are so disconnected. We're so in the fight with our nervous system. Our nervous system is just like pinging all the time. We're stressed, all the time. People's immune systems are like down the toilet.
Speaker 1:So what I love about this is this is a gentle way of slowing down, to actually like the perfect way. You see what I love. Oh, my god, my jaw's so tight. What? Okay? Why is that okay? What am I doing in my day? That, what's one thing I can do. So it connects again. It connects the mind to the body and we start the awareness piece of oh, why do I have this here? Or I feel you know what is happening in my body. It's just a conversation that no one ever has anymore, because we're not taught, we don't know how to care for ourselves, and it brings it back to everyone.
Speaker 1:At the moment is just yes, the nervous system is getting more aware. You know how we have these buzzwords. Before it was stress, then it became anxiety, then it became adhd and then immune system was all around when covid was around, and I think now I'm seeing more about regulating your nervous system and I'm like that's great, but really, at the end of the day, everything is connected and having to understand the more your body works, you're more powerful, the more you understand why you're feeling and how you're feeling, and there's tools that you can do yourself. You don't have to pay any money. Which is what I love about this whole system is this is something you can do for yourself. Um, doesn't take long. No one needs to know. You're doing it and the benefits are.
Speaker 1:And what I say to my clients is they come back and go. Oh my god, barbara, I feel it's not I and I don't get any money saying any of this, but when they do this lymphatic work on themselves, they come back and go. Oh my god, even just doing one side of the body and then just stopping and relax, like when you, even just doing one side of the body and then just stopping and relax, like when you're just working on one side of the face stop and just pause. You will feel a difference straight away, and that's the thing that I love. People go oh my God, it's great.
Speaker 1:But guess what? As human beings, when something feels good, we go ah, it's too good to be true. When is the bad thing? And also, as human beings beings and I'm guilty of this too, I think we all are this is so good, so good. I feel better. I'm gonna stop doing it, keep doing it. So that's the thing is. People do something. Oh my god, I see the changes. I feel good, I don't need to do it anymore. No, no, no. This is something like like when you see a therapist or a beauty therapist or anyone that's caring for yourself. It's consistency pays off and the times that you think I don't need it, today is the time you need it yeah, I have.
Speaker 2:I have one customer, um, she calls it her get her together tool. She says, when I feel losing it, I grabbed for my brush and I just start working right around my you know, around around like the nape of her neck, right Like the crown, like the back of your head and down around the neck, and she's actually tapping directly into the parasympathetic nervous system, right, that vagal nerve pathway. It's like, well, of course you're going to calm down, right, getting stressed and anxiety. So one of the things and again, like I said, I started this with the intention of using it as a tool for beauty and cosmetic and aesthetic treatments and, and really way beyond this, into different arenas. But where it comes into play and with what you were just talking about, is so all of these little textured bristles? Right, they're providing touch and they're providing, um, a gentle touch. So it's just take the textured bristles, connect it with the skin and glide on the pathways, just outward and downward. Right, if you're on your legs, you're going to go upward. It's not really right or wrong. Right, it depends on what benefit you're looking to get out of it, if you want to use this for relaxation or anxiety or just to calm you down as a fidget tool, then you can do that and where. What I would recommend is to do it in areas where we have a high concentration of nerve bundles, right Of nerves, because what happens? And you can do it anywhere, wherever it feels good. But what it does is it's working with the mechanical receptors right, and those receptors, the touch receptors in our skin, take the signals from the touch, from taking those textured bristles on the skin, and it interprets them right. So it sends those messages to the central nervous system, which then send those messages to the brain and together they coordinate a response. And when we're using it with that gentle, rhythmic, slow intention and we're allowing the brush to just connect and sweep, connect and sweep, connect and sweep, what that's doing is it's sending signals to the brain that I'm okay, I'm safe, calm down, which starts to regulate your breathing. Your breathing calms down, your blood pressure calms down, and then again that sets up a different chain reaction and that's a chain reaction with the nervous system, the same way that we have those chain reactions, you know, within the tissue when we're talking about skin health and supporting our immune system. So you know, it's like a starburst and we have lymphatic system right in the middle, right, that's that's, that's that's the core. And then with each one of these, if you follow that pathway, there's going to be a different benefit at the end. So one could be relaxation and that's another thing you know with.
Speaker 2:I am high, strong, I am. I'm doing a lot, I'm I I guess people would probably I read something about being ADHD the other day. I'm doing a lot. I guess people would probably I read something about being ADHD the other day. I'm like it kind of sounds like me, but I don't really know if that's me. It was never, you know something, that I was diagnosed. I just always, you know, I'm all over the place.
Speaker 2:But relaxation and I also wasn't, I didn't grow up that relaxation was okay. Yeah, I didn't grow up that relaxation was okay. Yeah, I didn't grow up we had to be constantly be busy. We constantly had to be doing something. You know, if you were just sitting around and and you know, even my mother would say, well, there's books read, I'm like, okay, so we constantly had to be doing something. We had to be productive, and so I one, I didn't grow up with the fact that you can just sit around and relax Two heart personality.
Speaker 2:But the other thing is that one of the things that I've learned is that you cannot discount the benefits of relaxation, right, taking that moment.
Speaker 2:And one of the things that I've learned in studying the lymphatic system and and through all this and how it works with you know you're saying like just pausing and just taking a moment and to feel good is that it's only when we're in that parasympathetic state that our skin and our body and our brain is able to rejuvenate, rest and digest, rest and repair, rest and reset, rest and rejuvenate All of those.
Speaker 2:And it's the only time you were talking about the brain. Our brain literally washes itself and cleans out all the debris and the waste at night while we're sleeping. And if you think about the fact that if we have disruptive sleep patterns, that's literally not allowing our brain to get rid of the clutter and the waste that allows us to be clear headed, no wonder why we have brain fog, right? No wonder why we have memory issues. By the way, another one for menopause, because menopause, memory, that is a real thing. So it's also how we can help too right With with that memory and help kind of, you know, with long-term um, cognitive um diseases. But if, if the lymphatic brush is used, or manual lymphatic drainage is used to relax and it's going to help promote better sleep, is used to relax and it's going to help promote better sleep, then that's you're way ahead of the game. Yeah, and, and that's great. Will you see other benefits? Sure, but if that's all that happens, you're winning.
Speaker 1:You're absolutely winning it. Yeah, it's um. I'm just so grateful that you've taken the time today to talk to us about something that this is only the start for me. I'm really going to integrate, especially in the new year, this heavily into my practice.
Speaker 2:No, I mean one. I have goosebumps right now with you saying that it makes me want to cry, but I'm not going to, but it does make me want to cry Because to hear that is just incredible and and because it can be life-changing for so many people. Right, but in today's world we lack touch and and and and that just that caring and we can do that for ourselves, but also that awareness and just the fact that you incorporate this into your business for your patients, and to see how far reaching it is, is just beyond my wildest dreams and I literally can't thank you enough. Since we spoke last time, we are close to launching a course that's just for the nervous system.
Speaker 2:Kristen Shaw, who's one of our educators and she's a massage therapist and this is really an area that's that she focuses on a lot in her practice as well, is focusing on breathing and caring for the nervous system and the importance of it, and she put this course together and so it will be available for, like your patients and anyone listening you know anyone out there where it'll. It'll be on on the website, but it is really that important and we were inspired by you as well, um, and wanting to have a program and support that, um, you know, for people who are using it in that way, and that it's not just for aesthetics and beauty, but but we really are now talking about well-being yeah, yeah, and I really I see so many people that are from from my point of view.
Speaker 1:Anyone listening is there's such a stigma around therapy and I think I'm I've been through therapy myself and I know like when you're prepared to do the work and you get uncomfortable, it works. But there's another side that I've really seen now of people. I do something differently in my clinic it's not just tell me how you feel, it's I really. I'm there to almost for people to take away a deeper understanding of self. You know I'm really big believer in it's not your fault, you don't know yourself. I didn't know myself either. I was living a life and this is where we go really deep. Right, I was living a life for other people like, oh, I meant to get married, cool Clip that ticket, got this, did all the things, went to university, did all the things, that society and what we meant to do to be a great human. And I was such an overthinker and I was such a people pleaser and such a giver. And I got to like 38 and I was like, huh, I didn't know who I was and I didn't know what I liked, I didn't know what I didn't like. I looked at all the people and it felt like everyone else was living their life and I was just like blah and if anyone can resonate with that, and that's how I started this whole journey of myself and now I'm so proud. I mean, this is a. This is a lifelong thing, but what I want to give to people is the journey I've been on. I don't want anyone to be on, let's be frank but the gift I can give to people is getting them to connect with themselves and learning about why do you feel the way you feel and you can literally be whoever you want to be and have whatever and actually have good health.
Speaker 1:Most people do not understand or have ever felt good in their life. They wake up and go, oh, like, I've just turned 44 and you know I'm not on any medication I don't ever really want. I know medicine's great and I'm more for it when I need it. Right, that's not what I'm saying, but it's like, if I ever feel it, or a crook Cora, oh, I'm sore. I'm like, oh, what is that? Okay, let me find out. What did I do? Do I do a movement yesterday? What foods did I eat? And I really investigate myself. It's not being about being perfect. It's like this my body is trying to perfect. Way is for me to say this in a way is my body is trying to tell me something. What is it saying? Yeah, and.
Speaker 2:I, our body. It's a communication network, right? Your body is trying to tell me something. What is it saying? Yeah, it's a communication network, right, your body is communicating with us and it's trying to tell us something.
Speaker 2:Oftentimes, when I'm stiff or I have rheumatoid arthritis, which I have really been focusing on keeping inflammation down, and one is lymphatic drainage and a whole other slew of things, but my inflammation is at an all-time low right now and I'm like, yes, and like you said, I do take medication, but I've been taking this medication for oh gosh, since I was 33. Like over 20 years I've been taking this medication. Like, oh, over 20 years I've been taking this medication, which does help I do need it but it hasn't gotten me to these types of results when I really focus on, all right, what's happening with my body, what am I eating, what am I doing? Um, but I I think one of the things that that that I appreciate with, with, with your work and and and how you go about it, with your work and how you go about it and I've been through therapy is allowing people, Allowing people to be themselves, Just be yourself, but allowing just that allowance, and I think that's where a lot of people are right now is, however they're feeling. It's like, well, that's okay.
Speaker 2:So we need to give people the space to be themselves and to feel the feels right and just give them to say we, this happens a lot with the work that we do, so in you know it's in every class and in treatments people will break down and cry.
Speaker 2:Yeah, Crying is one way that we're able to. It's one of the only ways that we can rid the body of the stress hormones right. So I mean I'm like I'll cry a good cry, Say, when all spells cry. So, but it happens when people relax and they feel comfortable and that you give them this space that allows for them to just let go. And this happens a lot in treatments and the first instinct because probably for you too, because you want to help people and you want to do this and you're a people pleaser is you want to be there for them and you want to help them and you want to make it better and do something more, when really you've done what you need to do, you've allowed them to relax, you've allowed them the space to feel comfortable enough to let go just leave the tissues next to them.
Speaker 1:Don't hand them one. Allow when people cry. One thing I notice is people get really uncomfortable and they don't know how to help. So what I suggest is, if you are in the beauty area or in any area where you have a client that cries with you, what I want you to do is just sit there with them, try not to say anything and allow them to cry, and eventually they will stop and just have tissue somewhere. Don't hand them anything, because if you hug them, you touch them or you pass them a tissue or say anything to them, you're going to block that energy from coming out of their body. And another thing I really want people to listen to this Stop saying I'm sorry when you cry. That's the first thing that most people say is oh my God, I'm so sorry, I'm about to cry. I'm like please don't apologize for a release. It's actually a very I have come to.
Speaker 1:I was an uncomfortable crying through my therapy. I would force it, I would push that shit down, I would like block it so much that, if anyone can resonate when you cry, you get this massive lump in your throat and I couldn't talk and it was this horrible lump and I would go oh no, it's coming, oh no, it's coming, oh no. And then I would cry. Now I'm okay with it, but it's taken me years to be okay with crying, because I was just crying's embarrassing, crying's a weakness, and I'm the type of cry that, even if I cry one tear, my face gets so red and so blotchy that I'm not, and I'm an ugly crier too. So if I'm out, I'm out.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I'm happy you said that, because it does happen and we want to fix people and make them better and that's going to just like you said they're going to stop crying and they're going to feel better, and so just, you know, just allow for that. I know we have to go. One quick story I was a mess with my rheumatoid arthritis I had. I was I would show up in classes with ice packs on my legs and I had bandages on my hands and I had a wrist brace and so much inflammation and just really, really, really unhealthy. And I went to this acupuncturist and very, very, very long story short. He looked at me about oh, it took him I'm going to say five minutes, but way less than that and he said you know what your problem is? I was like well, obviously not, because I have been, I've done all this stuff and I'm still in a lot of pain, I have tons of inflammation and whatever.
Speaker 2:And he said that the that. He said you know the Chinese have 36 ways to healing. 36 is just an arbitrary number. But he said do you know what number 36 is? Obviously I did not, because here I am just an absolute wreck on his table. And he said you need to learn how to relax. And I was like okay, and I said, well, I focus on. I mean I'm I really put prioritize sleep. He said, no, that's not what I mean. And I said okay, I said, well, I exercise, like when I get stressed, I exercise, I let it all out. And he said that's not what I mean and I was like, okay, and he said number 36 is you need to learn to let go.
Speaker 2:And at that moment I could have broken down because I knew exactly what he meant and it was so incredible that those two words you need to let go and I was like you don't know me, you don't know me. Yeah, he did, and and I. And I took that to heart and I was like, um, it was really incredible because it is not easy to let go. And I knew what he meant and I was like, well, who am I going to be if I let go of all my problems and my issues? Right, that's who I am, this is who I am.
Speaker 2:But it wasn't and and, um, uh, and really, in doing that, my health got better. My health it it working through that, being like let go, okay, let me just. And it was really incredible. And that is one thing, believe it or not? Well, you do believe it because you incorporate into your work the lymphatic system and the lymphatic brush, and this soft, gentle, rhythmic touch can help you bring into this, can help you can help you bring into this, can help you can help bring you into a space, or you know the space that's needed to let go, yeah, do you know how many, and it's so many.
Speaker 1:Thank you for sharing that with us, because so many people that is probably 90 90 of clients that I see um need to let go.
Speaker 1:We we have a story that we have heard from childhood it could be a teacher, it could be a parent, it could be anyone in our life, or things we've seen, or trauma we've been through that we hold on to and and and, like you said, you just keep holding it, holding it, holding it and trapped emotions and trapped feelings and trapped thoughts and the story that keeps going on, like you said, builds us to a point of it came out for me.
Speaker 1:I didn't know who I was anymore, and then it can come up as pain or tightness or disease in the body. That's just you trying to be like, hey, this isn't me anymore. So thank you for bringing that up, because and it's not something we know how to do it's not as easy as let go. Oh, okay, I'm going to let go, but I think what that beautiful, what that beautiful acupuncturist was saying was he could see the tension in your body of just that you know isn't amazing. Someone can say two words to you and you know what he's talking about. You don't need to tell anyone.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and actually that's how I got rheumatoid arthritis. It really was a perfect storm of emotional stress, physical stress, being tired, not taking care of my body. It doesn't run in my family. I'm the only one that has it and it really was. I did it to myself and it was just you know, whatever is encompassing for that.
Speaker 2:And so you know it does take us time and it's okay. You kind of have to forgive, but you know there's a country and western song I don't know who sings it, but that's my story and I'm sticking to it right? And that's a lot of times that we believe and we're like no, you can change the station, you can change. You know you can change the tune. And so, yeah, no, I appreciate the work you're doing and I definitely how our paths have crossed and the fact that it's just another way to benefit from the lymphatic system and benefit from the lymphatic brush, and so, just, I'm equally honored to have this chat with you.
Speaker 1:Oh, thanks, you just made my day, my year. So if anyone's listening to this, I'm going to include some of those beautiful diagrams. But if people want to reach out to you and do one of your courses or find out more about you, where's the best place that they should come to find you?
Speaker 2:They can go to the lymphaticbrushcom, and they can also. I have several different instagrams. I have at cecily brayden, which kind of is a little bit more encompassing, and then we have at the underscore lymphatic underscore brush, which is just dedicated to all things lymph and the lymphatic brush. Um, I do a little bit of cross-posting, but most of them are different. And then we have at CJB time massage, which is, um, I talked about the type poultice. That is another one that, if you're interested in and we're like, ooh, that sounded really nice. Um, yeah, so, though, that's probably the best places to go, and, as we provide more educational opportunities and access, I'll always have the links on all of those sites, that kind of just link. You know our little network together and you know we have an academy, but you can always find the links anywhere on those pages.
Speaker 1:Yeah, honestly, it has been an absolute pleasure to talk to you. Well, I'm looking forward to my next trip to Australia. We're looking forward to having you and I look forward to meeting you in person and giving you a big hug and learning all about what you do. Because a little side note, anyone that knows me will know what I'm about to say.
Speaker 1:So in a past life I think I was Cleopatra, because as a young woman I have always loved day spas. I've always loved products. I've. I think if I can't and I I respect beauty therapists, anyone in that field I just can't really touch people. I I can heal people from here, but just I like it being done to myself. And if you could say to me, barbara, what's one wish you could have, I'd be like own a day. The joke used to be I wanted to own my own day spa when I was really, really young and I'd be like oh, what I'll do is just go from treatment room to treatment room and all the therapists can practice. This is when I was really young. All the therapists can practice on me so I can make sure they're doing a good job.
Speaker 2:You want to be a professional spa model. Yes, yes.
Speaker 1:And it's just. I've been everywhere I've traveled around the world. I've always gone to a day spa and just have been so intrigued by the feeling Like I was chasing that feeling and being touched. And I'm just such a smell person and just that's my vibe, that's my jam, and it's so interesting. I'm talking to you because somewhere my business will go somewhere. That's my personal passion of you know. A spark can mean anything but along the lines of what you do and all the beautiful countries you've traveled to. And I can't wait to pick your brains one day over a tea or a coffee, because all these awesome places you've traveled to and all these beautiful modalities that you've learned is just excites me so much yeah, and it's really know, my business is a true reflection of that.
Speaker 2:I have I all of those travels, everything I've I've learned, like I would say I go to teach. I learn way more in return and it's just it's become a part of who I am and then my business reflects that and it's brought into it right, just each of those elements, because I mean there's just so much to learn, there's just so many wonderful things out there. But no, I definitely look forward to meeting you and just keep spreading that love.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I will. I will Thank you so much. I'm sure we'll talk again will. I will Thank you so much. I'm sure we'll talk again soon, all right.
Speaker 2:Thank you so much. Enjoy your day.
Speaker 1:Thank you so much for tuning into today's episode. I hope this conversation has added value to your self-care journey and inspired positive changes in your life. If you enjoyed this episode, consider sharing it with a friend who might benefit from this episode. Don't forget to subscribe on Spotify or on your favorite podcast platform to stay up to date on future episodes. Your support means the world to me. I genuinely love love hearing from you, so please take a moment to leave a review. Let me know which part of today's episode resonated with you the most. Your feedback guides the direction of this podcast and I really appreciate each and every single one of you for being a part of this community.
Speaker 1:To fall in love with yourself is the first secret to happiness. To find out a bit more about the Studio Chat podcast, head over to my Instagram page, Studio Chat Podcast. Or if you want to find out a bit more about my counselling private practice, head over to Instagram on self underscore care underscore studio. I'm really looking forward to seeing you on the next episode. Until next time, take care of yourselves and keep embracing the journey of self-discovery.
