WHAT IS AN HERBAL POULTICE?

A poultice is a soft mass of material, typically herbs which are wrapped tightly into a cloth ball and applied to the body to relieve soreness, increase local circulation and improve soft tissue mobility.

The poultice is vacuumed sealed in a plastic pouch and opened before each client session. I soften it it with water and place it into the steamer to warm which also creates a natural botanical aromatherapy experience for your appointment.

I offer an orange sized body poultice for Thai Herbal Poultice massage and a smaller golf ball sized facial poultice for the gua sha facial fusion services. What I love about the poultice is that is feels soft and conforms to the body around bony prominences, feels natural and comforting in regions of tension, offering enough firmness to offer compression with the added benefits of the heat and anti-inflammatory herbs.

I can offer gentle lymphatic 'stretch and release' techniques, roll the poultice along the musculature and knead or compress the poultice in regions of tension as an anchor for myofascial stretch and release techniques. The poultice doesn't stay warm for more than 2 - 5 minutes, so it is put back into the steamer throughout the service which allows me to perform manual therapies and feel shifts with how the body is responding with massage between its use. Offering the nervous system different feedback and sensory input with feeling the warmth, poultice techniques, safety, comfort and relaxation.