Yes! Your practitioner is happy to collaborate with your medical team. In certain instances, your practitioner will request medical documents (x-ray results, etc) in order to provide the best treatment possible.

Your bodywork appointment time is reserved for you and may not be fillable in instances of late cancellation. As such, Fortified Roots has a 24 hour cancellation policy for all bodywork appointments.

When it comes to massage therapy, deep pressure is quite subjective. The amount of force or pressure applied to one person may cause no discomfort while being quite intolerable to another. As such, your massage therapist will modify techniques to be suitable to your body’s needs. There are certain types of soft tissue tension that release best with firmer pressure. This pressure is counter-productive if the client is not able to relax. Deep breathing can improve one’s ability to relax when the pressure is intense. Deep tissue bodywork may leave the client a bit tender for the next day or two, but it should never result in bruising. Please let your therapist know if this happens. Also, please feel free to give your therapist feedback during the treatment so you can have the best experience and results.

That said, not all deep bodywork is done by heavy pressure. Craniosacral therapy is able to release fascial restrictions that are anatomically deep (such as the fascia surrounding the spinal cord) using light pressure. Releasing deep fascial restrictions in this way can produce profound results.

Massage therapy is typically done using oils or cream on the skin to apply various techniques to manipulate soft tissues. After connecting with the therapist to discuss the session’s goals, the therapist will step out of the treatment room. Clients then disrobe to their comfort level and lay on a treatment table under a sheet for comfort and privacy. Only the areas being worked on are uncovered during the treatment. Treatments may be general (“full body”) or target a body region to achieve specific results, such as shoulder dysfunction or low back pain. Pressure and techniques used vary - gentle/firm, superficial/deep, stimulating/soothing, - based on what the body needs to release tension and to meet the goals of the session.

Craniosacral therapy is also performed on a treatment table, but clients remain clothed and no oil/cream is used. Clients should wear loose, comfortable clothing, such as athletic attire, and remove all belts, jewelry, footwear, etc. Techniques are gentle and calming, but can cause deep and profound change in the body. As with massage, craniosacral sessions may either be general and treat all areas of the body or focused.

With both types of bodywork, clients are encouraged to give the therapist feedback regarding comfort and depth of pressure being used. Music is available at the client’s request, but not required.

The bittersweet of this is no. While this may present financial challenges, the benefit of being outside of insurance coverage is that your therapist is free to apply all her expertise to craft the best individual plan for you without the restrictions of a 3rd party. That translates to better, more comprehensive treatments - clients coming in with one complaint can walk away having multiple issues addressed that were previously unknown without having to jump through bureaucratic hoops for approval. If finances are a hinderance for much-needed treatment, feel free to talk to your therapist about alternative payment options.