MS, stones and poor circulation

[La vida es buena!]

I have a client who recently brought her husband to me for a massage. They had been getting massage elsewhere for several years, regularly, but the mt has recently stopped working. So, she's been seeing me and finally scheduled her husband in. He's got pretty severe MS and benefits greatly from the massage, though it's a huge challenge working on him because of lack of mobility. She has both of them rescheduled for next week but I need some info before I work on him again.

I'm running a special foot treatment right now: soak, exfoliation and hot stone work on feet and legs. She really wants this treatment for her husband but I'm concerned about his feet. The circulation in his feet is horrible. Both feet are severely discolored (various shades of purple) and the skin is peeling off terribly. He has very little feeling in his feet but is constantly complaining that they are cold. Thus the reason she wants this treatment for him. I'm pretty sure it would be contraindicated for him but just want to cover my tracks with you all. Am I on the right track here?

Also, I'm running a hot stone sampler special right now, stone work added to the back, neck, shoulders only. Can you tell I'm trying to beef up my stone business, lol? Again, she would like this for her husband and again I'm not sure. He has no circulation problems in his upper body, just very limited mobility. I wouldn't use any placement stones, he can't lay prone, just use them during the massage itself. Good or bad idea?

Thanks for any insight!
Jen

 

[lumpy]

I would not use the stones on any body part where there is decreased sensitivity or lack of circulation. Yeah the wife thinks it would be good because he is cold, but you won't know that you burned him until the blisters appear. There has been many times that I can handle the stones but on someone with normal circulation has told me that they are too hot, plus pressure wise it wouldn't be a good idea.

 

[Corky Thatcher]

I would think that either exfolliating or hot stones would be contraindicated. There is too great a chance of either burning the client or severely irritating the skin. When in doubt.....don't.

Warm stones might be ok. Basically would you do the same as with the hot stones but with the temperature much lower. If his feet feel cold, even just twarm stones will feel good.

Hot stones on the upper body should be ok since he doesn't have any circulation problems there. Just to be safe, it might be a good idea to slightly lower the temperature the 1st time until you see how he reacts to them??

 

[RockIt]

I agree with everyone else! Just checked my hot stone booklet and it says that with MS, you should adapt the treatment, like shortening the duration, lowering the temperature, or using lighter stones. Maybe you could talk to your client's doctor, and see what they think.

 

[Pinkboots]

RE> hot stones MS client

Hi, I realize I'm a bit late with this post but I've been doing heated stone massage for 3 years and I would not do it on a client with MS. It is a contraindication according to my course work. Heat can build up in people and if you have MS, which weakens muscles, you may intensify that condition. There are many other wonderful things you can do to make his massage unique, without adding the heat of stones. My 2 cents