A Bit About Victoria Qualls:

Pregnancy can be rough and Victoria knew it. She sought out ways to help her enjoy her pregnancy more and found massage therapy. After seeing the personal benefits, she was reinforced in her beliefs of massage therapy when she saw how it provided her mother with relief as well. A long time dental hygienist with severe back pain, her mom soon found an improved quality of life with massage therapy as well. 

Victoria soon saw that her personal benefit become a professional passion when she began studying Massage Therapy at Fayetteville Technical Community College ultimately receiving her license in 2019. 

She specializes in lymphatics and relaxation and is sought out for her full body approach with focused relaxation.

Fun Facts About Victoria: 

Victoria is originally from Fayetteville, North Carolina, and is the proud mama to a little boy. While she is still chasing sleep most days, Victoria also:

• Loves camping in the mountains to get a mental retreat with an epic view. 
• Would build a soundproof room to sleep in all day if funds were no issue.
• Is a fan of the color black because it matches everything.
• Wears sports boots and grandma type sweaters in her preferred fall/winter season – sans the snow.

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Have no fear! We are here to give you some answers to those and a few more to set you at ease before you even walk through the door!

Ok, So I Made My Appointment. What Should I Expect When I Arrive For The First Visit?

First, please try to arrive at least 15 minutes PRIOR to your appointment time. This will give someone on our staff a chance to greet you and have you complete some North Carolina required paperwork. This paperwork will cover basic things such as health history, current health status, and what type of issue (if any) brought you in for your visit. It will also give us written consent to perform the therapeutic massage. If there is any delay, it may cut into your actual “hands-on” time. 

Soon after you are finished with the paperwork, we will be ready to take you back to the dedicated space for your massage!

When I First Go Back To The Massage Area With My Therapist, What Should I Expect?

First, the therapist will complete an interview with you. You will spend a few minutes reviewing the forms you filled out, discuss any medical conditions, find out the expectations you have and what you are looking for in a massage to include how you would like to feel after the massage. 

Next, the therapist will explain what will take place during the massage.

Then, the therapist will leave the room for a moment so that you can undress to your level of comfort, get situated on the massage table, and covered up with the sheet.

Now I Am Back In The Massage Room And My Therapist Asks That I “Undress To My Level Of Comfort.” What Exactly Does That Mean?

Here is the thing. If you aren’t comfortable and relatively relaxed during your session, we know that we won’t be able to provide you with the best treatment experience. Part of that is your level of comfort undressing. So it is always your choice. 

You can choose to dress down fully. 

You can choose to leave on your undergarments. 

You can choose to only undress the top half if there is a focus on a top area only – like shoulders. 

No matter what you choose, you will always remain fully draped except for the part of the body that is being worked on per North Carolina State law.

Ultimately, we want to make you as comfortable as possible during your time with us. 

Alright.  I Am In And Undressed To My Level Of Comfort. What Should I Expect To Take Place During My Massage?

In short, the therapist will be massaging various areas of your body using specific techniques in a specific order. If at any time during the massage something hurts, tell them. If you would like more or less pressure, tell them that as well. They truly want to ensure that your experience is a good one. 

Also, some aren’t into chatting during their treatments, and others like to chew the cud. Again, that is totally up to you. Just be sure to communicate that with your therapist. 

Getting Ready To Check Out Post-Massage. Should I Be Tipping My Massage Therapist? 

Our massage therapists are paid a flat rate per massage. Much like with other service providers, tips are never taken for granted and always appreciated.  

If you have received exceptional service and would like to show your appreciation to the therapist, feel free to leave them a tip. (Average tip ranges between 10-25%) If paying with a credit card or check, the tip can be added to the total. The therapist will receive 100% of their tip, less required taxes. 

If your session is being paid with your HSA or FSA then you may not include a tip. This is due to healthcare laws.

We hope that was helpful in clearing up some of the questions you may have had! Got more? Don’t hesitate to reach out because we are more than happy to help!

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A Bit About Lydia Kravitz Quick:

Lydia grew up with genetic and untreated flat feet and hip imbalance. Fast forward to her adulthood and her neglected pain grew with the birth of her children, C-sections, and being behind a desk for her job for years. 

Enter Medical Massage and Lydia discovered practical ways to manage her pain. Once she found this relief, she knew she had to share with others to facilitate their own healing. Her passion for providing care grew to her seeking to be a licensed provider in 2005 with an Associates Degree in General Studies and Therapeutic Massage, studying multiple modalities and techniques including cupping and scar tissue release.

Lydia’s gifted in providing moderate to deep pressure with a broad focus. Her goal is to do as much for the whole body in one session as possible, bringing balance and symmetry back. Her clients love her attention to scar tissue, deep myofascial release, and hip/pelvic manipulation.

Fun Facts About Lydia: 

Lydia is a Florida born, North Carolina raised mama to three with several fur babies. In addition to her lovely family, Lydia also:

• Loves a good winter because summer is too hot and spring/fall gives her allergies the business.
• Is guilty of binge-watching “Games of Thrones.”
• Loves the strategy of Solitaire because there is only one winner.
• Adores childhood memories of catapulting across the creek playing “Survivor.”
• Is fond of diving into the research of traditional Chinese medicine and nutrition
• Indulges in bread, raw milk, and mojitos
• Has a secret talent of touching her nose with her tongue

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After her husband sustained injuries during his time in the military, they were repeatedly advised to, “Take these muscle relaxers and move on.” As so often occurs, that mode of treatment never gave him a long-term solution to his injuries.

So, Brenda was determined to find a better, sustaining way to help him. Her passion for a solution and personal research led her to the Medical Massage profession. As a Licensed Massage Therapist, with certifications in Neural Reset Therapy and Advanced Myofascial Work, as well as a Masters in Exercise Science with a dual concentration in Injury Prevention and Rehabilitation Sciences – Brenda doesn’t take helping relieve pain lightly. As a woman who is fiercely devoted to her family, she developed a personal passion that has grown to a greater purpose, using massage modalities to help the body heal naturally.

Brenda utilizes a focused and methodical technique with a combination of gentle and focused work which makes her perfect for detailed cases such as TMJ, Carpal Tunnel, and migraines. Yes, the same techniques she used  to find the root pain source and apply the resulting successful massage therapy on her husband, works just as well for many other types of ailments.

And, yes, her husband is doing much better and utilizes Medical Massage as part of his regular health routine.

Oh, and Brenda believes so passionately about the use of Medical Massage and the first-hand benefits for her husband that she became the leader/owner behind Healing Hands Body Therapy, her local massage clinic, which employs like-minded massage therapists and allows Brenda to extend her reach to many other military members and civilians who need pain relief.

Fun Facts About Brenda:

Outside of Medical Massage, California born Brenda is often found either with her husband and three children, in the mountains hiking or tending to one of the families various pets including – ducks, chickens, goats, cats, dogs, crabs, and a bearded dragon. She also:

• Loves bread because, well, it’s yummy

• Would never pass up a fruity margarita

• Could break the bank shopping for hiking gear

• Wishes she has the superpower of MRI vision

• Is a fan of the bright and cheerful color yellow

• Remembers fondly the day the Berlin Wall came down because it meant there was hope for her Hungarian-born father to someday see his family.

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Thinking it might just be a new marketing term? 

Or maybe there is some special, new technique that is used only during a “medical massage?” 

In short, the answer to both is simply – no. 

Let’s Start With Modality

To start understanding what a Medical Massage is, we need to understand the term “modality.” In the massage field, modality refers to the technique that a massage therapist specializes in or will utilize on a client for their particular need or both. 

For example, if a client is looking to relax, the Swedish Massage would typically be the modality that is used to achieve this goal. If an athlete needs to focus on areas that are injured or overused, their professional would likely employ the Sports Massage modality.

One Modality Does Not Fit All

Now that we have an understanding of what modality means, let’s get a better understanding of the application.

There will always be someone trying to promote a new and exciting modality. Additionally, many different modalities are powerful in their own way. But ultimately, using a single modality is a narrow approach because it forces the soft tissue problem to fit into the parameters of that modality rather than the root of the issues trying to be addressed.

The biggest fault with the singular modality concept is that one believes that their specialization massage is the cure-all, fix-all modality. While that modality may help solve many problems, there are also just as many that it cannot solve. This results in many clients trying a particular modality, not having their issue 100% resolved, and giving up on massage entirely.  

For example, if a client has back issues, a Deep Tissue massage may work well for some time but they could also benefit from Deep Tissue or Hot Stone Massage. Unless the therapist recognizes this, in addition to a few other indicators, the client will not receive the ideal outcome for the long-term.

A modality is simply just a combination of techniques. Massage therapy, in its simplest form, is a combination of seven different techniques in over 60 variations of these techniques. 

Massage therapy in its most complex form is the therapist fully understanding the physiological effects of each technique as well as knowing when, where, why, and how to apply the technique. 

Also, the therapist understands when to combine techniques and what techniques should follow another technique. This understanding of massage therapy is decades in the making as well as countless scientific studies that show the physiological effects of said techniques. This is the birth of Medical Massage.

Multi-Modality = Medical Massage

Medical massage is a concept. It is an approach that does not subscribe to any one technique or modality. It is the deductive reasoning of the therapist. It is the therapist looking for the “why” behind a particular soft-tissue problem and using their knowledge of all the massage techniques to solve that problem. It is a perfect blend of education, training and experience aided by intuition. 

Every case that comes across a therapist’s table is unique. The therapist must understand the concepts of Medical Massage in order to apply the relevant techniques to reach the client’s desired outcome.

How Else Medical Massage Is Different

In addition to looking for the root cause behind an issue, Medical Massage also encompasses these additional differences:

1. Medical Massage utilizes multiple approaches to solving a problem. Whether it is employing different modalities or utilizing other therapies, a Medical Massage Therapist will look for a broadspectrum approach to help resolve muscle issues.
2. A Medical Massage Therapist is relational. Their focus isn’t to see a client a couple of times with nothing in between. They work towards a relationship with their clients that includes follow-up recommendations and a specific, long-term plan for sustained relief.
3. Stress relief and relaxation are a few of the out-comes a Medical Massage works towards. There are many other outcomes that are desired to include pain management, relief in nerve compression, and an increase in circulation.

The more a therapist understands the Medical Massage concepts as well as the soft-tissue pathologies of the body, the more effective and consistent their outcomes will become.

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