Wellness

The practice of massage therapy is the assessment of the soft tissue and joints of the body and the treatment and prevention of physical dysfunction and pain of the soft tissue and joints by manipulation to develop, maintain, rehabilitate or augment physical function, or relieve pain.
(Massage Therapy Act, 1991)

Massage therapy consists primarily of hands-on manipulation of the soft tissues of the body:  muscles, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments as well as joints for the purpose of optimizing health.

Massage therapy treatment has a therapeutic effect on the body and optimizes health and well-being by acting on the muscular, nervous and circulatory systems.  Physical function can be developed, maintained and improved; and physical dysfunction and pain and the effects of stress can be relieved or prevented through the use of Massage Therapy.

Modern massage techniques can be traced back to the 1700s and the development of Swedish massage, the first systematic method of therapeutic massage based on physiology.  Today’s Massage Therapists use their knowledge of anatomy and physiology to combine traditional Swedish and modern Massage Therapy techniques with exercise and other therapies to treat their clients.

Before a treatment, your Massage Therapist will propose a personalized treatment plan based on an initial assessment and health history.  The assessment may consist of various tests to determine the condition of your muscles and joints.  Follow-up treatments may also include re-assessment as part of the overall treatment plan. 

Massage therapy is not covered by OHIP, but many private insurance companies cover treatment from a Registered Massage Therapist as part of their extended healthcare plans. Please consult your policy.

All fees subject to HST.

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What is Naturopathic Medicine?

Naturopathic Medicine is a distinct primary health care system that blends modern scientific knowledge with traditional and natural forms of medicine. Naturopathic Doctors are trained to diagnose and treat a variety of acute and chronic conditions. Their aim is to discover the underlying cause of disease and treat the root rather than simply suppress symptoms, as these are an expression of the body’s attempt to heal. Naturopathic Doctors focus on disease prevention, patient education, and health maintenance. They treat patients with the aid of safe, gentle and often non-invasive natural therapies. Naturopathic Medicine works to support the natural healing ability of the body.

Naturopathic Doctors can treat a variety of acute and chronic health conditions including (but not limited to):

• Allergies
• Anxiety and depression
• Arthritis
• Colds, flu, and fever
• Digestive complaints
• Ear infections
• Fatigue and insomnia
• Hypertension and high cholesterol
• Men’s health (prostate, etc.)
• Pain management (back pain, sports injuries, etc.)
• Skin conditions (eczema, psoriasis, acne, etc.)
• Endocrine disorders (thyroid, diabetes, etc.)
• Weight management
• Women’s Health (premenstrual symptoms, fertility, pregnancy, menopause, etc.)

Naturopathic Doctors use a variety of Naturopathic therapies and select the most appropriate ones for each individual’s needs and what they would most benefit from. After taking a thorough medical history, performing a physical exam and recommending/assessing specific laboratory tests, your naturopath will formulate an individualized treatment plan.

What to expect

On your first visit, you will receive a detailed intake of relevant medical history, in addition to a review of current complaints or acute conditions. The goal is to get a thorough picture of you and the factors influencing your health. Initial visits are approximately ninety minutes in length. You may also receive treatment on the first visit depending on the health concern.

The second visit is typically 60 minutes in length, and often may include a physical exam. During this visit your individualized treatment plan is reviewed and implemented. Subsequent visits range from 15-60 minutes and vary depending on your needs and health issues.

Is Naturopathic Medicine covered by OHIP?

Naturopathy is not currently covered under OHIP. However, it is covered by many group health benefits under extended health care and/or through a health spending account. Please check with your insurance provider for more details.

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Acupuncture Visits

On your first visit at Spine Stretch Studio in Aurora, a very detailed intake of relevant medical history will be taken in addition to a review of current complaints or acute conditions. The goal is to get a thorough picture of you and the factors influencing your health from the perspective of traditional Chinese medicine. Your pulse and tongue diagnosis will also be taken. After the intake, your first acupuncture treatment will be administered focusing on acupuncture points on your body that are the most indicated for alleviating your symptoms. 

Subsequent acupuncture visits are approximately 45 minutes in length.

Facial Rejuvenation Acupuncture

Cosmetic acupuncture is a natural alternative to surgery to help you look younger and more refreshed!

Acupuncture to facial points can:

• Eliminate or reduce bags under the eyes
• Decrease the tendency toward sagging and jowls
• Eliminate or reduces puffiness of the face
• Can help to eliminate fine lines of the face and has a diminishing effect on larger wrinkles
• Improve complexion
• Reduce double chins
• Brighten the eyes
• Help lift drooping eyelids
• Promote overall health and well-being!
• Each treatment, facial along with whole body, is tailored to the individual. The end goal is not only to rejuvenate the look of the face, but also improve health in general.

There are some contraindications to this type of treatment, so if you are interested but have concerns, please do not hesitate to book a 15-minute consultation to see if this is an appropriate avenue for you.

Appointments for facial acupuncture are roughly 60-90 minutes, with exception of the first visit which will run roughly 2-2.5 hours. An ideal schedule is twice per week for 3 weeks and then weekly after that for 6 weeks (plus or minus 2 weeks), however this can be flexible and will be discussed during your visits.

Cancellations made within 12 hours’ notice will be charged a $50.00 cancellation fee. Fees are subject to change.

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Manual Osteopathy is a form of drug-free non-invasive manual medicine that focuses on total body health by treating and strengthening the musculoskeletal framework, which includes the joints, muscles and spine. Its aim is to positively affect the body’s nervous, circulatory and lymphatic systems.

These basic principles are:
 • Our body is a unique biological unit
 • The body has the inherent ability to defend, heal, correct & regulate itself
 • Structure and function are reciprocally interrelated. Any structural changes affect function and vice versa

When a body is injured or not functioning 100% it compensates in negative ways. Osteopathic treatments restore the normal functioning of the affected areas of the body by stimulating a more appropriate healing process. It focuses on the relationships between different systems of the human body (musculoskeletal, nervous, circulatory, pulmonary, digestive system etc).  The patient is assessed and treated as a whole unit with the goal to bring the body back to a healthy state of balance.  Techniques are soft tissue and joint based and also include cranial sacral therapy.

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ELDOA is both a stretch & an exercise where you sweat and you aren’t even moving! The ELDOA are a series of static postural exercises that decompress joints and allow normalization of function locally and globally across many body systems.  It was developed by world renowned French Osteopath Guy Voyer, DO.   

ELDOA is a French acronym that stands for Entirements Longitudinaux avec Decoaptation Osteo-Articulaire. In English, the translation is LOADS, for Longitudinal Osteoarticular Decoaptation Stretching. ELDOA is both a myofascial stretch and a static strengthening exercise that helps normalize fascial chains and decompress targeted joints.

Some of the benefits include:

• toning the intrinsic muscles of the spine for more stability and less injury risk
• normalizing nerve function through spinal disc decompression
• stretching the suspensory muscles and connective tissue for organs.
• Increase postural health
• Reduced back and joint pain
• Increase stability
• Enhance athletic performance

Posture IS health. The spine houses the nerves that feed our organs, and the connective tissue that suspends the organs enhances their function and attaches to the spine.

An ELDOA creates decompression, traction and normalization of fluids and tissue.  Where there is dysfunction, ELDOA can normalize muscles, ligaments, nerves, fascia, organs, proprioception and therefore the function of the nervous system and even endocrine systems is noted. Using the idea that mirco movement enhances macro function, ELDOA affects local and global body systems bringing them into harmony. It’s not unusual for a client with back pain to do ELDOA and experience less back pain, but also have normalized digestion, reproductive function, better sleep, less heart palpitations and more due to the effects of an ELDOA practice.

Understanding ELDOA takes more than just memorizing what the ideal postural position for that joint segment would look like. It will look different for each person based on their limitations.  An understanding of complexity and systems theory is taught in ELDOA courses to help the practitioner truly understand how the body works as a whole and where to intervene. A functional understanding of the body’s fascia system is necessary to understand how to put the fascia chains into tension for each person’s body limitations. The wonderful thing about ELDOA is that it can be used as a tool for assessment as well. Upon getting a client into the position for a specific ELDOA we can see the dysfunction in areas that give us clues to further help this person experience better health and function in their body.

Everyone benefits from ELDOA. The posture itself is a static hold for one minute that creates an aerobic metabolism and the byproducts of which are heat and water- sweat! That’s right, you’re not moving, but you’re sweating. This building up of heat and kinetic sense in the spinal joint creates a polarity change at the disc membrane level allowing sodium ions and water to flow back into the disc, rehydrating it and increasing space in the joint by normalizing supporting muscle tone. In some cases a fluidic model for performing an ELDOA may be used where the person goes in and out fluidically holding only for 10-15 seconds a few times to release adhesive patterns and move more fluid initially before attempting, as a progression, the full ELDOA.

Yoga Tune Up® is a corrective exercise format that improves overall strength, flexibility and co-ordination. It has a scientific approach to movement, with a yogic perspective. In class we will use therapy balls to help release and activate the tissues and muscles we will be focusing on, then we will use classical yoga poses and specially designed exercises to strengthen our muscles and joints through proper alignment and muscle engagement.

Yoga Tune Up is beneficial for everyone and EVERY BODY! Whether  you are new to yoga, or interested in exploring a different approach to your regular practice, this class is for you!

This is an all level class.  Drop in and class packs available.