If you are looking for someone who truly understands the body and healing, who is trained in lymphatic drainage, who understands and works with patients struggling with lymphedema or other swelling-related issues, you have found your person. You must go to Cheryl.
I had major surgery this year (one of them being over 12 hours long!!) and was dealing with a lot of (inevitable) swelling. I also, related to issues with TMJ and bad posture (partially due to jaw issues), have had chronic and fairly severe shoulder pain. Forever. In one of the surgery recovery FB groups I'm in, I came across a number of people touting the benefits of lymphatic drainage/lymphatic massage. Since I was willing to try just about anything, I looked into it. After reading about a zillion reviews, I settled on calling up Cheryl. She was super responsive and we set up our first appointment.
Now fast forward almost five months - I'm still with her and the results have been incredible. Indeed, after only the first few sessions, my surgeon commented on how amazed he was at how fast my swelling had come been resolving. I know it was due to Cheryl. We are now trying rolfing to better help my shoulder and I can already feel a difference.
Cheryl listens to what's going on and makes suggestions and a treatment plan based on those concerns, along with the things she detects as she goes along. She knows a ton about the body (putting basically every other massage therapist I've ever seen to absolute shame). She even came to my house a week after surgery to do a massage on my bed, when I was absolutely miserable and unable to leave the house. She would have come to see me at the hospital, too. She follows up and remembers everything we've been working on. She is fantastic.
She also spends an incredible amount of time with me - more than she really should, given how much I pay her. But she's clearly a perfectionist and cannot let you leave until she's gone through and worked on all the things that need work.
As I've spent time with her, I've learned about the many clients she's had (and continues to have) who have come to her with serious (and awful) issues around swelling, lymphedema being chief among them. These people have stayed with her *for years and years* because of the help she has provided them. (it's not her fault - lymphedema is the kind of thing that requires constant vigilance and thus repeated professional treatment). She has changed lives - truly.
On top of all this she is just a great person. And her dog Bella is absolutely the most adorable little thing you've ever seen.
Oh! And she also does more regular massage and facial/face massage, all of which I've also been able to enjoy as the needs around my surgery have lessened.
In short: Cheryl is absolutely the best. She's worked at all the fanciest spas in Boston, even worked on celebrities (the stories about which are super fun to hear), and now runs her own practice that means the rest of us can see her. I 100% recommend! read more
