Aug 18

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Wednesday, August 18, 2010 

Occasionally I see a client who is an amputee suffering from phantom pain. Unfortunately, my client lost a hand as the result of a car accident in childhood. Pains in the missing hand along with a cramping sensation are the annoying symptoms that pop up from time to time. I usually do a full body massage, but sometimes the client will request just a hand massage if pressed for time.

Phantom pain is unique to amputees. They mention pain that comes from the body part that is missing. This pain is not limited to extremities however. People who have lost other body parts such as a breast or an eye have also report phantom pain. Even though the body parts are missing, the nerve endings still send pain signals to the brain to make the brain think that the body part is still there. Research shows that some type of abnormal brain and central nervous system process is going on.

What do I do for my client? In either the full body massage or the hand massage, I massage both hands. I treat the missing hand as if it were still there, and perform wrist and forearm massage as well. My client feels that massage therapy is helpful in keeping the pain in check.