Manual lymphatic drainage in Hamburg-Ottensen

What it is

Manual lymphatic drainage works with very light, rhythmic pressure on the skin. It stimulates the removal of tissue fluid through the lymphatic system. The pressure is deliberately low — unlike massage, this is not about the muscles but about the lymph vessels just beneath the skin.

I completed this training in 2016. Lymphatic drainage is a remedy in its own right and has to be named explicitly on the prescription.

When it helps

• after operations, when tissue is swollen — especially after knee, hip and shoulder surgery
• after injuries with pronounced swelling
• with lymphoedema, including after removal of lymph nodes
• with lipoedema
• when swelling blocks mobility and makes training impossible

How it works with me

Treatment does not start where the swelling is. The technique begins close to the trunk so that the draining pathways are clear, and then works towards the affected area. A session therefore takes longer than classic therapeutic exercise.

Often lymphatic drainage is not an end in itself but creates the conditions for everything else: as long as a knee is tightly swollen, it cannot be trained meaningfully. Once the swelling recedes, active therapy follows.

If compression has been prescribed, we discuss how it fits with the treatment.

What helps afterwards

The effect of lymphatic drainage does not last indefinitely. What happens between appointments matters most:

• Movement. Lymph flow depends on the muscle pump. Regular walking or light ankle movements while sitting do more than most people expect.
• Compression, where prescribed — it holds the result of the treatment.
• Elevation wherever possible.
• No strong heat on the affected area while the swelling is acute.

If swelling appears newly, changes rapidly or comes with redness and warmth, please have it checked by a doctor first.

Billing

I treat patients with all statutory health insurers, private patients, employers’ liability insurance associations (BG) and self-payers.

Whether your treatment runs on a prescription or as a self-pay service, we clarify before the first appointment — you know in advance what to expect.