If you have been told to “go get a remedial massage” but you are not quite sure what that means, you are in good company. Most people lump remedial massage in with relaxation massage, sports massage, deep tissue, and the dozen other names you see on day-spa price lists. The truth is, remedial massage is its own thing.

The plain-English definition

Remedial massage is hands-on, targeted bodywork delivered by a registered remedial massage therapist. The aim is to find what is tight, sore, or out of balance in your muscles and connective tissue, and work on it directly. It is not a relaxation rub, although you may well leave feeling calmer than when you arrived. It is closer to a treatment than a treat.

At The Health Studio Brookvale, our remedial sessions are delivered by Vaughan Hay, a registered remedial massage therapist with training across deep tissue, trigger point, dry needling, myofascial cupping, sports-specific work, and pregnancy-safe positioning.

How it differs from relaxation massage

The simplest way to think about it: relaxation massage is about calm. Remedial massage is about change. Same hands, very different goal.

A relaxation session is light to medium pressure, broad strokes, calming music, the works. A remedial session might use deep, sustained pressure on a specific muscle group, then a switch to trigger point work on a knot that is referring pain elsewhere, then some stretching to lengthen the structures we have just released. The room might be quiet, or we might be talking the whole time. The session is built around what your body needs, not around an experience.

What remedial massage may help with

The clients who walk into our studio in Brookvale tend to come for one of these:

Lower back pain, often the result of sitting too long, weak glutes, and tight hips. We work the lower back, the hips, the glutes, and the upstream and downstream structures (read: hamstrings and lats) that contribute to the pattern.
Stiff necks and shoulders, the classic desk-and-phone pattern. Trigger point work on the upper traps, sustained pressure on the rhomboids, and some careful work on the suboccipital muscles where many tension headaches start.
Recovery from training, whether that is a hard week of running, a big surf session, or a CrossFit competition prep block. Sports-specific massage is built around speeding up the body’s natural recovery process so you can train hard again sooner.
Pregnancy and postnatal aches. Side-lying, fully supported pregnancy massage is one of the safest and most effective ways to manage the lower back and hip ache that pregnancy brings. Always check with your obstetrician or midwife first. See our pregnancy massage page for more.
General overload. You are stiff, you are tight, you do not have a specific injury but your body is just not moving the way it used to. A remedial session is a great reset.

What to expect on your first visit

The first appointment usually goes like this:

A short chat (5 minutes). What is going on, what has been tried, what has worked. Anything we should know (recent injuries, surgeries, conditions, medications).
The treatment (50 to 80 minutes). You are draped properly throughout. You will feel pressure. You should never feel unbearable pain. Tell us if it is too much.
A short plan. A few simple things to do between sessions so the gains stick.

How often should you come in?

It depends entirely on what you are working with. Most clients come in fortnightly while addressing a specific issue, then drop back to monthly maintenance. Members of The Health Studio Membership Club tend to come in weekly, which is the easiest way to make consistency feel automatic.

Will my health fund cover it?

If your level of cover includes remedial massage and your therapist is registered, yes. We will give you a receipt with the right provider details to submit. Use our health fund rebate guide to check your fund.

How do I book?

The fastest way is via Noterro. Book online here or call the studio on 0409 754 005. If you are not sure which type of session you need, try our free 3-question massage quiz.

If you are at all unsure whether remedial massage is the right fit for you, get in touch first. We would rather have a 5-minute conversation up front than book in something that is not going to help.

What is remedial massage therapy? A plain-English guide