Thank you for visiting my web site. If you are visiting this site, you may have health concerns or general questions about the medical condition called lymphedema, or about other swelling conditions that may be helped by manual lymph drainage therapies.  Perhaps you are hoping to learn whether any kind of medical or therapeutic treatment is offered to assist in managing these types of conditions. I hope that you will find all of the information you seek to answer your every question and concern.  Please feel welcomed to contact me if there is something you hoped to learn but didn’t find in these pages.  

I am a Registered Massage Therapist and a LANA Certified Lymphedema Therapist in the Niagara region of Ontario, Canada.  I work with lymphedema and other chronic swelling patients exclusively, and offer consultation, complete decongestive therapy including manual lymph drainage, bandaging and compression therapy, self-care technique education, and assessment and fitting for compression garments. All therapy is by appointment only, and is focused and results-oriented.

I have been a massage therapist since 1997, and have successfully completed training programs in both the U.S. and Ontario.  I have been a lymphedema therapist since 1998 and have enjoyed the honour of teaching, writing and presenting at conferences and workshops on the subject of lymphedema and its treatment. In addition, I have extensive experience in a physiotherapy setting and with recommending and fitting for custom manufactured compression garments.

About LANA

“The Lymphology Association of North America (LANA) is a non-profit corporation composed of healthcare professionals, including physicians, nurses, massage therapists, physical therapists, and occupational therapists experienced in the field of Lymphology and lymphedema. They have acknowledged the need for a national certification examination for lymphedema therapists, to test knowledge considered fundamental in the treatment of lymphedema.”   (Excerpted from the LANA website)

I took the first certification exam offered by LANA in May of 2001, and recertified in 2008.

The Lymphology Association of North America is not associated with any one school that teaches lymphedema therapy. Nor is LANA in the business of certifying any such schools. Instead, LANA offers an objective third-party exam that gives successful candidates a certification above and beyond their school certification. This is a postgraduate accomplishment that the profession has agreed is the standard for lymphedema therapists.

LANA certification is not mandatory for lymphedema therapists, but it does acknowledge that the therapist has met certain standards of education and professionalism.

In Canada, most lymphedema therapists are graduates of the Dr. Vodder School North America. The Vodder School offers recertification to its graduates every two years. This effectively provides a standard of education and professionalism to graduates of that school that is similar to the LANA certification.

For more information, see the LANA website by CLICKING HERE