Autumn 2025 Newsletter

Clinic Updates

New Team Member
Our clinic welcomes our second Registered Acupuncturist, Rod McLean, to our team.

Rod McLean, R.Ac., BA, is an Indigenous person practicing Classical Chinese Medicine. With more than ten years of experience in Chinese Medicine, he understands the impact of stress, trauma, genetics, and culture on our health and aims to help patients benefit from a pain-free, full-health experience. In his practice he uses Five Elements Diagnosis, Chinese Medicine Nutrition, fire cupping, acupuncture, and gua sha scraping.

Holiday Hours

Our clinic is open regular hours on Remembrance Day.

Our clinic will be closed Christmas Day, Boxing Day, and New Year's Day, with reduced hours (posted on our website) between Christmas Eve and January 3, 2026.

Gift Certificates Available

Give the gift of good health with our gift certificates for massage therapy or acupuncture, available in printable or digital format.

Cording... What?
These “guitar string” bands of tissue cause pain and restricted movement

By Maegan Chase, RMT

When does cording occur?

Sometimes after a major surgery like a mastectomy. It can also happen after radiation or chemotherapy. Very rarely, cording can occur on its own.

What does it feel like?

Cording is usually pretty obvious. They are “guitar string” like bands of tissue that can be felt and seen. If they occur after a chest surgery, they often run through the armpit and down the inside of the arm. Sometimes they can run down the chest into the abdomen, or continue down the length of the arm past the elbow. They are very tender — and that pain can increase with touch and when the cords are stretched with movement.

What actually causes cording?

There are a couple of theories. One is that it is the fluid has thickened in the veins or lymph vessels. The other theory is that the outer fascial layers of the vessels has hardened or become restricted. Either way, it impacts the flow of fluid in those vessels, increasing the risk of lymphedema (swelling and retention of lymph fluids) in addition to causing pain and restricted movement.

What can be done about it? How can massage help?

If you notice cording or think you have this while moving your arm into and out of the ranges that hurt, it is important to treat it as soon as possible. Physiotherapists, MLD therapists and RMTs skilled in scar tissue massage can help by manually breaking up the restriction. Treatments can also help calm the nervous system, which helps decrease pain perception. You can also self-massage those “guitar strings” by pressing into and rubbing along them, or pinning them down while moving your arm or adjacent muscles.

Have more questions or are curious about treating cording with scar tissue massage?

Learn More

Acupuncture: Dry Needling

By Sabrina Lundquist, R.Ac.

Decades ago North American doctors started treating tight muscle areas by inserting hypodermic needles into them and NOT injecting anything (i.e. “dry” needles). Over time, the hypodermic needles were replaced with acupuncture needles and the technique has become common among physiotherapists.

After 10 years of taking orthopedic acupuncture and neuroanatomy based acupuncture, I tried Dry Needling level 1. It was a good refresher on separating one muscle from another and common pain referral patterns. Dry needling is very based on treating trigger points, known as Ashi points in Traditional Chinese Medicine, and might help your muscles loosen and lengthen. Sabrina can combine it with overall treatments for on-going health frustrations as well as cupping and heat lamps if the cold weather has you feeling stiff.

Contact me for a free 20-minute consultation.

Book with Sabrina

Thank You & Review

Thank you for continuing to choose Vitality Treatment Centre as part of your healthcare team.

Even if we haven't seen you in a while, we appreciate you as a patient and person with whom we connect. If you feel so inclined, please leave a review on our Facebook or Google pages. Here's how:

FACEBOOK
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GOOGLE
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We so appreciate it, as it really does make a difference.