Lisa Levitt Gainsley - The Book of Lymph: Self-Care Practices to Enhance Immunity, Health, and Beauty

A flower blossoms thanks to the nutrient-rich environment in which its born. We relish its smell and its beauty even when the real glory belongs to its network of roots.

Within each of us there exists a similar invisible system that is continually working beneath the surface and is connected to every inch of our bodytidying up and sending vitality and support to ensure that we are the most radiant and healthiest version of ourselves. This is the lymphatic system.

Lymph constantly replenishes us. Every cell in your body is literally bathed by its fluid; its the often overlooked missing link to vibrant health. Your lymphatic system cleanses and nourishes every other system of your body. It acts like a garbage collector, sweeping immune cells through your body to weed out anything that threatens your well-being, making lymph your first line of defense against illness. Your lymphatic system is responsible for maintaining your fluid balance, which can help keep inflammationan underlying factor in many diseasesat bay. It enables you to properly digest and eliminate food. Its also what gives your skin its healthy glow.

Harnessing the power of lymph for self-healing has been my mission in life. Ive dedicated my entire career to working with peoples lymphatic systems because the results are nothing short of life changing. Ive worked with thousands of people whove come to me for help with nearly every medical condition under the moon, from cancer to chronic fatigue, from gastrointestinal disorders to Lyme disease, eczema, acne, chronic headaches, and PMS. Ive also treated many healthy young people who are interested in experiencing the detoxifying and beauty-enhancing effects of lymphatic drainage while seeking to avoid the chronic illnesses their parents deal with.

Often my clients have struggled to locate someone who offers the treatments I do; its not easy to find a qualified lymphatic therapist. They dont exist in every town or community. Some practitioners are trained solely in the beauty benefits of lymphatic massage, while others have certifications to work with more serious health issues and enhance the immune systems of their clients. I wish it were easier for everyone to access a lymphatic expert, but what Ive learned over decades of experience is that although a qualified and experienced practitioner is a wonderful resource, everyone can learn the tools necessary to stimulate and strengthen their own lymphatic system. You can take an active role in self-healing with your own hands.

Maybe youve heard that you can stimulate your lymphatic system by rebounding on a trampoline, by dry-brushing, or by doing inversions in a yoga class, all of which are in fact ways to get your lymph flowing. The methods I will share with you in this book are even more efficient than any of these activities because they specifically target the areas where your immune cells do their most productive workin your lymph nodes. You will learn simple, three-to-five-minute lymphatic self-massage sequences that will address your most pressing concerns, from focusing on immune health to aiding digestion to reducing bloat and achieving glowing skin. Unlike deep-tissue body workwhat most people think of when they hear the word massagelymphatic therapy is much gentler. Lymphatic massage strokes concentrate on the fluid found just under the skin, which is why the touch is so light and nurturing.

How can manipulating lymph offer so many benefits? When lymph flows, everything else flows, too. Lymphatic self-massage helps eliminate toxic materials, and when you do it on a regular basis, you prevent toxins from accumulating and damaging your bodys systems. The routines I offer in this book are grounded in science, tested and perfected over my decades of clinical work, and almost as relaxing as a day at the spa. Once you apply these routines consistently, they will become as routine as brushing your teeth. Not only will you love how you feel, but youll tap into your bodys innate ability to cleanse itself from the inside out. Youll also find that the practice of self-massage can improve your mood and lift your emotions as well as mitigate physical ailments such as headaches, earaches, and fluid retention. Lymphatic self-massage will soon become your favorite tool in your holistic toolbox. It will enable you to release congestion in your body, reconnect to the flow of life, and enjoy luminous health.

Ive spent my entire adult life learning and practicing the healing tradition of lymphatic massage. My path began in the late 1970s, the moment my parents sat my brother and me down on the brown plaid couch in our living room and told us that our mother had cancer. I was just shy of eleven years old.

Before I knew it, I was immersed in all aspects of her illness. First there were the sterile hospitals and the waiting rooms of brain surgeons, assimilating words such as radiation and chemotherapy and their consequences into my schoolgirl vocabulary. Then there was the realm of alternative healing practices that was of equal importance to my family. This included the Silva Method, aimed at healing oneself by entering a deeper state of consciousness through meditation. Different from other types of meditation I would later study, the Silva Method uses guided visualization techniques to improve well-being. My brother and I would carve out forts and comfy places for ourselves on the floor and meditate, imagining laboratories and healing sanctuaries inspired by the ocean, the moon, and grassy hillsides, willing our mom to get better. It was in these visions that I took my first forays into the idea of healing.

I used to lie with my mother while she listened to cassette tapes of tranquil waters with blooming lily ponds and meditate, my hand on her body. We ate carob and kefir, probiotics and macrobiotics, fermented veggies and spirulinaall wildly fringe choices at the time. The comforting smell of herbal teas and potted plants in our home provided a cozy antithesis to the stark and painful procedures my mother endured. This kind of healing seemed so normal and logical that I never thought of it as unusual.

I knew that those moments with my mother were sacred. They were special and tender. I wasnt afraid of her illness. For someone that young, I felt remarkably calm and stable. Looking back at it all now, I see that I was developing sensitivity. In those years I learned how to touch someone who was fragile. I enjoyed being helpful and seeing how much better my mom felt as a result of my touch.

When self-healing is an act of unconditional love, grace flows willingly. I had no idea how much that era would shape the trajectory of my life. After my mothers death, when I was thirteen, I looked for ways to make sense of her loss. I searched for meaning at the metaphysical bookstore the Bodhi Tree in Los Angeles. I was drawn to books on reincarnation, Hinduism, Buddhism, and existentialism on the wooden shelves. I spent hours roaming up and down the aisles, hanging on to quotes about varying cultures views on death and the meaning of life. I started a yoga practice. The void within me pushed me to experiment with how I felt in my body, and I became driven by the desire to pursue what preventive health practices could mean and how to achieve them.

By the time I attended college at San Francisco State University, I was sensitive to how my body felt in various environments, how my mood changed around certain friends and under stress, and the effect the foods I ate had on my belly. I took courses in holistic health and yoga and became obsessed with anthropology, the mind/body connection, and, in particular, the way different cultures approached healing. It was the late 1980s and early 1990s, and alternative modes of healing werent yet widely accepted in Western medicine. (Acupuncture, for example, was seen as woo-woo then; now it is used in practically every pain clinic and hospital in the country.) I graduated with a degree in cultural anthropology and a minor in religious studies, my intention being to study ancient healing traditions and integrate them to help people get well. But I realized I wanted a more hands-on and less academically oriented career.