Overview
Therapeutic massage is treatment-focused work. It targets a specific problem — muscle tension, an injury, a chronic pain pattern — rather than general pampering. Your Registered Massage Therapist assesses how you move, then treats the cause, not just the sore spot. It's covered by most extended health plans, and you can book online at our South Granville clinic.
What is therapeutic massage?
It's hands-on treatment with a goal. Rather than a one-size session, your RMT takes a health history, watches how you're moving, and works on the structures driving your discomfort: tight muscles, restricted joints, strained or overused tissue. The aim is a measurable change you can feel. Less pain. More fluid range through a movement that was restricted.
The techniques shift to fit the problem in front of the therapist. Firmer pressure where a knot needs it, lighter work elsewhere to calm the nervous system, some stretching, trigger-point release on the spots that refer pain. That range is why one therapeutic session can handle a fresh injury and the next can chip away at tension you've carried for years.
How is it different from a spa massage?
A spa massage is built around relaxation. Therapeutic massage is built around a result. The biggest practical difference is the person doing it: ours are Registered Massage Therapists regulated by the CCHPBC, so the session opens with an assessment and is recorded as treatment. That paperwork is also what lets the receipt go through extended health and ICBC, which a spa massage can't. Want to switch off rather than fix something? Our relaxation massage is the better booking.
What does therapeutic massage help with?
Most people come in for a handful of recurring problems. Neck, shoulder and upper-back tension from desk work. Low-back pain that keeps returning. Headaches and jaw (TMJ) tension. Sciatic or nerve-related pain, repetitive-strain injuries, and recovery after a strain, sprain or motor-vehicle injury. Our overview of the conditions we treat walks through how RMT-led massage helps with each. If a crash is what brought you here, how ICBC-funded massage therapy works explains the pre-approved sessions and what to bring. If your concern isn't on that list, mention it when you book — your therapist will tell you honestly whether massage is a good fit or whether someone else here is the better first stop.
Therapeutic massage — frequently asked questions
Yes. Sessions are with a Registered Massage Therapist, so they qualify for extended health coverage and ICBC claims. We direct-bill more than 20 insurers, which usually means you only pay the part your plan doesn't cover.
No referral is needed to book with us. Some insurance plans ask for a doctor's note before they'll reimburse massage, so it's worth checking your own policy — but you can book and be treated without one.
Deep tissue is one technique within the broader therapeutic toolkit — firmer, slower pressure for the deeper layers. A therapeutic session may include deep tissue work, but it's chosen to fit your problem. If deep pressure is what you're after, see our deep tissue massage page.
Therapeutic Massage is available at our South Granville RMT clinic at 201-3077 Granville St, Vancouver, BC.
Book therapeutic massage in Vancouver
Tell us what's bothering you and we'll treat the cause. Book online with one of our RMTs at 201–3077 Granville St, South Granville.