Hugo Ramos
My name is Hugo and I’m a Remedial Massage Therapist. Before moving to Goonellabah I lived in Sydney’s beautiful Pittwater Peninsula. I worked as a Massage Therapist for 8 years at a clinic in Mona Vale and 2 years in Annandale. In 2015 I moved to Goonellabah to study Osteopathy at Southern Cross University.
All my life I was physically active but it wasn’t until I had debilitating low back pain at the age of 23 that I got my first massage. I’ll never forget it because I had been carrying that pain for months and when I walked out of the clinic I was pain free and remained pain free for about a week (which after months of daily pain is a big improvement). At the time I was in England doing some heavy duty agricultural work and previously I had tried physiotherapy to no avail. That experience stayed with me and triggered an interest in massage that escalated into studying Remedial Massage Therapy and later working full time as a Remedial Massage Therapist.
I see massage as a fundamental piece in the puzzle of health and wellbeing. I believe everyone would benefit from a regular massage. We all sit in chairs and cars. We all look at computers and phones and tablets. We all have some type of stress in our lives. This daily use and misuse of the body causes tension to accumulate in different areas of the body and we can go months and years without noticing it. Massage helps to identify and release some of this tension that can lead to painful conditions later. Why wait?
I practice Remedial Massage at my home clinic which I share with my beautiful partner Tia.
What I do
In 2006, I completed the Diploma of Remedial Massage at Sydney’s Nature Care College and have been working as a Remedial Massage Therapist ever since. In 2015 I moved to Goonellabah to study Osteopathy at Southern Cross University.
Most of what I do during a treatment is hands on soft tissue massage with an emphasis on trying to release the deeper layers of muscle and fascia because that’s where I find most of the problems are. Typically I start with broad general massage covering large areas of the body and as the treatment progresses I get more specific and hone in on tight spots. But I’ll change my approach depending on the patient’s request. Some people like a deeper stronger approach other prefer a more gentle one. My main goal is to create a change and improve the condition of the tissues.
I can address tightness in any part of the body but the neck and shoulder area is where most of the complaints I see are. So over the years I’ve gain quite a lot of experience addressing stiffness in necks and shoulders. The second most common complaint I see is low back stiffness.
Over the years I’ve worked with all kinds of people, from the elderly and frail to the young and super fit. On my massage table I have had elite and professional athletes, Hollywood celebrities, pregnant women, stressed office workers, hard working tradesmen, people with disabilities and everything in between. But my most regular clients are usually people over 40 that want to stay physically active and find regular massage to be a key component of their health care regimen.
As part of the treatment and depending on what is pertinent, I might spend some time doing assessments to determine range of motion, flexibility, strength and stability. Sometimes I like to give my patients some practical advice or some homework, usually some stretches and movement routines or postural cues. I find that massage alone can be very helpful at dealing with some types of muscle tension, but some people I see have carried tension in their bodies for years and in those cases some postural awareness and corrective exercise can really maximize the benefits of the massage.
In addition to the Diploma of Remedial Massage I have also done Continuing Professional Education programs. Here’s some of the courses I’ve attended:
- ONSEN Technique Volume I,II and III (with Jeff Murray)
- Structural Assessment and Correction of the Shoulder (with Jeff Murray)
- Demystifying the Pelvis & SIJ (with Taso Lambridis)
- Integrated Corrective Exercise Level 1 (AOK Health)
- Myofascial Dry Needling Workshop 1 (with Stewart Condie)
- Clinical Orthopedic Manual Therapy, Lower Back and Pelvis (with Joe Muscolino)
- Advanced Assessment & Joint Mobilisation of the Spine (with Joe Muscolino)
- Heart Rate Variability (HRV) for Improved Sports Performance Webinar (with USA Triathlon)
Contact Hugo
Remedial Massage
Location
Home Clinic located at 93 Fischer St, Goonellabah, NSW