We listen first
A 60 to 90 minute first session with the time to be properly heard: history, medications, sleep, digestion, energy, mood, and cycle. Pulse and tongue diagnosis follow, and you leave with a TCM working diagnosis you understand.
Lymphatic Care
Lymphatic Drainage
Specialist manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) in Marylebone for post-surgical recovery, lipoedema, and chronic swelling: a gentle, light-pressure clinical technique, not a spa massage.
The short answer
What this treatment is
Your lymph is not pumped by the heart. It moves when you move, carried along by the motion of your muscles and joints, or when a skilled pair of hands moves it for you. That is the whole principle behind this treatment.
Manual lymphatic drainage uses precise, very light, rhythmic strokes to support the lymphatic system: the network of vessels and nodes that clears interstitial fluid, immune cells, and metabolic by-products. The pressure is much lower than for deep-tissue or remedial massage, because the goal is to mobilise fluid through the lymphatic capillaries rather than to manipulate muscle.
At the Marylebone clinic, MLD is most often used for:
- Recovery after surgery, aesthetic or gynaecological, as part of our post-op recovery care.
- Conservative lipoedema management and chronic oedema.
- Postpartum swelling, within wider postpartum recovery.
- Supportive care during and after cancer treatment, with your oncologist's sign-off.
Sessions are unhurried and tailored to the reason you are coming, and where pain, sleep, or stress are part of the picture we can combine MLD with acupuncture.
At your first appointment there is time to be properly heard
Your history, your cycle, your energy, and what matters to you. The first session runs 60 to 90 minutes depending on the service: medical history, current medications, sleep, digestion, energy, mood, and your menstrual cycle where relevant. Pulse and tongue diagnosis follow, and from this we arrive at a TCM working diagnosis you understand.
You leave with a written summary of what was done, why, and the plan for your next session.
Claudia provides the best lymphatic drainage massage in London. She can scan your body like no one else. I almost fell asleep during my 90-minute session — the time flew by. Thank you Claudia!
Read on Google
Claudia is a true healer! I arrived very tense after a long flight and she was able to help calm and reset my nervous system. I highly recommend the 1-hour lymphatic massage.
Read on Google
I had a great lymphatic drainage session with Claudia. After having sinus surgery to remove polyps and dealing with congestion, I felt so much better after the session. Highly recommend!
Read on Google
Claudia is wonderful. Her treatments are incredibly relaxing. She is attentive and asks questions ahead of time to be more targeted during the sessions. Her treatment rooms promote a sense of calm. I would highly recommend her!
Read on Google
Fees and booking
Book by WhatsApp or phone on +44 7455 005 334. We agree a clear plan at your first session and reassess it at every visit, so you always know what your care involves and why.
- First consultations run 60 to 90 minutes depending on the service; follow-ups are 60 to 75 minutes
- Fertility acupuncture from £125 for the initial 90-minute consultation, with follow-ups at £85
- Lymphatic drainage from £130 for 60 minutes, or £160 for 90 minutes
- Programme, herbal, and block fees are confirmed at your first consultation
Your journey
with Body Perfected
Every plan starts with being properly heard. We find what is driving your picture, treat it with the right combination of pillars, and evolve the plan with you as your body responds.
Treatment, tailored to you
Acupuncture, moxibustion, cupping, tuina, manual lymphatic drainage, herbal formula: chosen for your TCM diagnosis, not by default. Sessions run 60 to 75 minutes, and you leave each one with a written summary of what was done and why.
We evolve with you
Pulse, tongue, and current symptoms are reassessed at every visit, and the toolkit and herbal formula adjust as the picture shifts. Plans are agreed in 6-week or 12-week blocks, so you always know where you are in the arc.
Care that lasts
As things settle, treatment moves to a maintenance frequency: keeping your cycle, energy, and recovery steady. Where you have a GP, fertility clinic, or surgeon involved, we coordinate with them throughout.
Integrative care that treats the cause of your symptoms. Rooted in 2,000 years of Chinese medicine, delivered for modern life, from Marylebone since 2010.
- You see the same practitioner at every visit, so your TCM diagnosis (pulse, tongue, history) carries forward and treatment evolves as the picture shifts.
- Over 20 years of clinical practice across 4 integrative pillars: acupuncture, nutritional therapy, Chinese herbal medicine, and manual lymphatic drainage.
- Rated 4.8 on Google from 68 reviews, at 1 Orchard Street: 3 minutes from Bond Street and Marble Arch tube stations.
- We work alongside conventional medicine: with your consent, treatment notes are shared with your GP, fertility clinic, or surgeon.
Fertility, acupuncture and lymphatic drainage
- Fertility acupuncture, timed to the phase of your cycle
- IVF, ICSI, IUI, and frozen-transfer support, including the Paulus Protocol
- The 12 Weeks Fertility Reset Protocol
- Traditional acupuncture, moxibustion, cupping, and tuina
- Chinese herbal medicine
- Nutritional therapy for fertility and women's health
- Manual lymphatic drainage for post-op recovery, lipoedema, and postpartum swelling
- Miscarriage and postpartum recovery care
Areas treated
Key Benefits
- Supports the body's own clearance of metabolic by-products
- Eases fluid retention in the pre-menstrual phase
- Improves circulation
- Supports immune function
- Reduces bloating and stimulates digestion
- Gives the body a lighter and more pleasant sensation
- Used to support the settling of post-surgical swelling, bruising, and fibrosis when started in the recommended window
- Conservative care for lipoedema: used to help manage pain, heaviness, and superimposed fluid
- Supports breast-cancer survivors with risk or onset of secondary lymphoedema
- Distinctly different from deep-tissue or remedial massage: gentle, rhythmic, lymphatic-specific
- Trained practitioner with a TCM background: integrates with acupuncture or nutritional care where indicated
- The same expert hands every session: you always see Claudia
Written and medically reviewed byClaudia Ferreira, BSc (Hons) Traditional Chinese Medicine · MBAcC · Postgraduate TCM Gynaecology & Obstetrics · Macmillan Cancer Support and the British Lymphology Society are the lead UK voices for MLD scope and indications. Macmillan's lymphoedema guidance describes where MLD fits within cancer-related swelling care; secondary lymphoedema management follows BLS guidance..
FAQ
Common
questions
How is MLD different from a regular massage?
MLD uses very light, slow, rhythmic strokes targeting the superficial lymphatic vessels, with far less pressure than deep-tissue massage. Stroke direction follows the lymphatic drainage pathways towards the regional nodes. The goal is fluid mobilisation, not muscle release, which is why deep pressure is the wrong tool for this work.
When can I start MLD after surgery?
Most surgeons clear MLD from 24 to 72 hours after surgery, depending on the procedure. We never start without explicit clearance: the timing matters and we follow your surgeon's recovery plan. Bring the post-op letter or recovery instructions to your first session.
How many sessions will I need after liposuction or abdominoplasty?
Most aesthetic-surgery recovery protocols use 6 to 10 MLD sessions over 4 to 6 weeks: frequency front-loaded to the early window. Larger procedures (full-body liposuction, abdominoplasty, large breast reductions) may need 10 to 15 sessions. We agree the plan with you at intake.
Is MLD safe for everyone?
No: MLD has clear contraindications including untreated heart failure, untreated renal failure, active deep-vein thrombosis, active malignancy in the area being treated without oncologist sign-off, and acute infection. Anyone with these conditions needs medical clearance before any MLD work. We screen for these at intake.
Do you treat lymphoedema or just lipoedema?
We treat both, with appropriate scope. Primary or secondary lymphoedema management is best run under the lead of a vascular consultant or specialist lymphoedema team; we deliver the MLD component within their care plan. Lipoedema is conservatively managed across the four pillars (MLD, compression, anti-inflammatory nutrition, graded movement) and we lead on those that fit our scope.
Related Services
Get Started
Ready to begin?
Book today.
Body Perfected • 1 Orchard Street, London W1H 6HJ
BookAppointments typically available within 1–2 weeks