Hi,
I considered PM to you, but thought maybe there are more people out there interested too so here it goes....(by the way, I had schooling for massage therapy and this technique was taught to me by my teacher>)
One needs to know which direction the muscle fibers run, i.e. north/south or east/west (look up in Grey's Anatomy for muscle fiber directions of skull and fat incision). I had retrosigmoid approach and the muscles cut into ran north/south or up and down the back of my head. For my approach I cross-fiber frictioned east/west direction.
Practice this on your forehead. Take your index finger above your one eyebrow, press into the skin, you can feel your finger pad sink into the skin, then without lifting the pad move your finger back and forth. You can feel how the skin "gives" and moves about freely under your pad and below this you can feel the muscle. It is this muscle you are trying to friction. I hope this visual makes sense? Tip: move s-l-o-w so you don't miss what I'm talking about.
With "pad" of finger or thumb, press down on scar (gently) without lifting the "pad" move slowly back and forth. Lift "pad" and move down about finger width to proceed with same motion. Continue this all the way down (or up depending on where you start on incision) the scar. Don't worry if the tissue (skin) doesn't respond by moving, it will eventually. Once your done with this separate index finger and middle finger placing them on either side of incision. Pressing gently into the tissue without lifting the "pads" of your fingers, slowly pull them down either side of the incision.
Be cautious here on the amount of pressure you apply as your wound is still fragile, but I'm sure your pain level will tell you whether you are pressing too hard. With time you will be able to increase the pressure, but for now in the beginning less is best. I know for me I started with running my fingers either side of the incision at first as I really could not stand the feel of my incision, I progressed at my own pace and by around two weeks after staples were removed, I was able to start touching my incision. I started with light pressure, barely touching. Take baby steps here.
You can also apply this technique to your fat incision too. Both of my incisions are soft, they have no hard lumps under the skin and move easily. Any massage therapist will know about this technique and if you would prefer they do it for you then by all means relax and enjoy! Make sure you communicate to them regarding your level of pain so they know how much pressure to apply. I did this just about every day sometimes numerous times throughout the day when I felt pain there.
Hope this helps!
