Ida Friedman Wellness

I have been working with Ida for several years. Ida specializes in lymph drainage massage. This is an essential wellness practice but is critical for women with breast health issues. Ida helped me prepare and recover from mastectomy and reconstruction. I couldn’t recommend her more!

I love this woman. My go to gal anytime I need to feel right again. She has so much experience in MLD, she always knows just what I need.
Can not recommend her enough, you won’t be dissapointed!

Thank you so much Ida ! This women Is truly gifted with so much healing and loving energies.
I received a massage today and my body feels so good my heart is open and relaxed. I was tired in the last few days and now I feel so good and balanced.
Ida space is super magical and clean. The products she uses are high quality, smell good and safe. I highly recommend her services. I am so grateful for this women.

So the story of why I had Ida give me a lymphatic drainage massage all started when I had a moment of cerebral malfunction (opposite of a lightbulb moment). I went to a plastic surgeon to see about what options there are to fill out some hollowness in my face. Fat transfer and filler all seemed too invasive and scary, so when conversation got to Botox, I thought «Oh heck, Why not?! Treat myself to a wrinkle free head. Its not invasive.» Or so I thought! (One should never do a procedure on a whim!) I felt the Botox under my skin moving in my face for 20 days! Stinging! Instinctively I knew I had to get it out somehow. I went to the sauna and massaged my poor face.
The stuff is like cement on the muscles. And the MD said he gave me a light dose! My cheeks became restricted because lucky girl that I am, the doctor gave me complimentary injections on my crow’s feet (WHICH I HARDLY EVEN HAD!) Not quite chipmunky, but close. You need those muscles active so the cheeks can rise when you smile. So now I couldn’t even give a full on smile, and it made my eyes look hollowed. If I slightly lifted my eyebrows, I looked like a Vulcan. Talk about depressing! and a pricey depressing too! I wondered how so many people endure this torture. Oh, but my forehead was wrinkleless, except for the upside down V shaped wrinkles on the outer edges of each eyebrow. Like a tragic comedy.
So I read that another Botox victim or perhaps just a wise person suggested lymphatic drainage. I felt so relieved to find such a masseuse right here in Alameda. I told her that I had allowed myself to be poisoned with Botox and needed help purging this stuff out. I never had such a massage before. It really was just a lot of light touches over the different lymph areas for an hour. It was very relaxing but not a massage in the traditional sense. She told me to get up slowly and have low activity for the next couple of days. I honestly did not understand why. As I walked home, I felt a light nausea. I got home and it continued. I laid down on my bed around noon and fell into a TWO HOUR SLEEP which is strange for me since I don’t take naps.
When dinner time came, I think I complicated things by adding a few extra drops of food grade hydrogen peroxide into my 32 oz cup of water. Then I ate some meat and potatoes … with a dash of cayenne pepper … :-/​. So not sure if it was just the lymph drainage, but all night I felt nauseated and my stomach hurt. I got up in the morning and sorry if its TMI, but I had a huge purging out the rear. That was surprising. But what a relief. I still felt weak. But rested the whole day. I don’t know if it was just the lymphatic drainage, but I think it might have been also the extra oxygen (in the form of food grade hydrogen peroxide used to fight pathogens and disease) added to my water. But definitely the massage got things moving out, as I experience a light nausea after. Then the oxygenated water and maybe the dash of cayenne pepper complimented it.
Interesting how light strokes to the lymphs can cause such a purging of toxins. I did more research after I got the Botox that I should have done before. But I trusted that expert M.D. knew what he was administering and he said he had no complaints. Now I read that the botulism can stay in ones system for years. I feel much better now, but definitely will go back for lymphatic drainage again soon, to further move this shit out of my body. My face is regaining its tautness. I went to try on the same beanie cap I tried on two weeks ago at Target, and tonight it did not make the skin between my eyes push loosely onto my nose like a Sharpei dog. I can laugh about it now … a little. I was near tears then! lol Botox is nasty. My facial skin since it happened a month and a week ago is very dry and sort of stings from the dryness. So I keep it moistened with shea butter cream. The effects are ever so slowly fading.
If you have to purge Botox or other toxins from your system, I highly recommend Ida. She is so informative, professional and her space is very welcoming and clean. You may hear the cars outside but I didn’t care, I was just so relieved to have someone so savvy getting my lymphs moving and cleared. You may feel nausea at first, but toxins coming out would feel somewhat nauseating. 3 days later and I feel better and happier to know I’m clearing the botulism. I DO NOT recommend Botox. Google «Botox ruined my face». But I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IDA! Next when I get some more dollars together, I am going to have her do a facial reposturing massage, to help get my poor abused facial muscles back in shape.
I love her ceiling. It is quilted like a big fluffy pillow.
Thank you, Ida!
UPDATE: Stomach stayed queasy since the massage and 5 nights later I threw up. You might be thinking thats not a good thing, but I think its the botox exiting! Fantastic!

I highly recommend Ida, whether it is for Lymphatic Drainage massage or a deep tissue massage. She is so skilled in her work and delightful to work with. Her Lymphatic Drainage massages made a huge difference for me getting over a recent surgery where I was over anesthetized and fairly bruised. Her work really helped clean out my system and speed up my healing. She is incredibly knowledgeable about the body and different health modalities. Plus, I LOVE the experience itself.

Ida is the best. I’ve followed her from spa to spa in her previous work incarnations, to now her own business! She is calm, knowledgeable, and giving — looking for the best interests of her clients.
I go in for eyebrow shaping and facials. I will allow no one else to touch my eyebrows! Great shape, clean lines. Facials utilize top-​quality ingredients, and of course, she chooses products based on your skin needs.
Entering her peaceful space, I was pleasantly surprised to see she’s trained in lymphatic drainage too as well as massage. Not having received drainage applications before, she gave me a sampling and described her enthusiasm for the upcoming medical conference where she and her cohort were going to demonstrate their lymphatic drainage skills. Coolness.
Parking is easy peasy in Alameda. Worth a drive across the bridge!

Ida has worked miracles on my right arm with Manual Lymphatic Drainage «Massage.» Although I’ve had this treatment before, the results weren’t remarkable. Working with Ida has shown me how powerful and effective this gentle, strategic work can be.
Recently, the congestion in my hand and arm has become painful and even the compression garments are too tight. Years of blood draws, IV lines and a PIC line have scarred my veins. Now I have sluggish circulation in that arm and have chronic swelling of the hand and arm. After an hour of feather-​light strokes and gentle, rhythmic tapping, I wondered if anything had happened.
The following day, (for the first time in 2 years) my hand and arm swelling was almost completely gone! The skin tone was even and everything looked normal. Over the next week, the congestion started to return so I have had 2 more sessions. Each time, I get significant relief and the swelling goes down for a little longer. This makes it possible for me to work with my hands again!
Ida is a knowledgeable, passionate professional. She works with people who have lymphedema (like me) and also pre-​surgery (reduce swelling in areas to be cut) and post-​surgery (reduce swelling and bruising) clients. If I were having a surgery, I would definitely want those kinds of services to reduce healing time, avoid infection and reduce scarring.
I would DEFINITELY recommend Ida to work her miracles on you, too!