Health and Therapeutic Massage
For centuries, the therapeutic use of touch has been applied for the health of the body and to reduce tensions in everyday life. Massage is a form of bodywork which also encompasses deep tissue manipulation, movement awareness and other therapies, used to improve the structure and body function.
The benefits of massage include pain reduction, relief of tension and muscle spasms, improved circulation and the promotion of deep relaxation. Within the last two decades, scientific evidence has supported the claim that massage therapy is beneficial for wellbeing.
Massage can also benefit the body by reducing swelling, help correct posture, improve body motion, and help to eliminate toxins. Other studies have shown that massage is helpful to aid recovery from heart attacks, neurological pain and gynaecological problems, often in place of drugs for pain relief.
Because of its many benefits for health, therapeutic massage is an increasingly popular part of physiotherapy practices, nursing practices, and sports medicine clinics.
How does it work?Muscle tension, from normal activity or from awkward movement and stress, contributes to muscle pain and fatigue by compressing nerve fibres in the muscle. If a muscle is contracted for a long time, it interferes with the elimination of chemical wastes in the muscles and surrounding tissues and this can cause pain.
If not attended to, these body tensions have a tendency to build into chronic patterns of stress. Prolonged tension can also cause pain in other parts of the body. For example, headaches are often caused by over-tense muscles in the neck, shoulders and lower back.
For these tension related conditions, massage can break up muscular waste deposits and stimulate circulation. Accumulated waste deposits can also form “trigger points” within muscles – areas which are painful to touch. By applying deep pressure to these points, the tension or spasm can often be relieved.
Different types of massageSwedish massage therapists use a combination of stroking, kneading and friction massage techniques over the full body, working specifically on the superficial skin layers of muscles. Practitioners and clients determine which areas of the body to focus on and which elements to use.
The main health benefits of Swedish massage are: General relaxation, improved circulation, relief from muscular tension, and restored flexibility. Sessions usually last an hour and can be done in conjunction with hydrotherapy to enhance the benefits. Deep tissue massage uses more direct pressure on deeper muscle layers. Therapists use slow strokes and friction techniques as they work against the grain of the muscles. Although clients can often feel sore immediately after a session, deep tissue massage is highly effective on lower back pain and chronically tight muscles.
Sports massage is no longer the luxury of athletes. Today it’s an effective way to remain healthy and free of injury, whether you are training for a sport of just a weekend exerciser. Sports therapists are available in health clubs, spas, and gyms.
Sessions combine deep tissue with Swedish massage techniques. It has many benefits, from easing muscle aches and pains to enhancing performance before sporting events. It can also restore muscle tone and mobility after vigorous exercise and workouts and eliminate the build-up of lactic acid, which causes pain and stiffness.
Lymphatic massage focuses on improving the circulation of the lymphatic system, a body wide network of vessels and lymph nodes. By lightly massaging the main areas of the body through which lymph fluid is filtered (neck, armpits, upper torso and groin) practitioners help prevent congestion and ensure that the body’s cells receive enriching oxygen.
Some massage therapists may also use energy devices such as the light beam generator to stimulate the lymph flow further.
Other forms of alternative health therapies:
Learn the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT)
How good posture helps health via the Alexander Technique
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