Slowing down the mind and relaxing the body to sleep has been a difficult task these days. Anxiety and stress hurt people in relaxation to get a good night’s sleep. There are many techniques that help the person to relax, and massage is one of them. To experience a beautiful massage then your right spot will be blissonbliss.
Massage is a term used to refer to when manipulating, pressing, or rubbing the skin with the intention of addressing muscles, tendons, or ligaments. This maneuver can be smooth or require great pressure.
In addition, they are beneficial in helping to treat various health conditions, in this case, provided they are performed by a qualified professional and respect the patient’s condition.
Massage is certainly a great way to escape everyday stress, but recent studies are showing that getting a massage regularly has benefits in a variety of areas, including emotional and physical benefits.
The practice of massage can also be associated with other techniques, such as aromatherapy with the use of specific essential oils, chromotherapy and music therapy, which together provide general benefits.
“The choice of the type of massage is due in part to the health condition that the person has and partly to what he or she wants to do”. “Massage can maximize the benefits of conventional treatment, but it cannot replace it, no matter how many results alone,” adds the expert.
There are several health problems and diseases that massage can aid in the treatment, but it is important to remember that before looking for a massage therapist is necessary to know the cause of the problem, having a diagnosis, therefore, depending on what is causing the symptoms to manipulate the region can aggravate them.
Massage Types
The classical massage aims to relax and not take care of any symptoms or illness. In this case, you can enter the electronic massage, which is done through appliances, mattresses, or armchairs that have a series of vibratory commands. Certainly, this type of massage reduces daily stress, produces relaxation and may even induce sleep.
Lymphatic drainage helps to decrease the fluid retained in adipose tissue, but it does not lose weight.
It will be used to treat cellulite, and dark circles and even to cure acne. The technique speeds up and it takes the fluid to its right place for the lymphatic capillaries. She is also an important ally in postoperative treatment.
Shiatsu is indicated for tension pains, which relaxes and relieves pain. Quick massage is designed to be quick and relaxing.
The Ayurveda will be done with the feet and the professional walks on top of the patients. And, finally, reflexology uses the same acupuncture basis to use reflex points to reach an organ. When a person is in a lot of pain in a region, it may be a good choice.
There is also self-massage that promotes pain relief, relaxation, and well-being. In the ear, for example, it reflexively stimulates strategic parts of the body.
In order to have an effect, the movements must be repeated at least five times in a smooth and circular way. Massage on the hands and feet also helps in relieving pain and promotes relaxation to sleep.
Massage therapy is indicated for relief of any symptoms or treatment. When it is made for relaxation only, it is not considered therapeutic. However, when the end is to treat a problem or alleviate symptoms, it is important that it is done by a qualified professional.
Massage therapy is even used within hospitals to relieve symptoms of cancer patients, for example. Proven benefits are decreased anxiety and stress. Despite promoting pain relief and relaxation, experts explain that massage is not indicated for those who have vascular problems, because of the risk of thrombosis and aneurysm.
Below are some benefits of incorporating massage into your daily life:
1- Massage reduces stress and anxiety:
A single session with a massage therapist can lower your heart rate, decrease cortisol production (a hormone that is of utmost importance for the body’s perfect functioning), and level the insulin levels in your body.
A study published in the journal Depression and Anxiety showed that three months after receiving a series of 10-session massages, the patients analyzed had half of the anxiety symptoms they had before.
And it’s not just for adults that the benefits have been proven. A study by the students showed that massage therapies in premature babies can relieve the stress they are experiencing from the care needed in intensive care units, aiding their development process.
2- Massage helps to relax and fight insomnia:
After a massage session, you will benefit from a series of brain chemical responses that encourage feelings of relaxation, lessening stress and improving your mood.
For those who have insomnia, the softer massages that promote relaxation are more indicated. Good examples are the relaxing massage – which uses sliding and light movements, using aromatic oils, which provide a feeling of comfort and rest – and shiatsu, which is part of Chinese medicine and promotes relaxation, the release of the points. Muscle tension and improved internal organ function.
3- Massage improves posture:
Massage can help your body to strengthen healthy and natural movements, helping to correct posture problems.
4- Massage improves circulation:
Massage pressure can move blood through the body to muscles that need special care, can heal tense sites, and is able to remove metabolic waste.
The fact that massage moves certain parts of the body has several benefits, especially for circulation, which can benefit from different types of massage. This is because “massage, in general, helps circulation and causes vasodilation, improving blood supply”.
5- Reduces Swelling:
The benefit of activating circulation contributes to reducing swelling (edema) of the massaged region. “In order to activate circulation, massage should be performed to compress the massaged region from the extremity to the center of the body.
In this way it is possible to activate the lymphatic system, acting on the movement of liquids to the main lymphatic collectors, reducing swelling and body discomfort “, explains Sidney Galego, a vascular surgeon at Hospital.
In these cases, lymphatic drainage is usually used, which helps in reducing blood circulation activation, combating cellulite, and body relaxation.
6- Massage lowers blood pressure:
Research has stated that massage can reduce diastolic and systolic blood pressure.
7- Massage relaxes the muscles:
Being seated for a long time can cause chronic back pain. Massage can help with persistent pain by relaxing the muscles in the area.
In order for the message to be effective as an auxiliary treatment, it is important to identify the cause of the problem. Even in cases of tension, there is a difference when it is caused by stress or it is muscular tension.
“Muscle tension will respond better to deeper massages with more energy and pressure. However, if it is caused by stress, a relaxing massage can have a more satisfying effect.”
8- Massage improves flexibility:
Physical inactivity and age can make joints less flexible, so massage is a great therapy to help improve fluidity and range of motion in joints and connective tissues.
9- Massage helps to breathe better:
It is possible, through massage, to relax the breath, performing the relaxation of upper body muscles.
10- Massage relieves headaches:
Many problems with headaches can be solved with a massage. One of the main advantages is that massage reduces the chance of developing a headache in the future by relaxing the muscle spasms and trigger points.
11- Massage strengthens the immune system:
Studies have shown that massaging regularly can improve the overall immune functioning of your body.
12- Decreases back pain:
Importantly, the person with back pain should never seek treatment with massage before having the diagnosis of the cause of their pain so as not to disturb the treatment and even worsen the symptoms.
“The back pains that usually respond best to massage are those of mechanical and nonspecific origin, where exams cannot find the cause, which applies to most low back pain,” says physiatrist Akiho.
A study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine shows that massages (structural or relaxing) help with pain and movement functionality of people with chronic lower back pain even six months after treatment. Participants received a weekly massage lasting one hour each.
13- Reduces pain in the body:
Neurofacial pain, headache, leg pain, muscle pain, and several other pains may or may not benefit from massage; it all depends on the cause of this symptom.
“If a person has an infection or cancer, for example, there is a risk of the disease spreading, if there is atherosclerosis of the cervical arteries the risk is that with manipulation a plaque will eventually come loose and cause a stroke, and if you massage a leg with thrombosis, there is a risk of pulmonary embolism, “warns Akiho.
In other cases, according to the expert, muscle aches usually respond better to more vigorous and deep massages. Neurofacial pain can be reduced with facial manipulation. If you are an athlete, massage can be performed with quick movements.
 14- Assists in the treatment of Depression:
“For massage to assist in the treatment of depression, it is necessary for the patient to feel comfortable during the practice. The studies show similar results for the different types of massage, from the most relaxing to the ones that apply the most pressure depending on the person’s will” says the physiatrist.
15- Helps in cancer treatment:
A study by College Associates, an organization that investigates the effect of complementary therapies on health, has shown that a good massage is effective in treating cancer.
Following the follow-up of 97 volunteers with different types of cancer and at various stages, the researchers found that massage has a profound impact on the quality of life of those facing a tumor. A 20-minute massage session would be enough to halve patients’ anxiety and pain.
The mechanisms that make massage effective support have not been fully understood, but scientists believe it is because it increases the release of substances such as serotonin and dopamine, which reduces the transmission of the pain impulse to the central nervous system. In addition, massage distracts and distracts the attention and discomfort of the disease.
According to the researchers, it is not necessary for a specialist or massage therapist to have the results met. With the basics, parents, children, siblings, partners, and friends can collaborate with the recovery of the patient, dedicating a few minutes of the day, three times a week, to the phototherapeutic contact.
It had already been shown that massage is greatly allied to combating various types of discomfort. For example, the technique performed on the feet, or superficially by the body, for an average time of 30 to 60 minutes, reduces pain, fatigue, nausea, sadness, and depression.
Because the effect lasts 48 hours, if given at least every two days, it can be highly effective.
Despite the benefits, not every cancer patient can enjoy massage. In those individuals whose tumor has spread through the bones, the researchers explain that any contact may be enough to cause fractures and injuries in the body.
In addition, it is important to note whether the patient will be at risk of infection or bleeding by counting the platelets of a single blood count. Therefore, medical follow-up is fundamental in any type of treatment, be it through medicine or massage.
Useful links about medical research on the massage therapy
- https://nccih.nih.gov/health/massage/massageintroduction.htm
- https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5564319/
- https://www.massagemag.com/research-studies/
- https://www.amtamassage.org/research
- https://www.cancerresearchuk.org/about-cancer/cancer-in-general/treatment/complementary-alternative-therapies/individual-therapies/massage
- https://www.arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/treatments/natural/other-therapies/massage/massage-benefits.php
I really like how you discussed what massage therapy can do for your immune system. I could really see this being something that would benefit me a lot this coming spring season considering how easily I get sick. I'll visit a massage parlor right away so they can help me get something like this.
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