The Health Benefits Of Massage Therapy

In the past, a massage was thought of as a luxury. Typically, you would get a massage by going to an upscale health club or a luxury spa. Thankfully, this mindset has changed. You will now find many health benefits related to receiving a massage. Studies now indicate massage therapy is a highly effective treatment for stress, fibromyalgia, digestive disorders, joint pain, and injuries. While it shouldn't be thought of as a total replacement for routine medical care, it is an excellent way to effectively act as an alternative remedy that can help you feel both physically and mentally better.

Reduce Stress And Anxiety

Your body was designed to either flee or fight danger. Cortisol, which is a stress hormone, is associated with the flight or fight mechanism in your body. Unfortunately, this increases the readiness of your muscles, which can keep them tight. The flight or fight mechanism really isn't required as much as it was when your ancestors had to defend themselves from the threat of wild animals. If you maintain high cortisol levels in your body, it can lead to sleeping problems and frequent headaches. Fortunately, receiving a full body massage can help reduce stress and anxiety.

Studies show receiving a massage can increase the levels of serotonin and oxytocin, which will help reduce stress. The relaxation you receive from a massage will also help to elevate your mood and lower your blood pressure. The nervous system in your body will also respond by decreasing your heart rate and improving your breathing. You can expect to sleep deeper and enjoy a healthier life after receiving a few massages.

Continue reading to learn how massage therapy can help with fibromyalgia.

Reduce Symptoms Of Fibromyalgia

If you have fibromyalgia, you understand how difficult it can be to even get out of bed in the morning if your pain is intolerable that day. This crippling ailment causes pain in the soft tissues, tendons, muscles, and joints. If you have fibromyalgia, getting a massage may be beneficial. After receiving a massage, it can help you relax and improve your sleep, which helps your body repair and rejuvenate. Another benefit is that massage therapy can help improve your muscle tone. You may have weak and lethargic muscles due to this condition. Petrissage strokes can help restore vitality and strength to those muscles.

Another way that massage therapy helps reduce symptoms of fibromyalgia is by relieving mental stress. A relaxing massage therapy session can help improve your cognitive issues and make you more aware of the various ways you can relax. Massage therapy can also restore homeostasis, which helps diminish the ill effects of depression or anxiety, which are byproducts of dealing with fibromyalgia.

Continue reading to learn about the influence of massage therapy on digestive disorders.

Relieve Digestive Disorders

Massage therapy can also be used to relieve digestive disorders. Constipation, gas, and the pain from abdominal straining are just a few digestive ailments patients can solve with a massage therapy session.

Receiving an abdominal massage can help reduce constipation, and is also a great way to prevent future constipation. When a small amount of light pressure is used to stimulate your digestive system, it helps your bowels move through your intestines. An experienced massage therapist will use circular hand movements when they are massaging your abdomen. These specific movements help circulation by increasing blood flow in the area, which improves digestion and prevents constipation.

Stomach bloating and gas can also be relieved by utilizing massage therapy. When excess amounts of gas become trapped in your digestive system, it can become uncomfortable. If you have this type of ailment, receiving a regular stomach massage should help improve your digestive health.

Tears and muscle strains in your abdomen can become quite painful. Fortunately, massage therapy has been proven to relieve this type of pain as well.

Keep reading to discover the connection between massage therapy and joint pain.

Assisting Joint Pain

Reducing pain and stiffness in your joints as well as improving the range of motion can be done by using many different types of massage therapy techniques.

You may be more relaxed when a hot stone massage is used, as the heat from hot stones can help relieve the tension in your tissues and muscles. This helps promote relaxation.

Another technique that is popular is known as the Swedish massage. This technique uses long strokes and circular movements. A massage therapist can use deep to very light touch, depending on your preference. The primary focus is to help increase the amount of blood circulation to the muscles. A Swedish massage will also involve different types of strokes. A massage therapist can use rhythmic tapping, kneading, or just glide their hands across your skin. All of these techniques will help with assisting joint pain relief and muscle relaxation in your body.

Continue reading to reveal more about massage therapy and injuries.

Injury Recovery

Injuries to your body can also be improved by utilizing massage therapy and the skills of an experienced massage therapist. Injury recovery will improve faster when circulation is increased. During a massage, tissue metabolism increases, which helps maximize oxygen and nutrients and helps the body repair itself.

Muscle flexibility is often a challenge after a muscle becomes injured, and massage can improve muscle flexibility so you can continue to exercise. When your range of motion is increased, there is a lower likelihood of an injury occurring. Carbonic acid and lactic acid are a couple of waste products that will build up in your muscles after you exercise. When the amount of circulation in your muscles is increased, it helps get rid of these two waste products. This helps the recovery time your muscles go through between workouts and allows you to repair muscles much faster.

The muscles in your body need to relax if you are recovering from an injury. If the muscles in your body aren't allowed to relax, they won't be able to rebuild themselves and become as effective as they could be.