Massage Therapy
What is massage therapy?
Massage therapy is the scientific manipulation of the soft tissues of the body for the purpose of normalizing those tissues. It incorporates manual techniques that include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, and/or movement of the body.
What is the purpose of massage therapy?
Generally, massage is known to affect the circulation of blood and the flow of blood and lymph, reduce muscular tension or flaccidity, affect the nervous system through stimulation or sedation, and enhance tissue healing.
What are the benefits of massage therapy?
Massage therapy has a number of documented clinical benefits. For example, massage can reduce anxiety, improve pulmonary function in young asthma patients, reduce psycho-emotional distress in a person suffering from chronic inflammatory bowel disease, increase weight and improve motor development in premature infants, and may enhance immune system functioning.
Other added benefits include:
- Reduction of muscle tension and stiffness
- Relief of muscle spasms
- Greater flexibility and range of motion
- Increase of the ease and efficiency of movement
- Relief of stress and aide of relaxation
- Promotion of deeper and easier breathing
- Improvement of the circulation of blood and movement of lymph
- Relief of tension-related conditions, such as headaches and eyestrain
- Promotion of faster healing of soft tissue injuries, such as pulled muscles and sprained ligaments, and reduction in pain and swelling related to such injuries
- Enhancement in health and nourishment of skin
- Improvement in posture through changing tension patterns that affect posture
- Reduction in stress and excellent stress management tool
- Creation of a feeling of well-being
- Reduction in levels of anxiety
- Increase in awareness of the mind-body connection
- Promotion of a relaxed state of mental awareness
What medical conditions can massage therapy help?
A list of medical conditions that massage therapy can help include:
- Allergies
- Anxiety and stress
- Arthritis
- Asthma and bronchitis
- Carpal tunnel syndrome and other repetitive motion injuries
- Chronic and temporary pain
- Circulatory problems
- Depression
- Digestive disorders
- Tension headaches
- Insomnia
- Myofascial pain
- Sports injuries
- Temporomandibular joint dysfunction
