Benefits of Massage

Tension and waste products in muscles can often cause pain.  Massage helps reduce this in many ways including releasing the body's endorphins.

A complete muscle reflex relaxation experience, through the use of my hands and fingers, to generate heat, pump, stretch and manipulate your muscles with circular pressure rotation.

Fear, anticipation, and worry all contribute to the physical reactions the body experiences when hit with psychological charged feelings.  The fight-flight or freeze response kicks in, adrenalin rushes and blood pressure rises to prepare for action.  Through massage the effects of relaxation are induced and so reduces anxiety levels and also lowers blood pressure and heart rate.

The manual manipulations of the body cause the feel-good hormones serotonin and endorphins to be released into the bloodstream, elevating moods, while lowering the body’s level of cortisol, a stress hormone, considerably.  Massage therapy also stimulates pain blockers and reduces the feelings associated with chronic pain.  If a massage is done with brisk movements such as what is done before an event then this can produce an invigorating feeling.

While massage can be very relaxing, the brisk movement of certain massage strokes can energise the client and increase concentration and mental acuity.

Most people find massage very relaxing.  Tight muscles are rubbed, relaxed, and loosened.

A lot of people suffer from headaches and migraines brought on by the stress of our fast-paced lifestyles.  Often, migraines are triggered or exacerbated by stress and poor sleep.  Studies have shown, people who regularly received massages had reduced stress levels and better quality of sleep, which resulted in fewer headaches and migraines.

Massage therapy helps to alleviate muscle pain, discomfort, and spasms, while also reducing stress levels, which promotes better sleep.

When a muscle has become injured, increased blood flow to the area helps speed healing.  Massage therapy dilates or opens blood vessels, restoring the flow of fluid, oxygen, and other nutrients to the injured area.  Massage accomplishes this without increasing metabolic waste products that would normally occur with muscle contraction.  In many cases of injury, massage therapy can decrease the amount of time it takes for a muscle to properly heal.

In any injury and with chronic poor posture, range of motion can be decreased due to muscles that are short and tight or have built adhesions within them.  The body’s normal response to an injury is to try and lay down scar tissue in order to stabilise the area.  This scar tissue will later cause a decreased range of motion and other painful issues.  Massage therapy breaks adhesions and lengthens muscles, thereby helping to restore proper range of motion.  The full and fluid range of motion is necessary to maintain joint health.

Massage therapy has the ability to help decrease pain for many conditions, including lower back pain.

Massage therapy helps by blocking pain signals that originate within the musculoskeletal system from reaching the brain.

Massage also helps move metabolic waste products, such as lactic and carbonic acid out of the muscle.  These products generally build up within muscles after muscle activity and are responsible for the cramping and discomfort felt after a stressful activity.