The Benefits of Massage Therapy
A massage
With the unavoidable stresses in life, we all would love to relax and feel less tense. It feels as if self-care can be unattainable because of the hecticness of our daily lives, but in reality, there are a variety of self-care methods that take just a small portion of your day to perform to feel longer-lasting benefits.
Oftentimes, when we think about our self-care days it tends to include getting a massage. While massage is great for relaxation it has many other therapeutic and physical benefits. We don’t need to only book massages for a ‘special treat’.
Allow yourself to take a few minutes out of your day at least once a week to massage your body and feel the increasing benefits you get from massage therapy.
Touch is very important to humans and this human connection aids in easing pain physically and emotionally.
While there are numerous types of massage that target different purposes, they all use pressure to calm and slow the nervous system. Besides the physical benefits of soothing muscle tension, pain, or injuries, massage therapy is great for mental health as well. Throughout everything we encounter in life, stress is one way our body reacts to those events.
Stress can take over your physical health not just mentally.
Feeling stressed can travel and transform into different pain and tension in the body. This physical touch can reduce stress hormones and calm the nervous system which brings along many other benefits.
The Physical and Mental Benefits of Massage
Immune System
Due to massage therapy slowing the stress hormones it maintains a balance in your immune system. Suffering from chronic illnesses and diseases can lead to higher stress levels. That stress can worsen chronic conditions and mental health even more. Massage therapy can decrease stress levels, pain, and fatigue.
Joint Pain
One of the more commonly known reasons for needing massage therapy is healing injuries and joint pain. When we experience this sort of problem, massage therapists increase circulation and get rid of knots that trigger pain. An important thing to do is to find a good massage therapist who will understand where you need the massage to treat these injuries.
Relaxation
If you’ve gotten a massage, you have most likely felt that feeling of relaxation during and afterward. The combination of the aromas used and massage therapy makes us feel at ease and reduce stress on physical and psychological levels. When we reach this relaxation our heart rate and blood pressure decrease which helps reduce stress and anxiety. Massage therapy decreases the ‘fight or flight’ sympathetic nervous system and increases the parasympathetic system. The parasympathetic response calms you and decreases anxiety.
Sleep
It’s not bizarre to fall asleep during meditation and if you’ve ever dozed off during a massage there is a reason behind it. Sleep is related to the activity in the nervous system and massage therapy slows down the nervous system and can reduce pain giving deeper and better rest. Not only do we feel relaxed during the massage but it has been proven that massage therapy can improve sleep patterns and insomnia long after a session. Receiving a massage at least twice a week can significantly affect how you sleep.
Heightened Mental Alertness
If you have trouble paying attention another effect of getting massages is improving the ability to focus. We tend not to pay attention due to an elevated heart rate making it hard to solely focus on one thing. Massage therapy slows the nervous system and heart rate which will overall improve focus.
You may be wondering, how does this topic relate to me?
You might think you’re too busy or can’t afford to go to a massage therapist once or multiple times weekly. However, you don’t need to go to a professional if you’re not able to! Even giving 20 minutes out of your day to get a massage from a partner, massage machine, or even your own hands can bring you the numerous benefits of massage and aid in better physical and mental health overall.
It’s important to remind yourself that you deserve the few minutes of downtime every day to give your body and mind the care that it needs to fuel yourself in the long run.