Who Is Massage For?

No matter what your age, profession, activity level or physical condition, therapeutic massage can enhance your life by decreasing the effects of physical, mental and emotional stress on your body. However, because massage is not appropriate for some conditions, communicating about your general health is important. Give as much information as you can and always advise of any changes, even if you are not sure they are important. Whether you have a strained back, tendonitis, headaches, elevated stress or pulled quads, massage can prove to be very beneficial and the overall effects will keep you coming back. Regular massage reduces the habitual levels of stress in your body leaving you less prone to injury, allowing you to breathe more fully and move more freely. You may find you sleep better, feel looser, are more energized, and more alive!

What Benefits Will I See?

Massage is an ancient healing art that is reclaiming its position in the medical community. Its holistic, non-invasive approach to health care is being recognized for its ability to significantly reduce stress, the known culprit underlying many modern diseases. Some benefits of regular therapeutic massage are:

• Increases Blood and Lymph Circulation
• Reduces Stress
• Increases Energy
• Reduces Tightness and Soreness in Muscles
• Promotes Feeling of Well Being
• Recovery from Sports Activity

The first important effect of treatment is that you gradually become aware of tension in specific places. Another sign that the body is loosening up is that the neck and back begin to make spontaneous cracking sounds during normal everyday movement. These sounds indicate the spine is aligning itself naturally.

The Massage Session

Massage sessions generally last from 1/2 hour, if there is a specific area of focus, up to 1-1/2 hours. A one-hour session seems about right in a majority of cases. Be sure to ask any questions you have about massage in general or your session in particular. Advise if anything feels uncomfortable or if there are areas that you would rather not have massaged. You will feel the benefit of relaxation after each massage, regardless of how often you come. However, if you schedule your massages at least every two weeks, you will have the added benefit of experiencing ongoing physical changes in your tension levels.

Learning Self-Care Techniques

Besides the immediate relief you get from a massage, you may also learn ways to relieve tension between massage sessions. You may receive feedback on your posture and/or suggestions for gentle exercises and stretches. Following these self-care techniques will allow you to receive the most benefit from massage.