Why Massage Therapy is One of the Best Things You Can Do For Your Health
Most people love a good massage. They also tend to think of a massage as a luxury more than as healthcare. And goodness knows, a massage can feel luxurious!
But did you know that massage therapy is good for your health in a variety of ways?
Massage’s proven health benefits…
According to the Mayo Clinic, massage can
- Reduce stress while increasing relaxation (which benefits us in many ways)
- Reduce your pain, soreness, and tension in muscles
- Improve your circulation, both lymphatic and vascular
- Increase your energy and alertness
- Lower your heart rate and your blood pressure
- Improve your immune function
In addition, studies suggest that massage can also be helpful in relieving
- Anxiety
- Digestion
- Fibromyalgia
- Headaches
- Stress-related insomnia
- Low back pain
- Soft tissue sprains and strains
- TMJ pain
- Upper back and neck pain
That’s a lot of whole-body benefit from something as lovely as a massage!
How often should you get a massage?
That depends on what you need. If stress management and relaxation are your main goals, a monthly massage may be a great choice for you. If you’ve got chronic low back or neck pain that you’ve struggled with for years, weekly massage for 3-4 weeks, then tapering to every other week, then as needed can do wonders for your chronic pain. If you pulled your hamstring playing tennis, 2-3 sessions can do wonders in getting you back on the court.
If you’ve had pain for years, it will likely take more sessions to unravel than a newer injury for a few reasons. An old injury has had time to become more fibrosed, which requires some gently “breaking up.”
Massage therapy does this by stretching, releasing trigger points, getting the blood and lymph moving, and it takes a few sessions to get to the different layers. Old injuries also have had a long time to create “compensation patterns” in other areas, as your body learns to adapt and move around the injury.
Your massage therapist will work those area, too, to help realign your whole body as your heal from the old injury.
A good licensed massage therapist will assess your situation and let you know what you need.
Monthly massage for overall wellness
If you’re looking for a great addition to your wellness routine, monthly massage is an excellent choice. Not only will you feel great during and after your massage, but it can also help maintain your overall health in all the ways listed above, and keep you feeling relaxed, loose, and pain-free. It’s a great and pleasant choice to manage stress and pain, while also making you feel well-cared for.
Book your massage with Alexandra today. She has over two decades of experience and a lovely heart. Whether it’s for overall wellness and stress relief, or to treat something specific like chronic back pain, she’ll get you feeling better.
Dr. Jennie Luther, DACM, L.Ac
Acupuncturist Centennial
Family Tree Acupuncture & Wellness
720.507.1705
