BENEFITS OF THERAPEUTIC MASSAGE

As a healing tool, massage has been used for thousands of years by many different cultures. The act of touching is a natural human reaction to pain and stress. We touch to convey our support or compassion for another. Intuitively we know that touch is beneficial. The benefits of touch through therapeutic massage are a powerful support to professional counseling for emotional healing.

Stress is a predominant contributing factor to mental health conditions such as depression, anxiety, drug and alcohol addiction, eating disorders, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, and many others. The stress we store in our bodies effects us not just on a physical level, but also mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. By working with a professional massage therapist, we can learn how to truly relax and let go. 

Massage therapy can:

• decrease anxiety
• reduce depression
• enhance sleep quality
• improve concentration
• increase dopamine, endorphins, and serotonin levels
• reduce stress hormones cortisol and epinephrine
• improve self-image

In addition, massage therapy is an excellent way to get in touch with our bodies. The experience of receiving safe, comforting touch is particularly beneficial for those of us who have experienced trauma, abuse, or neglect. Each session provides an opportunity to nurture and reclaim our bodies as our own.

In addition, there are many purely physical benefits of massage therapy:

• alleviate low-back pain
• improve range of motion
• ease medication dependence
• enhance immunity by stimulating lymph flow
• exercise and stretch weak, tight, or atrophied muscles
• improve the condition of the body's largest organ: the skin
• increase joint flexibility
• promote tissue regeneration, reducing scar tissue and stretch marks
• pump oxygen and nutrients into tissues and vital organs, improving circulation
• reduce spasms and cramping
• relax injured, tired, and overused muscles
• relieve migraine pain

Clearly massage therapy is more than just pampering. There are specific physiological and psychological changes which occur in response to therapeutic touch. These changes are most effective when massage therapy is received at consistent intervals. Consider massage therapy an integral part of your healing as we travel along, on your emotional journey.