Everyone can benefit from self-care, but the reality is that many people don’t take the time to prioritize it. As important as it is for mind, body, and soul, it’s an undervalued practice.
However, when you start taking control of your health and well-being, you may soon come to realize just how beneficial massage may be for many parts of your life. If you haven’t yet booked in for a massage, you may like to consider it for some of the following reasons.
Plenty of Massage Options to Choose From
The many experts in massage Bowral residents contact provide a wide variety of massage options to suit people from all walks of life. Even if you don’t like one type of massage, you may choose another that’s better suited for your needs.
When you decide to make your booking with a massage therapist, don’t be afraid to ask about their service options to learn what may work for you. For example, some of these massage options below may suit:
Remedial Massage
Remedial massage is a massage type for treating sore, tense, knotted, damaged, or immobile muscles. Expert massage therapists will find those uncomfortable areas and encourage the body’s healing processes to get to work.
People who request remedial massages may feel some discomfort during their appointment, but relief might be experienced in the hours and days after the massage has taken place.
Pregnancy Massage
In most cases, pregnancy massages are gentle massages designed to help pregnant people feel less stressed. These massages also focus on relieving muscle pain, reducing swelling in areas like arms and legs, and even decreasing joint pain.
Relaxation Massage
When you’re under a great deal of stress or pressure in life, a relaxation massage may be more effective than you might think in providing relief. Such a massage is designed to relax you and focuses on applying slight pressure to muscles, but not as much as a deep tissue massage.
Sports Massage
After partaking in sports that often test your body to the limit, you may be curious about what a sports massage can do for you. This massage type focuses on reducing and releasing muscle tension and even improving circulation.
Relieve Stress
Any number of things can cause a great deal of stress in our lives, such as relationships, jobs, and our finances. Massages are not a magic fix for these problems, but they may be able to reduce your stress hormone levels while increasing your serotonin and dopamine levels simultaneously.
Researchers have concluded that people who undergo relaxation therapies may experience psychological and physiological regeneration, with the effects more pronounced during massages.
Make You Feel More Relaxed
When you’re under a great deal of pressure in life with your job, family, finances, or something else, it can sometimes feel like nothing can make you feel relaxed. You may be living in a high-pressure environment, or something, in particular, is causing significant stress, pressure, and discomfort.
Whatever your situation, you may feel more comfortable after a relaxation massage. Both your mind and body may benefit from such a massage.
Improve Sleep
Many people have problems sleeping and for a number of different reasons, such as stress and even menopause. However, some studies have shown that massage may be able to assist with a better night’s sleep.
Anti-stress massages have been shown to possibly improve sleep quality, especially in women experiencing symptoms of menopause. Those who receive relaxation massages before sleep may even feel better upon waking and enjoy a better quality of life.
Boost Your Immune System
Everyone can benefit from a boosted immunity, with a more robust immune system possibly reducing your risk of catching common illnesses like colds. While massages won’t protect you from illness, they may provide some immune system-boosting effects.
According to research carried out at Los Angeles’ Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, a 45-minute massage increased lymphocyte numbers, which are white blood cells that defend your body from diseases. Many participants in the study also experienced lower cytokine levels, which play a part in inflammation.
Joint Pain Alleviation
If you’re experiencing joint pain and swelling resulting from arthritis, talk to a healthcare professional about whether you may be able to experience some joint pain relief through massage.
As massaging muscles can direct blood to your joints, you may be able to alleviate some pain and discomfort to the affected joints temporarily. When you make an appointment with a massage therapist, discuss your condition to ensure they’re able to target the right areas.
Headache Relief
According to the World Health Organization, up to three-quarters of adults experience headaches each year. While many factors can contribute to headaches, research has identified stress, a lack of sleep, and even musculoskeletal dysfunction at the top of the spine as possible causes.
Massages may be able to combat these issues, leading to reduced headache frequency that allows you to enjoy your days to the fullest.
Fibromyalgia Pain Management
Fibromyalgia is a condition that causes those with it to experience muscular pain, sleep problems, mood issues, and fatigue. While massages aren’t a cure, they may be an excellent complementary treatment alongside physical therapy, medication, and even counseling.
Seek advice from your doctor before you start looking at your massage options for this condition to ensure it’s a treatment that’s right for you.
Muscle Strain and Soreness Relief
If you’ve been undertaking strenuous activities in your job, life, or recreation, consider massage as a way to experience relief from muscle strain and soreness. Sore and inflamed muscles may benefit from massages that allow blood to flow to the affected areas and encourage muscle recovery to occur.
Lower Blood Pressure
Many things contribute to high blood pressure, such as diabetes, stress, high cholesterol, a poor diet, or even family history. In a blind clinical trial study involving 50 pre-hypertensive women divided into control and test groups, it was discovered that 10-15-minute massages three times per week were able to lower the systolic and diastolic blood pressure in the test group.
Within three days of the study’s conclusion, there was a significant difference in blood pressure between the control and test groups.
Whether you have something specific you’d like to focus on, or you’d simply like to feel relaxed, you may see the value in massages. Now might be the right time to find a suitable massage therapist and see if you can experience some of these benefits above for yourself.