Massage and stress

Massage is a good way to relax and relieve stress, not to mention it provides several other health benefits. Stress causes muscular tension, an impaired digestive system, a high blood pressure, and reduced immune system. It gives trouble with sleep, anxiety, lack of patience and even depression.

With a good massage, tense muscles can be relaxed and loosened up. The tensions caused by stress can be reduced or even removed. Since muscular tension doesn't only work one way, the stress itself is also treated by treating the muscles. When you are exposed to a constant pain, you become more irritable and short-tempered, lose focus and tend easier to become distracted. All these things influence your performance which again can cause stress to build. This again influences your body to become more tense and you have entered a vicious circle. The less muscular tension and pain you have, the less stress you feel.

The digestive system can be aided and brought back to normal functioning by massaging the stomach. Reflexology (reflex zone therapy) is another useful tool when dealing with digestive problems and heart issues. High blood pressure can be reduced by making a person relax completely. The immune system can be strengthened from triggering various pressure points using Shiatsu techniques. The lymph system is stimulated and helped by a massage, by emptying the lymph nodes and the lymphatic flow is encouraged through the work on the muscles and surrounding tissues.

Since it's essential for stress management to relax completely, this is another aspect of why massage can be so useful for dealing with stress. During a massage the mind is encouraged to let go of worries and ideally the client will focus on the massage giving the brain a much needed rest. A massage can become a meditative experience with the right massage, as well as tools such as music and scents.

Since massage and the stimulations a massage provides encourages the release of endorphins, there is a clear anti-depressive treatment in a massage as well. The endorphins are natures own natural painkillers and antidepressants. Which again aids dealing with stress since depression stops action to improve upon the situation causing the stress.

Touch can have a powerful emotional impact, and a soft, gentle and caring touch can trigger the release of many built up emotions. Emotions is potentially another great stress-factor, especially when the stress is caused by life situation and past trauma. We all know how a good cry can make us feel lighter and more at ease and balanced. A good massage that releases pent up emotions can do so as well.

Getting a massage makes us feel good about ourselves and relaxed, which is needed when we effectively wish address problems that causes stress. We all deserve this treat and too often we forget to take properly care of ourselves. It can make the difference between success and failure.

Aromatherapy in massage

In many massages massage oils are used. The oil makes the massage more fluid and reduces the friction against the skin so the work on the muscles becomes deeper and better. The massage oil also nourishes and moisten the skin.

Massage oils often use aromatherapy. The essential oils not only serves to help relax sore muscles and aid skin conditions or digestion, but also affect the mood, relaxation and feelings during and after the massage.

A good massage oil will not contain much essential oil. It is not needed, and too strong a solution might irritate the skin and enhance the risk of allergic reactions. 10 drops of essential oil is normally enough for 100 ml carrier oil. Double amount can safely be used, but is rarely necessary to create a nicely scented massage oil.

To further use essential oils during a massage, an infuser can be employed to give the room a fragrance that correspondents with the massage oil used. Scented candles are not recommended since they burn the oils instead of evaporate them.

It is mostly for the mental and psychological aspect that aromatherapy is used in massage. By choosing the right scents for a person a certain mood can be set and the fragrances can aid the relaxation.

When paying attention to the mental effects of scents, a massage oil can be created which not only eases muscular tensions, but also releases psychological pain and stagnation. A massage then becomes a holistic treatment healing both body and mind. By using essential oils in your massages, you create not only a physical treatment, but a holistic massage, working on body, mind and emotions as a whole.

Since the essential oils can affect a person very strongly emotionally and cause irritations and skin issues, it's important to be careful on how they are used and follow the safety guidelines there are for essential oils.

It is a wonderful world to explore and can make a large difference in a massage.

Further reading:
Aromatherapy and Massage: Achieving Health and Well-Being the Natural Way with Simple Massage Techniques and Aromatic Treatments
Aromatherapy for Healing the Spirit: A Guide to Restoring Emotional and Mental Balance Through Essential Oils
Aromatherapy: A Guide for Home Use
Essential Oils for Lovers
Aromaterapi - Sumo Lutos

Aromatherapy

Aromatherapy isn't a massage form as such, but rather a tool used with various massage techniques. The therapy can also be used with baths, inhaled, as room fragrance, compresses, skin care, and internally. Though massage is probably the most commonly used method to employ aromatherapy and use essential oils.

In essence aromatherapy uses essential oils distilled and extracted from various flowers, plants and barks with the aim of using them to heal the body and mind. Aromatherapy isn't a cure in itself, but rather used as a complimentary medicine with other therapies and methods.

The theory is that small concentrated amounts of the essential oils can work on the body and mind. The essential oils contain the essence of the plant and aromatherapy can be seen as a branch of herbalism. Many of the oils have the same properties and functions as infusions and extracts plants as used in traditional herb medicine.

Some oils have antibacterial and anti fungal properties, as well as antiviral. Others help relax the muscles, ease sores or burns. Some oils increase blood flow, reduces pulse, helps with skin problems or aid with digestion while others are useful for the respiratory system. Just as herb medicine has a wide range of conditions it is useful for, so does aromatherapy and essential oils.

Essential oils are also attributed a wide range mental and psychological benefits such as relaxation, aid in meditation, sleep, energy, aphrodisiac, depression etc. A scent can be very powerful and affect our mood easily. It brings back memories, gives us associations with certain situations or things, makes us feel relaxed, happy, romantic or hungry.

Aromatherapy should be used with caution since some oils can have undesired side effects. Each oil must be studied carefully before it is used to avoid complications. Since essential oils are very concentrated it is essential to keep a close eye on possible allergic reactions as well as consider allergies and skin conditions. Aromatherapy shouldn't generally be used during pregnancies and or on babies and small children, unless by a trained aromatherapist.

There are not many regulations around the world when it come to aromatherapy. In some countries anything can be called aromatherapy as long as it contains essential oils or extracts from plants with scent. In other countries there are stricter rules and not everybody can use the term freely. It is still an alternative medicine and scientific studies are lacking on many of the oils and their effects as well as on their uses.

There are schools that educate aromatherapists, though mostly found in the UK, Canada, some in the US and Australia. And associations of aromatherapists around the world are trying to bring about standards to provide security and standards for practitioners and clients alike.

Further reading:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aromatherapy
http://www.aromatherapy.com/
http://www.aromaweb.com/
http://www.aromatherapycouncil.co.uk/
Aromatherapy and Massage: Achieving Health and Well-Being the Natural Way with Simple Massage Techniques and Aromatic Treatments
Aromatherapy for Healing the Spirit: A Guide to Restoring Emotional and Mental Balance Through Essential Oils (Alternative Health)
Aromatherapy: A Guide for Home Use
The Practice of Aromatherapy: A Classic Compendium of Plant Medicines & Their Healing Properties
Essential Oils for Lovers
Aromaterapi - Sumo Lutos

Swedish massage

Swedish Massage, also known as Classical Massage (especially in Scandinavia) or as Massage Therapy (mostly in the US), is the basic massage form that most Western world massage-types are based on.

The massage consists of a series of basic movements which are all used to manipulate the soft tissue (muscles etc.) in order to relieve stresses, increase blood flow, loosen muscles, detoxify tissue and strengthen the muscle and make it more subtle.

There are six basic strokes:

• Effleurage - soft caressing movements towards the heart usually used to start and conclude the massage of a specific area and to connect various body parts during the session.
  
• Petrissage - kneading movements working in depth on the muscles, releasing tensions or knots and increasing blood-flow. This can also include some trigger point manipulation and deep tissue massage.
  
• Friction - rapid movements usually done by the palm to heat the skin and upper muscle layers. It increases the blood-flow to an area and the heat makes the muscles relax.
  
• Tapotement - tapping of muscles in order to increase blood-flow and loosen the muscles. It "wakes" up the body.
  
• Compression - squeezing and twisting the muscles in order to lift, relax and drain the muscles.
• Vibration - used to relax the muscles and loosen tensions.
  

Deep tissue massage is based on Swedish massage, but with special focus on loosening knots and tensions, working deeply into the muscle and releasing chronic pain. One massage will not be enough to deal with chronic tensions and a deep tissue package will not only include several massages, but also physical exercise and relaxation exercises.

Swedish massage can easily be adopted to other massage forms such as Californian Massage or Aromatherapy since the main difference technically is pressure, speed and intensity.

It is useful to keep in mind that in the US it is demanded by law that a client is always covered/draped by a sheet/towel during the massage if naked. In France there are no such laws and it is normal to receive the massage naked without any draping. This always will depend on the comfort level of the client and you as receiver will always have final say.

There is a lot of different definitions on massage types and what they are depending on where in the world you're located, and as such it can be difficult to figure out precisely what a name like Swedish massage covers. Especially since Swedish Massage isn't Swedish but the system attributed to a Dutch practitioner Johan Georg Mezger. His work might be based on a movement system created by Per Henrik Ling, a Swedish gymnastics teacher and fencer. His work might have been based on various Asian massage and treatment methods.

Further reading:
http://spas.about.com/od/swedishmassage/a/Swedish.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Massage