7 good reasons to get a massage

There are many reasons to get a massage and the list would be long. Here comes seven very good reasons, seen from a somewhat different angle than the clinical one.

1. To relax and release stress. Massage is a wonderful way to completely relax and let go of worries and troubles for a while. This in return helps you deal with the stresses of daily life and gives you energy to face the challenges you meet.
2. Improves health. It's now generally accepted that stress and lack of relaxation noticeably impairs the immune system which in return affects our health. Massages indirectly helps your immune system get back on top to fight off all the viruses and other things which constantly assail us.
3. Better quality of life. Having a good health improves the life quality for us all. There's nothing more disastrous for quality of life than having to battle illness after illness and never feel well.
4. Increased confidence. Having a good health, feeling well and in good shape. Being relaxed and at ease, all increases confidence. Not to mention, being able to accept massages helps you accept your body which in return builds your confidence.
5. Improved relationships with self and others. Having confidence, a good health and energy and being at ease, all help to build good relationships with others and ourselves as well.
6. Expansion of possibilities. With confidence, energy and strength, we're more open to the possibilities and opportunities presented for us and see them easier. And feeling secure in good relationships with ourselves and others gives us the courage to take the opportunity.
7. Live life to the fullest and find happiness. This last statement might seem a bit assuming. Fact is though that if we are confident, positive, take the opportunities presented to us and are balanced, we are more likely to live life to the fullest and as such find happiness.

It will be too much to state that massage alone can lead to all this. But it certainly can be a great tool to use in order to achieve such. Massage can be the first step on the path and have a great influence on it. Don't ever underestimate the power of touch and physical well-being as ground for emotional well-being and true happiness. We are complete beings and must take care of all aspects of us. Body, mind and heart. Neglect one and the others will suffer.

With thanks to Amy Leclercq from Lightwork Aesthetic & Bodywork Therapy, for bringing up this way of seeing massage.

Clinical massage therapy

Clinical massage therapy focuses on treating the muscles and client as opposed to relaxation and de-stressing. A good knowledge of anatomy is needed to perform clinical massage therapy, as the work is done on the individual muscles and groups. It's important to know where they attach, what their functions are, the pain referrals and how they're located on the body of the client.

A clinical massage therapist will know what muscles she is massaging in order to treat a client. She will know which muscles work together and be able to analyse a client and recommend a treatment plan to treat the issues at hand. It is a much more medical approach to massage, with focus on treating specific problems instead of general relaxation and well-being.

As result, a clinical massage therapy session will often only focus on one area or part of the body, excluding those parts which has no connection to where the problems are located. An ankle pain might treat foot, legs and hips, perhaps even lower back, but most likely there would be no need to treat arms, shoulders and head.

The techniques in clinical massage therapy are much more focused than in general relaxation massage. In Swedish massage (classical massage, relaxation massage), there are a number of basic strokes including petrissage and effleurage. The techniques in clinical massage therapy seldom uses the strokes from Swedish massage, but instead the following:

• Holding. A muscle is held with the hand. This simple touch can make muscles relax and prepare them for deeper work.
  
• Compression. By pressing perpendicular into the tissue against deeper tissue or bone, the muscle is compressed. Pressure is kept until the muscle is felt to relax. Is also used on trigger points. Compression can be applied with fingertips, heel of hand, hole hand or even underarm and elbow. Pressure is maintained until a release is felt.
  
• Pincer Palpation/Compression. Tissue is grasped between thumb and fingers and pressed between them. It's a variant of compression and used the same way.
  
• Stripping or Stripping Massage. Firm pressure is used while gliding over a muscle, usually from one attachment to another and in the direction of the muscle fibres. It's repeated several times until the muscle is felt to relax. Most often the work is done on one muscle at a time, though can be done on groups where the individual muscles can't easily be distinguished.
  
• Cross-Fibre Friction. By gliding fingertips, thumb or elbow back and forth across the muscle fibres a muscle can be made to relax and the tension released. This is most often performed on or near the attachments.
  
• Passive Stretching. Stretching must be done carefully and slowly. A muscle is stretched by moving its attachment points away from each other. A stretch is sustained until a release in the muscle is felt.
  
• Myofacial Release. Is a stretching of the surface layers. Using palms a slow firm stretch is performed until a released is sensed by the hands. Most often used on back, chest and abdomen. This is merely a supplement to clinical massage therapy and is a whole branch of its own.

Combinations of clinical massage therapy and relaxation massages can provide really good results. If there is time, it's highly recommended to have the problem area treated and then spend as much time on a full relaxation massage to bring the rest of the body into a state of release and peace, as well as to prevent new issues from surfacing. This will also help the treated area to recover easier and overall give a better experience for the client.

Trigger points

Trigger point therapy is becoming increasingly popular, and more and more massage therapists incorporate the techniques in their treatments. It is not the same as acupressure, though some trigger points corresponds with acupressure points.

A trigger point is defined as; "A highly irritable localized spot of exquisite tenderness in a nodule in a palpable taut band of (skeletal) muscle." Their sizes vary from tiny lumps to large lumps and can be felt beneath the surface in the muscle fibres. They can be found in all muscles of all ages, even children and babies.

Nobody knows precisely why or how a trigger point forms. It's clear though that stress and strain to a muscle will trigger their formation and prolonged muscular strain can increase their size and number. Those which are just slightly tender can be a forewarning of potential problems building and a good sign that a muscle or muscle group is strained and treatment might soon be needed.

Poor posture, wrong use of muscles and joints, strain and stress to the body can all form trigger points. As with all things, it's important to maintain your body and keep it in good shape. Exercise, strength training, stretching and keeping a proper posture are all steps towards this goal. Active painful trigger points are a sign that your body needs maintenance and care.

The mark of trigger points is the referred pain patterns. The referrals comes from how the muscles and tendons attach and connect to various parts of the the body. The muscle and tendons connect to other areas, sometimes spreading out. Sometimes a muscle attaches to another muscle, sometimes it control a tendon which runs far from it's point of origin. Muscles cross each other in layers and there are clear patterns in how one muscle can affect others even in complete other parts of the body. Sometimes via direct connection, other times because of how the muscles work together.

For instance can a trigger point located in the calf refer pain in the big toe. The calf muscle is strained, which causes the trigger point to form. The referred pain comes as the muscle controls the movement of the big toe. As such, in order to truly understand and use trigger point therapy, it's important to understand anatomy and how the muscles are attached and what their functions are.

Trigger point therapy is in its essence rather simple. A muscle has a trigger point which is pressed until a release happens. The soreness subsides, the nodule loosens and the referred pains disappear. In practicality it takes knowledge and skill to find the primary trigger points, know what causes them to form (for instance poor posture) and understanding how pain in the forehead might be caused by a trigger point in the shoulder.

It's an interesting field to study and certainly bound to become a discipline most massage therapists will integrate in their treatments.