Stress relief with Cocooning

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Cocooning can be a great stress reliever, both from current work stress as well as old emotional wounds. The best way to illustrate this is to use a couple of case studies from some clients I have recently given a cocooning to.

One came to me after work with a headache after a stressful day. She felt burnt out, tired, and lacking motivation for doing her job. As part of her salary is commission based, the current economic times are particularly stressful for her.

After she lay on the table, I put on relaxing, quiet music and began to place the hot stones under and on her. Some were placed under the neck and shoulders to warm the tense muscles causing her headache, and the rest were placed to warm her up and give her the feeling of one long hug. While she lay with the stones I massaged her feet, again focusing on the areas related to neck and shoulders, but mostly just giving her a caring and warm foot massage that would help her relax.

After half an hour's treatment with stones and foot massage, she came out of the massage room feeling revived and refreshed. And she told me how her headache had disappeared while I massaged her feet. In the days following she had much more energy than usually, so much so that people actually commented upon it.

For her the Cocooning is a perfect treatment to deal with work related stress, especially when too busy for a full massage.

Another example is an elderly lady who came to me seeking to try something new. She's a very spiritual lady and teaches yoga in spite of her age. She was curious about the stones and could feel their earth energy. She received the treatment with the stones around her as well as a gentle foot massage with essential oils. I could sense I should be gentle with her as not to overwhelm her emotions with the treatment.

Afterwards she asked to be allowed to stay alone on the table for a while longer. Half an hour later she came out of the treatment room indicating desire to speak to me. She told me how it had released some very old tensions. The treatment had been so powerful that she had cried afterwards, releasing old emotions and pains. She seemed much more serene and balanced after the treatment, and very thoughtful. She asked to come back and continue with the Cocooning, as she felt it had done her much good.

For this lady the Cocooning aided her in healing old hurts and pains, letting go of some of the past and becoming more balanced and happy.

Even if Cocooning doesn't include much physical manipulation of soft tissue, it can be an incredibly powerful treatment, both physically and mentally. Cocooning is very suitable for those who can't otherwise receive a massage, as it's very gentle and not intrusive.

Stress and tensions

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Stress has a tendency to settle in the muscles, making them tense and eventually painful. For myself, it's especially the jaw-muscles which tense up and can become so tense and sore that it can be hard to yawn. For many mothers I've treated tension is located in shoulders and back. For working people it's often neck and shoulders.

Stress is an emotional response to situations we're faced with, which often manifests itself physically. When muscles tense up, their function is impaired. Other muscles have to take over part of the work and become strained as they're forced to do work they're not meant for. Tense muscles also affects the blood flow in the area, which impairs the effectiveness of the immune system as the white blood cells can't easily go to an infected area. Tension also reduces the lymphatic process which serves to transport waste products away from the affected and neighbouring areas.

It is then no surprise that stress, and the following muscular tensions, can lead to a number of diseases and injuries. I've read statements that as high a number as 95% of all diseases and sicknesses are caused by stress. That is a lot. 95% because of stress.

Stress is also the most widespread ailment in Western society today. Not many people have time to take room for themselves to pause, stop up, relax and just let go of daily life for half an hour every day. We have many things to consider and many demands placed on our shoulders.

With the current worldwide financial crisis and all the uncertainty that brings along, it is a given that stress has increased and it's even more important we focus on reducing stress.

Massage and bodywork is useful on many levels. The physical work of the massage release the tension from the muscles, allowing them to function optimally again. On a mental level massage is highly relaxing and de-stressing as you lie passively for perhaps an hour, being forced to let go of the urge to do things. A massage gives you that break and pause you need to recharge and bring a bit of distance into the picture.

So don't forget to take those breaks and grant yourself massages regularly, even if the money are tight and you're busy. It can be the factor that makes the difference between sailing out of the crisis in good health, and sinking in the storm.

Bewares in Thermal Massage

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Not all people should receive massage. There are contraindications and situations where a massage can be directly harmful. When you use heat and cold in a massage, these multiply and you need to be even more aware of the conditions the client has and how to deal with them.

Temperature extremes stresses the immune system, which is no problem and actually beneficial for those who're healthy and with a normal immune system. It's good for it to get a bit of work to do once in a while to keep it in shape and ready.

But when people have a stressed immune system, applying heat and cold can become too much for it, with the risk of rendering it less effective in dealing with the real challenges. This is why it's generally advised that people who're sick do not get a massage, and especially not thermal therapy. That said, massage and thermal can help in the recovery phase, or with minor issues. This is where the therapist must take these things into consideration and adjust the treatment accordingly.

There are three areas where the therapist can adjust her treatment. The length, the temperatures and the techniques. If a client has a condition, it's always wise to lower the temperature to perhaps 40 degrees Celsius for the hot and room temperature for the cold, shorten the treatment to maybe just half an hour and use light and gentle techniques when massaging.

It is also essential that the client gives constant feedback and instantly informs the therapist if anything feels uncomfortable or painful. If it's too hot or too cold and describe what reactions and feelings that might happen.

Over a period of treatments, the temperature, techniques and length can be adjusted to suit the client's condition and situation. This allows the client to gain the benefits of thermal therapy and massage without putting him at risk.

There are of course situations where a client shouldn't receive a thermal massage under any conditions, unless the therapists is especially trained to deal with it. These includes:

• Thrombosis/embolism
• Contagious skin diseases
• Cancer
• Pregnancy

Conditions where a LaStone massage can be given, but precautions and special attention must be given, including using special techniques and reducing temperature or length:

• Epilepsy
• Diabetes
• Heart conditions
• Bruising
• Sunburn
• Psoriasis
• High blood pressure
• Low blood pressure
• Asthma
  
• Any condition where normal massage is contraindicated

In short, if the immune system is under any form of stress, then that must be taken into account and the treatment be adjusted accordingly, or avoided all together. There are luckily many other treatments and therapies which only apply minimal physical manipulation, such as Reiki, Craniosacral therapy and aromatherapy.

Make sure that your therapist are aware of the contraindications for a thermal massage and who to adjust her treatment according to the condition of the client. It's even more important when using temperature than during a normal massage, so be certain that your therapist is properly qualified and knowledgeable.

Hygiene in massage

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Hygiene is very important when you massage, especially in these times where the threat of the new flu is hanging over us. We as therapists are very aware of the situation and take our precautions.

For a normal massage we do the following:

• Wash our hands before and after a massage.
• Change sheets and towels, so a client will always have fresh clean sheets and towels.
  
• Wash towels and sheets at minimum 60 degrees Celsius, which is the temperature normally recommended to avoid the spreading of sickness.
• Change t-shirt if it's been in contact with the client.
• Wiping massage table/chair with an antibacterial cloth between clients.
• Making sure the environment is clean and tidy, as well as ourselves.

When using tools for a massage, these also needs to be disinfected and cleaned properly between massages to avoid the spreading of especially skin-related diseases. For hot stone massage this is even more important as the hot water can provide for a very good environment for bacteria.

Most bacteria and viruses related to human health thrives at a temperature around 37 degrees Celsius. This is why the body induces fever to raise the temperature to get rid of the enemies. Some can withstand higher temperatures and the official Danish recommendation to wash the clothes of sick people in households, is minimum 60 degrees. For hospitals and the like, the temperature need to be 95, close to boiling, to be certain.

Fortunately, sick people normally don't get massages, so the risk of spreading any disease is small to begin with. There can be undiscovered skin-conditions, not to mention, we all carry a load of bacteria on our skin through our daily interaction with our environment. These bacteria can be transferred onto the stones and when placed in warm water, some will die and some will begin to thrive.

Depending on the temperature of the water, more or less of the bacteria will die. The normal temperature range for a LaStone, around 54 degrees Celsius, is hot enough to kill most bacteria, but not all. This is why it's important to ensure proper hygiene with the stones and the water that heats them. For the cold stones, the cold only serves to put the bacteria to sleep, and once they get into contact with the warm skin, they'll wake up and thrive.

To ensure proper hygiene of the stones used in massage, we do the following:

• Sanitation tablets or other antiseptic products is the water of the heater. This way we ensure that bacteria can't survive in the warm water and be transferred onto the next client.
• Sanitation of the cold stones before they return to the cooler. Ethanol (pure alcohol) is one of the best, but other products with antiseptic properties can be used.
• By the end of the day, all the stones are carefully washed with dish washing soap, including the cooler and heater, and left out to dry out during the night.

If you're in doubt if your therapist has changed the water in the heater or use antiseptic products, do ask to be shown what he does and ask into the routines. There are cases in the past where bad hygiene has closed down spas, without it being the fault of the therapy form, but rather the therapists not being aware of the risks and bewares.

Any well trained massage therapists knows these hygiene rules and follow them, keeping the well-being and health of their clients first in mind. It is part of their training and will be incorporated into their daily routines.

More massages, more benefit

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Body Sense recently published an article "Massage Multiplied - benefits of massage improve with frequency" (the PDF file can be downloaded here). In short it tells how frequent massages can improve your overall health and wellness, get rid of injuries and tensions faster and how it serves as preventive health care. Not to mention, it allows you to be more in tune with your body so you can spot the warning signals faster, which allows you to take precautions and avoid a wide range of problems.

The key is consistency. Just like when you commit to a diet or an exercise routine. If you only follow your diet once in a while or in bursts it won't help you lose weight. If you only work out and exercise every other week, it won't have much lasting effect on your health and physical shape. You need to commit and be consistent in order to gain the full range of benefits and see lasting changes.

The same is true for massages. Regular, consistent massages will reduce the accumulation of stress and improve overall health. Experts say that 90% of disases are stress related, and if there's something massage is very good at, it is to reduce stress.

Do yourself the favour to commit to getting regular massages, and you'll see how your wellness improves. Let massages be part of your wellness plan, just like diet and exercise are.