How Massage and Bodywork can help you…
With the rising pressure of living today we are increasingly in need of antidotes in order to help stabalise our stress levels. Stress can be, and has been, linked to many illnesses that are presently plaguing our society, such as depression, cancer, high blood pressure and heart disease.
Massage has been proven to lower reduce the stress hormone cortisol, while releasing dopamine and seretonin, therefore making it ideal for combating both stress and the side effects of this modern epidemic. Stress does not only manifest itself by way of these rather serious diseases but begins to show signs in the body as extreme muscle tightness, mostly in the neck, shoulder and back areas as well as a host of digestion issues.
We can find ourselves constantly in a “fight or flight” mode causing us to hold ourselves in a tense and static fashion which is very different to if we were on holiday for example, this causes a domino effect of tension echoing across our body. In turn this can lead to chronic muscular tension and tension headaches due to a reduced blood flow to the head. Massage can be of huge benefit to those under such stress to help avoid more serious joint injuries due to muscle imbalances, as well as calming the mind and spirit. It is important to remember that the tension in our body reflects the tension in our minds.
Massage has long been relegated to the realms of ‘pampering’, a luxury as opposed to a vital part of our own preventative medicine. We all tend to wait until it is too late when it comes to looking after ourselves, we tend to battle on through until we are literally brought to our knees by physical ailments or mental disorders. It is essential to start looking after ourselves, not only by going to the gym and eating well, but also by looking at how we feel, both physically mentally, paying heed to any warning signs.
A massage is not going to ‘cure’ you instantly, however, a regular weekly treatment can go to considerable lengths to ease away build up of physical and mental tension, creating an inner peace and calm. This ancient healing art still has much relevance to us in our modern world today.
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