4 Unexpected Things Massage Can Do For You
Many of the benefits of massage are well known. It reduces stress, promotes relaxation, reduces/ eliminates pain, and induces euphoric feelings. Here are a few more benefits that aren't so well known.
Speeds up Illness Recovery
Just like exercise, getting a massage can help move along the invaders in your body and get you feeling better. Different Massage techniques can do a more thorough job than just exercise because it can help release trapped toxins in your fascia. If you seem to be going from one strand of sickness to another, it may be a good idea to get a couple of massages (in between active sicknesses) and give your immune system a boost.
For those with more chronic issues like Fibromyalgia, certain autoimmune diseases, allergies, Chronic Fatigue and certain gut issues, certain techniques like Myofascial Release and Gua Sha can release the fascial adhesions that have trapped toxins. You can read more about this in this article. Your Fascia is Making You Feel Pain, Fatigue, Sickness, and Injury
Promotes Healthy Digestion
Most people don't ask for a massage on their stomach, but there a lot of benefits to visiting this area. Massage here can stimulate blood vessels, promote oxygen flow, and promote digestion. As the stomach is kneaded, it can aid your colon in moving waste. The extra blood flow can stimulate waste removal via the gall bladder and liver.
Like everywhere else in the body, the fascia can be affected by stress in the stomach and can cause issues. Tight fascia restricts blood flow to organs, and can cause pain that doctors cannot pinpoint. These areas in the stomach can also surprisingly contribute to back pain. Women who have had babies similarly should get several massages postpartum to help release adhesions from pregnancy, and restore muscle tone to stretch out abdominals
Reflexology is also a legitimate way to access your insides. The bottom of your feet have a connection to each of your organs, and a skilled practitioner can manipulate them in certain ways to stimulate healing and reset. I've personally been able to feel it happen as well as aid this process in other people .
Keeps Wrinkles at Bay and
Promotes Healthier Looking Skin
Have you wondered why people that grow up in certain Eastern countries tend to have younger looking skin with fewer wrinkles? Part of that could be attributed to the popularity of Gua Sha. Gua Sha is a modality that is used to break up fascial adhesions, as well as give the face a "natural face-lift". The scraping motion affects the outer layers of skin by promoting production of collagen and increasing circulation (which stimulates the lymphatic system and removes toxins). Additionally, stuck fascia can create areas where the skin gets stuck, and thereafter wrinkles.
Keeps Your Heart Healthier
That relaxing feeling that you get is doing more good than you know. Lowering your cortisol (stress hormone) can in turn lower your blood pressure for days afterwards. This article written by a cardiologist goes more in depth to talk about why.
We can't talk about blood pressure without talking about fascia again. Fascia that is stuck inhibits the flow of your lymph system (immune system), blood, and other fluids. The adhesion can cause blood to slow and only make it through with lots of effort (super tiring!) . This also results in more pressure on those delicate blood vessels. Eliminating the adhesions allows the blood to flow like it wants to.
Make it a priority and get your massage scheduled today!