Benefits of Massage!

Benefits of Massage

9 REASONS TO SCHEDULE:

1. Manage Anxiety & Depression

Massage reduces levels of the stress hormone cortisol, resulting in lifted spirits and often lower blood pressure. It can also boost the neurotransmitters serotonin and dopamine, which are involved in depression.

2. Ease Pain

According to a 2011 study, massage helped people in pain feel and function better compared to people who didn't receive any massage treatment. This is because massage creates chemical changes that reduce pain and stress throughout the body. One way it does this is by reducing a brain chemical called substance P that is related to pain. In a TRI study, for example, individuals with a form of muscle pain called fibromyalgia showed less substance P in their saliva (and they reported reduced pain) after a month of twice-weekly massages.

3. Improve Sleep

A number of studies have examined this link, and chalk it up to massage's affect on delta waves, the kind of brain waves connected to deep sleep, according to Health magazine.

4. Boost Immunity

In one 2010 study, researchers found massage increased a person's disease fighting white blood cells.Several studies have measured the stress hormone called cortisol in subjects' saliva before and after massage sessions, and found dramatic decreases. Cortisol, which is produced when you are stressed, kills cells important for immunity, so when massage reduces your stress levels and hence the cortisol in your body, it may help you avoid getting a cold or another illness while under stress.

5. Raise Alertness

Adults who were given a 15-minute chair massage in a small 1996 Touch Research Institute study (TRI) were more alert and completed a series of math questions faster and more accurately.

6. Curb Headaches

A 2009 study found that a 30-minute massage decreased pain for people with tension headaches, and even curbed some of the stress and anger associated with that pounding head.

7. Improve Quality of Life

Because of many of the benefits listed above, massage is particularly helpful for people living with or undergoing treatment for serious illnesses, like cancer. Various studies have shown that massage can relieve fatigue, pain, anxiety, depression, and nausea in cancer patients.

8. Reduce Blood Pressure

Massage reduces hypertension, suggests a good deal of research. This may be because it stimulates pressure receptors that prompt action from the vagus nerve, one of the nerves that emerges from the brain. The vagus nerve regulates blood pressure, as well as other functions. In a 2005 study at the University of South Florida, hypertension patients who received 10 massages of 10 minutes each over three weeks showed significant improvements in blood pressure compared to a control group who simply rested in the same environment without any massage.

9. It Feels GREAT and you are worth it!

Katie White RMT thanks you for your patronage and looks forward to seeing you soon!