This is a nice article about something that I try to stress to my clients and wish everyone was more comfortable doing. I've always said thatthe best massages are accomplished when there is good communication between the therapist and the person receiving the massage. We aren't mind-readers!

Your Massage Session
Vocalize Your Needs

Written by: Laurie Chance Smith
Provided by: Massage & Bodywork Magazine

When a massage therapist’s hands touch the skin, the effect reaches down to the muscles and ligaments, and then positively influences the circulatory, lymphatic, and nervous systems. Healing touch, a sensitive style of communication, speaks safety and comfort. “The beauty of massage lies in it being such a simple, direct form of human contact,” says Susan Mumford in The New Complete Guide to Massage (Penguin Group, 2006).

Massage is a safe therapeutic art, considered by many to be a vehicle for mental, physical, and emotional health. People seek massage for myriad reasons—from simple relaxation to addressing muscular injuries. An intuitive therapist is likely to pick up many clues about your needs from an intake interview before the session, and even by the way you sit, talk, and walk. The written and verbal information you provide and the questions you ask are also crucial for a successful bodywork session. Mention particular issues you’d like to have addressed and feel free to ask about the techniques being used in your session.

Inform your therapist of short- or long-term medical conditions. Massage is used cautiously, or not at all, in some situations. For example, massage is generally avoided when a person has fever, open wounds, or certain skin disorders. People with long-term medical conditions, such as cancer, diabetes, or osteoporosis, should seek a doctor’s advice before massage. With medical supervision, a trained bodyworker often helps ease long-term pain and stress, usually with gentle strokes and personalized techniques.

During the session, vocalize your needs as they arise. If the room is too warm or cold, say so. Herbal and aromatherapeutic oils add healing benefits to massage. Tell your therapist if you are sensitive to an herb or essential oil, if you’d like him or her to use more (or less) massage oil, or if you don’t care for an oil’s scent.

What if you feel pain during massage? In Massage: Mind and Body (DK Publishing, 2003), Larry Costa says we must “distinguish between comfortable and uncomfortable pain.” When working on sensitive areas of your body, the therapist will begin slowly then move toward deep-tissue work. “You may experience some discomfort to begin with, but this should diminish after a few minutes as the muscles relax,” Costa says. This is comfortable pain. “Pain that causes you to wince, cry out, or tense up is probably not doing you any good.” Ask your therapist for less or more pressure, depending on your needs.

“The healing touch of massage is one of the best gifts you can give your body,” writes Esme Floyd in Body Massage (Carlton Books, 2004). Touch, a basic human impulse, soothes the body and relaxes the mind, promoting physical and mental wellbeing. Massage sessions provide a safe space for you to relax, reflect, and feel comfortable in your own skin.

Laurie Chance Smith is a Texas-based
writer and photographer who works for national
and international markets on a plethora of
topics. She can be reached at
lauriechancesmith@yahoo.com.

MASSAGE: YOUR KEY TO HEALTH

Written by: Laurie Chance Smith
Article courtesy of Massage & Bodywork

The notion of healing has always fascinated humans. And the healing power of touch, for both body and mind, has been recognized for millennia. Ancient Egyptian artwork depicts doctors utilizing a relaxing hand massage, and the Greek healer Hippocrates, often touted as the father of modern medicine, suggested that physicians become adept at “rubbing” their patients to increase health. Among the countless ways to maintain strength and vitality, “massage is the most basic healing tool,” writes Kristine Kaoverii Weber, author of Healing Self Massage. Therapeutic touch is an instinctive and eloquent form of communication that has been molded into a healing art. Larry Costa, author of Massage: Mind and Body, writes that massage has many “physical and mental benefits, including ... relieving muscle soreness, increasing flexibility, easing chronic pain, reducing tension headaches, boosting the immune system, promoting restful sleep, and improving concentration.” Massage positively affects the body’s circulatory, nervous, and immune systems. By encouraging blood flow through the veins, massage benefits the entire body. The calming effects of massage on the nervous system often produce a sense of serenity and wellbeing.

Regular massage also stimulates the lymphatic system, which enhances the function of the immune system. From easing arthritis and asthma to improving digestion, the benefits of massage therapy run the gamut.
Massage helps relieve daily stressors and eases recovery from many serious illnesses. In The Complete Book of
Relaxation Techniques, Jenny Sutcliffe points out that massage can relieve pain by stimulating the production of endorphins—the body’s own painkillers—and, by increasing the sensory input to the brain, thereby blocking out the pain messages.

The positive physiological and psychological effects of massage were demonstrated in a recent study of patients undergoing care for cancer. When given massage, study participants at the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston exhibited increased relaxation, better sleep, and improved immune function, along with relief from fatigue, pain, anxiety, and nausea. In Ayurvedic Herbal Massage, author Gita Ramesh says regular massages can “relieve stress and help to promote a long and healthy life.” In the Indian healing system of ayurveda, massage is considered a form of whole body exercise that increases stamina and energy, while simultaneously delivering an inexpressible quality of stillness and joy—a time to be present. Massage realigns the entire body, promotes deeper and more natural breathing patterns, and helps restore individual resources of vital energy. The moments spent in massage are an opportunity to experience oneself as completely accepted.
Regular massage is a gift to yourself. Through the power of structured, healing touch, massage helps the body run smoothly, like keeping a musical instrument in perfect tune.

Massage rejuvenates the body from the outside in, with side benefits that include improved complexion, better posture, and a relaxed disposition on life. For additional information about the numerous benefits and types of massage, visit www.massagetherapy.com.

Laurie Chance Smith is a Texas-based writer and photographer who works for national and international markets on a plethora of topics. She can be reached at
lauriechancesmith@yahoo.com.

Welcome Back

I started this blog several years ago with the goal of providing information about Massage Therapy and its benefits, but I have let it fall by the wayside. Now after some major life and professional changes, I have decided to bring it back to continue the original mission, and will be making some interesting changes. In addition to articles that I write, I will also be including articles written by other massage professionals. This will give another look or side to some things that you may hear about often, and will allow me to provide information about topics in which I may not be the most expert of experts. (Hey, knowing and accepting my limits is a strength, right?)

Another part of the mission of this blog is to spread understanding and education about Massage Therapy, so if, while reading any articles, suddenly realize that you know someone who may benefit from some of the provided information, please feel free to forward the information to them or contact me for more information on anything.

So feel free to peruse the articles that I have previously written in the past, and stay tuned for more interesting articles to come!