There is not much difference in the concept of massage and massage therapy. When a layman uses the touch, pressing and kneading actions to bring about a feeling of lightness and happiness in the receiver, he is practising the art of massage. But, when the same techniques are used in a scientific manner, taking into account the muscle locations, stress points and other anatomical considerations, it becomes massage therapy.
Massage can be given by anyone, anywhere and under any circumstances. One does not need to know the intricacies of human body-systems in order to practise massage. But to practise the massage therapy, one has to be proficient in the knowledge of the human body-systems and their working. It is a more skilled and technical aspect of the common massage, which is more instinctive than technical.
Massage therapy is the systematized manipulation of soft tissues for the purpose of normalizing them. Practitioners use a variety of physical methods, which include applying fixed or movable pressure, holding, or causing movement to the body. Therapists primarily use their hands, but may also use their forearms, elbows, or feet.
The basic goal of massage therapy is to help the body heal itself and to increase health and well-being. Touch is the core ingredient of massage therapy and also combines science and art. Practitioners learn specific techniques for massage and use their sense of touch to determine the right amount of pressure to apply to each person and locate areas of tension and other soft-tissue problems. Touch also conveys a sense of caring, an important component in the healing relationship.
When muscles are overworked, waste products such as lactic acid can accumulate in the muscle, causing soreness, stiffness, and even muscle spasm. Massage improves circulation, which increases blood flow, bringing fresh oxygen to body tissues. This can assist the elimination of waste products, speed healing after injury, and enhance recovery from disease.
Therapeutic massage can be used to promote general well-being and enhance self-esteem, while boosting the circulatory and immune systems to benefit blood pressure, circulation, muscle tone, digestion, and skin tone. It has been incorporated into many health systems, and different massage techniques have been developed and integrated into various complementary therapies.
Most therapists, and certainly those who work holistically, believe that regular body massage can release emotional tension and promote physical health, gradually restoring the whole person to balanced health. Massage also forms the basis of other therapies such as aromatherapy, Shiatsu, and physiotherapy, and plays an important part in Chinese and ayurvedic medicine. Massage is primarily about touch, and touch in itself has healing qualities for reasons that are beyond our understanding.
How Does it Work?
There are many types of massage, some which work on reflex points, such as Shiatsu, reflexology and Chinese massage, others concentrate on relieving specific conditions, for example remedial massage is used to treat sports injuries and muscle strains, and manual lymphatic drainage (MLD) is used to stimulate lymphatic system.
Therapeutic massages can be given practically anywhere, ranging from a fifteen minute massage of the shoulders and back for someone sitting in a chair to an hour long head to toe massage on a padded massage table.
Basic massage techniques such as stroking, kneading, wringing, pummelling and knuckling, have been shown to simulate physical and emotional healing by a mechanical and a reflex action.
The Mechanical Effects of Massage
Theses are the physical results of pressing, squeezing and moving the soft tissues. Depending on the massage techniques used, this can be relaxing or stimulating. Tense muscles can cause sluggish circulation because they force the body’s blood vessels to constrict. Massaging the muscles relaxes them and stimulates the circulation so that blood flows freely, carrying oxygen and nutrients to where they are needed. By working on the circulation regular massage can help to normalise blood pressure, easing the pressure on over-burdened arteries and veins. Massage also stimulates the lymphatic system, which is responsible for nourishing cells, carrying waste products out of our body and defending the body against infection.
The Reflex Action
This is the involuntary reaction of one part of your body to the stimulation of another part. Because the body, mind and emotions form one intricate organism, connected by energy channels and a complex nervous system with receptors in the skin, stimulus in one part of the body can affect several other parts. So, strange as it may seem, a back massage can also be used to ease leg pain.
Massage is a physical therapy, but one with a strong emotional content. Austrian psychoanalyst, Wilhelm Reich was the first modern therapist to understand the effects of massage on emotions. He introduced the concept of ‘body armouring’, the belief that unexpressed emotions, such as anger or grief are held in the body. Tense, rigid muscles are not healthy for the body and suppressed emotions are not good for the mind. Reich’s philosophy paved the way for massage as a holistic therapy. The Esalen Institute in California later developed it into a therapy for releasing and encouraging personal growth.
Lately, research in the US has reinforced Reich’s belief that the mind and body are so interrelated that it is impossible to make a clear distinction between them. It has found that old emotions are stored in the ganglion of the spinal cord and other parts of the autonomic nervous system. Massage can free them by inducing relaxation, releasing endorphins-the body’s pain relievers, but also by triggering neuropeptides-molecules that act as intercellular messengers within the nervous system.
Massaging the skin releases the peptides affecting the mind, stimulating the immune system and improving overall body health. According to a leading US pharmacologist, Dr. Candace Pert, the preventive benefits of massage are so great that ‘almost 90% of mainstream medicines can be replaced with a weekly massage’.