The Secret Of How Massage Therapy Benefits Your Overall Health

Getting a professional massage just might very well be one of the best ways to relax the mind, body and spirit. These days, professional massage therapists are in high demand, and although the occasional massage from one of these highly trained practitioners may cost what the average person considers a good bit of money, it seems well worth it to many. Not only does it make you feel wonderful from head to toe, it also has many health benefits that many people (and you?) are probably unaware of.

The best way to describe what a massage can do for a person’s overall health is explaining how a therapist can manipulate the body’s soft tissues, which means the massage therapist has complete control of a person’s musculature. The most common areas of the body that a therapist focuses on are the back, neck, arms, legs and, at times, even the jaw and head. Massages can help to alleviate the most common types of stress that occurs in the body’s muscles, wherever they are located. Still, simply describing massage methods doesn’t quite answer the question of what massage therapy can do to benefit a person’s overall health.

Reduce stress, live longer

One key benefit to massages is that they help lower high blood pressure. This is important information for someone who might suffer from high blood pressure and the various secondary conditions it causes or contributes to. Massage therapy helps lower a person’s heart rate, which, of course, is directly linked to blood pressure. Since high blood pressure can lead to serious health conditions, like heart attack and strokes, the occasional massage might be a good thing to try as a preventative against such conditions.

Interestingly, massage therapy has been shown to help certain people with certain, specific kinds of mental health conditions. Many psychiatrists will recommend that their patients receive a massage regularly to help alleviate depression symptoms, anxiety and other mental health conditions. The mechanism by which it works is hardly mysterious, but it is amazing for its simple effectiveness and ability to affect all major systems of the human body. Massage clearly relaxes the body, as well as the mind, at the same time, which can stimulate the brain’s production of both endorphins (natural pain killers) and mood-enhancing serotonin.

Set and setting, game and match

The human mind being the powerful creative force that it is, many massage therapists set the mood with candles, music and sometimes by burning incense. In addition to bringing a more soothing atmosphere to the massage, there are some indications that aromatherapy has some testable effects on stress, too. Enhancing the mood, therefore, may be a more powerful technique than even massage professionals now realize.

Massage therapy can bring a wide variety of beneficial elements to a person’s life. Many professional and amateur athletes have been known to use massage therapy, quite often before they play in a game, take to the track or strap on the skis. The massages that pro athletes receive help to relax them before they play, at which time they will exert themselves far beyond the normal demands of life, with more force and potential pain than most people will ever experience. The massage therapist is ready to help relieve their pain after the game is over, too.