Tag - active trigger points

Chronic Constipation – Can Massage Provide Relief?

Abdominal massage has been referred to as the “key to unlocking stubborn pain”, and many unrecognizable restrictions that cause and help constipation are often held in this area. ~  massage-education.com Whether it is abdomen distension, tenderness and achiness or simply a feeling of discomfort, the effects of constipation can intrude on your ability to fully participate in activities. It is one of the most common medical issues and it can be supported with massage. The medical profession defines constipation as having [...]

How Massage Can Help Heal A Groin Pull

New Years resolutions and summer outdoors activities can be the perfect storm for injury as you get more active and try to live up to the promises you make to yourself to ‘get in shape’. If you haven’t been keeping up with exercise over the winter, jogging, playing basketball, hiking or riding your bike may result in a struggle for your body to meet the sudden and intense demands placed on it to perform. Such issues as a pulled [...]

The Role of Skin In Massage

Anyone who has experienced massage knows how healing, relaxing and calming it can be. The main reason for this is the interaction that takes place between a skilled therapist’s touch and the client’s skin.  While this seems like a fairly simple process to understand, there is a complex and invisible communication between your skin and brain that allows you to experience the many benefits that you do from massage.   The Skin Human skin forms part of the body’s integumentary system, which [...]

Why Does Your Heel Hurt?

If you are experiencing: pain in your heel that seems to be slowly getting worse, discomfort in the arch of your foot tenderness in your heel that is more predominant in the morning or your heel is swollen …you may be dealing with Plantar Faciitis. This is a very common heel issue that results from excessive stretching of the soft wide band of tissue (plantar fascia) and tendon that runs from the heel bone, across the arch of the foot and connects into the forefoot. [...]

Can Massage Improve Brain Function?

Brain health is a primary focus of well-being. Your brain chemistry and function improve as you learn a new language, take up a new activity, stay socially engaged or when you commit to new experiences on a daily basis. Another significant way to maintain brain health is through regular physical activity. Here are two ways that exercise supports optimal cognitive function: Besides helping the body maintain good health, physical exercise is also known to increase the size of the brain’s hippocampus, [...]

Massage Therapy to Heal Scar Tissue

Each day as we walk, run, sit, bend, lift or rest, our body’s complex web of fascia, ligaments and tendons work synergistically to help those movements occur. Strung in perfect balance and function throughout our structure, these connective tissues stretch, tighten and hold as needed when we engage our daily activities.  Ideally movement is smooth and painless but injury, surgery and other damage can cause disruptions to this inner network inhibiting motion and causing discomfort. Such constrictions are the [...]

Help from Massage in Healing Tennis Elbow

Lateral Epicondylitis or its more common name, ‘Tennis Elbow’ is a painful and debilitating condition which makes it difficult to do the simplest of things – hold a pen, shake hands, turn a steering wheel, open a door or carry a suitcase. The injury originally earned its name by afflicting several famous tennis players but it affects more than this segment of the population. The discomfort and tenderness of tennis elbow that begins in the elbow and can radiate into [...]

Massage and The Oxytocin Connection

Those feelings of bonding and connection you get when you make love, hug a friend, breathe deeply, walk in nature or pet your cat? They are generated because of the release of Oxytocin, often called the ‘love hormone’. Oxytocin originates in the brain’s hypothalamus and is secreted into the bloodstream by the pituitary. It is a neurotransmitter that affects numerous psychological and physiological responses in the body’s nervous system. Oxytocin also works with an opposing hormone, vasopressin (part of stimulation [...]

Can Massage Help Your Migraine?

Migraine headaches are one of the most common disorders affecting approximately one billion people worldwide. A migraine is characterized by debilitating moderate to severe pain and throbbing in the head (usually on one side), and can be accompanied by nausea, sensitivity to light, smells, sound, as well as visual disturbances called an ‘aura’. These symptoms can worsen with any exertion and are sometimes preceded by neurologic signs such as seeing flashes of light or noticing blind spots in vision [...]

Massage to Relieve Neck Pain

Neck pain is one of the most common reasons people seek medical treatment. Out of 291 conditions studied, neck pain is ranked 4th highest in terms of disability according to an Australian study, Global Burden of Disease 2010 Study.  Additional global research ranks neck pain as a significant impairment that affects quality of life and well-being. The neck is the main thoroughfare for muscles, blood vessels and major arteries, nerves, bones and cartilage to support vital brain, respiratory, and nerve [...]