The Benefits of Massage Therapy

Think back to a time when you bumped your head or your calf muscle was very sore. What was your very first instinct? To rub it, right? Massage Therapy has been used around the world and dates back thousands of years.  References to massage have been found in ancient writings from many cultures, including those of Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Japan, China, Egypt, and India. Massage has grown from an ancient practice to a very modern approach to preventive and recovering health measures. In the United States, massage became popular in the mid 1800s. In the mid 1930s however, massage therapy fell out of the public eye, mainly due to scientific and technological advances in the field of medicine. Massage sparked an interest again in the 1970s, especially among athletes. In recent studies, a national survey revealed that more Americans are using massage for a wide variety of health purposes to include pain relief, rehabilitation in sports injuries, stress reduction, treatment of feelings of anxiety and depression, and all around general well being.

Experts have recently estimated that 80 to 90 percent of all disease is stress related. Massage is there to battle that frightening number by helping you to remember exactly what it means and how it feels to relax. Besides increasing relaxation and decreasing your anxiety, massage lowers blood pressure, increases circulation throughout the body, improves recovery from all types of injury, treats insomnia and increases concentration. The amazing benefits of massage are doubled if you get a massage regularly. Studies have shown we can all benefit from one to two massages a month. Most athletes who take their sport seriously receive a massage three to four times per week, increasing their ability to perform well. Massage therapy is a great benefit and when used correctly by a trained professional, there are very few risks or side effects, if any at all. The way you feel when you leave the session and the following days, will convince you of the many benefits of massage therapy.