Massage therapy offers a great deal to people who suffer with painful muscular conditions. It also offers relief to some migraine sufferers who have muscle tightness at the root of their painful headaches. Massage offers a natural, long-term way to relieve these conditions without having to rely on heavy medications or undergo surgeries. In fact, according to Yale University, massage therapy is becoming useful when conventional treatments are not working.
Back Pain
Almost everyone has experienced some sort of back pain at some point in their lives. According to Erik Dalton with Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals, Egyptian hieroglyphics found in the tombs of ancient Egyptian kings show ancient body workers working on the backs of their patients. Therefore, it is safe to say that massage has been around for centuries and offers some distinct benefits.
Back pain can be searing, debilitating and life limiting when it is severe. It can radiate to the buttocks, lower legs, groin, genitals, thighs and even the feet. According to Ben E. Benjamin with Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals, back pain can cause tears and scar tissue to form in the ligaments and muscles.
Massage therapy offers a way to effectively deal with this type of pain rather than relying on heavy, sedative medications that can interfere with our daily lives and only offer temporary relief. Massage therapy helps to improve movement and range of motion in the back and neck muscles. Continued therapy helps to minimize the pain that these sufferers feel and offers them a way of dealing with the pain when it reoccurs without becoming dependent on pain medications.
Tight Muscles
Tight muscles can cause significant pain and discomfort. Stress will sometimes cause this tightening which some people have described as a vice that continues to tighten as time passes by. As these muscles tighten they become shorter and shorter and this causes the pain that people experience.
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, massage can help to relieve these tight muscles and help them to relax . This in turn helps the muscles return to their normal length and this relieves the pain that the sufferers experience. This helps to keep the sufferer from experiencing additional problems such as migraines or back aches.
Headaches
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, regular massage can help to relieve the pain that people who suffer from chronic tension headaches feel. A massage therapist can work with the sufferer to teach exercises that the person can do themselves to help maintain the benefits that were achieved during the massage sessions.
The massage therapist may also do reflexology. Reflexology is a technique that offers the ability to control the pain the sufferer experiences by placing pressure on pressure points in the body. This method helps to reduce the pain the headache sufferer feels. Massage therapy also helps to control pain without having to utilize strong pain medications or muscle relaxants that can cause drowsiness.
According to the University of Maryland Medical Center, it is believed by some practitioners that teaching reflexology to these patients helps them stay in touch with what their bodies signals are. This helps the person control the pain before it gets so bad that they require medical care or pain relief.
References
- Yale University; Swedish Massage Benefits Osteoarthritis Patients;
- Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals; The Pain Game: Part 1; Erik Dalton; 2006;
- Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals; The Mystery of Low-Back Pain; Part II; Ben E. Benjamin; 2006;
- The University of Maryland Medical Center; A Patient's Guide to Rehabilitation of the Cervical Spine;
- The University of Maryland Medical Center; Tension Headaches;
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