Conditions that Massage Therapy Can Help With

Massage therapy is an extremely popular, hands-on treatment that has been successfully used for thousands of years. In fact, the first written records of massage therapy date back to 2700BC. Today, massage therapy is used in spas, gyms, and workplaces all over the country. It is also one of the main treatments used by chiropractors. Chiropractors are healthcare professionals that focus on the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal disorders. These are injuries or pain conditions that occur within the human musculoskeletal system including the muscles, nerves, tendons, joints, ligaments and other supporting structures within the body.

Modern massage therapy has evolved to take many forms and there is now a range of different massage techniques, making it possible to find the perfect one to treat the symptoms that you are suffering from. How do you know if massage therapy is the right treatment choice for you? Here are some of the common conditions that massage therapy can help with.

 

Pain

One of the most common reasons for any patient to seek massage therapy is to alleviate or at least help them to manage pain that they have been experiencing. Musculoskeletal pain can occur for many reasons, from a herniated disc, whiplash, sciatica or torn tendons to non-specific back pain or a chronic pain condition such as fibromyalgia. It can even help with post-operative pain. This is because massage can promote blood flow to the parts of the body that are painful, where the release of natural painkillers called endorphins takes place.  Many patients prefer massage as an alternative to prescription pain medication.

 

Stress Management

Therapeutic massage is regularly used to reduce stress in patients. This is because stress is as much a physical problem as a psychological and emotional one. When someone is stress, it causes an accumulation of tension within the muscles that cause physical pain. There are several different types of massage techniques that are particularly good for relieving stress. These include deep tissue massage and Swedish massage.

 

Sports Injuries

Massage therapy is a very popular treatment amongst amateur and professional sportspeople and is often used when someone has suffered an injury. The technique that is used is called sports massage because its focus is on stretching out tight tissues and breaking down adhesions, thus reducing the swelling in the joints and facilitating faster and more efficient healing. However, massage for sports injuries doesn’t only concentrate on healing existing injuries, but also on preventing new ones.

 

Repetitive Strain Injuries

Repetitive strain injuries, or RSI’s as they are often called, are issues that affect the muscles and joints and occur due to the patient making the same movement over and over, countless times within a certain time frame. Patients who experience RSI may develop their injury as a result of their job or pastimes. For example, RSI is a common problem amongst people who spend a great deal of time typing, woodworking, playing a sport that involves a ball and racket, bat or similar, painter and decorators, gardeners, etc. Massage therapy can reduce symptoms of RSI in such patients.

 

Insomnia

You may be surprised to learn that massage is also a drug-free alternative to sleeping tablets and done right, it can help even the greatest insomniac to get a restful night of sleep. This is because massage can help the patient to relax and has been proven to raise levels of serotonin – the feel-good hormone that is essential for the body to produce melatonin. Raised levels of melatonin will induce deeper and better quality sleep. And as we know, massage can reduce or eliminate pain, which will help sufferers of chronic pain to sleep better too.

 

Other Conditions That May Be Helped With Massage Therapy

The benefits of massage therapy don’t stop there. Below is a list of many other health conditions that massage therapy is believed to help with either as a standalone treatment or in conjunction with another solution:
 

• Rotator cuff syndrome

• Tennis elbow

• Frozen shoulder

• Sciatica

• Anxiety/depression

• Headaches and migraines

• Depression

• Muscle sprains

• Common cold and flu

• Carpal tunnel syndrome

• Arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis

• Cancer

• High blood pressure

• Asthma/bronchitis

• Fibromyalgia

• Pregnancy aches and pains

If you would like to learn more about the benefits of massage therapy or to schedule a consultation, please contact our clinic where our team would be delighted to help.