Massage Therapy and Its Critical Importance in the Spa Setting (Part 1)

Given that researchers have reported that more than 80% of all disease may have its roots in stress, it behooves us all to look for ways to reduce the stress in our lives—which is why massage therapy is so very essential to the spa setting.

Massage helps to overcome stress by causing our bodies and minds to relax and release stress. Unlike other spa treatments, massage has real health benefits that affect clients’ lives in a positive overall way.

Massage brings measurable physical changes in the person receiving it.  Blood pressure and heart and pulse rates lower to more healthful levels.  Muscles let go of the tension they have been holding, allowing circulation to improve.

Improved circulation helps to remove toxins from the system, supports recovery from injury, aids in improving concentration and results in more restful sleep.  Massage also reduces fatigue, which helps people feel more capable of handling stressful situations.

Benefits of Massage Therapy

In addition to the benefits mentioned above, massage offers a drug-free, non-invasive way to stimulate the body's innate ability to heal itself.  It also:

• Increases circulation, allowing more oxygen and nutrients to circulate through tissues and vital organs improve health.
• Stimulates lymph flow, which is the body's natural defense system, to protect against toxins and support stronger immune response.  Studies of massage for breast cancer patients reveal an increase in the number of cancer-fighting cells following a massage.
• Helps hard, contracted, injured and stressed muscles to become softer and longer, which in turn helps to avoid muscle pulls. It also relieves muscle spasms and cramps. When muscles let go of tension, joint flexibility increases.
• Recovery times for many conditions are reduced by massage, which benefits chronic conditions such as arthritis and fibromyalgia as well as more immediately curable problems like the common cold. It also helps athletes to prepare for strenuous workouts and decreases the likelihood of pulled muscles, tendons and ligaments during sports activity.
• Because massage releases endorphins, which are the body's natural painkillers, it also aids recovery from surgery by helping to control and relieve pain. It also reduces post-surgery adhesions and edema and can be helpful in realigning scar tissue after healing has occurred.
• Massage improves clients’ range-of-motion and decreases discomfort for people who suffer from both upper and lower back pain. Because it relieves pain, it can also reduce the need for pain-relieving medications, even for those who suffer from migraine headaches.
• For everyone from babies to the elderly, massage provides exercise and stretching for muscles.  It also loosens contracted muscles in people suffering from restricted range of motion.
• Studies have shown that prenatal massage is connected to shorter labors for expectant mothers and to lowering their needs for medication. It has also been shown to relieve postpartum depression and anxiety and shorten hospital stays.