The Massage Therapy You Need for Body Pain

If you struggle with body pain, you should consider massage therapy as an alternate solution. Check out our guide for types of massage therapies.

At some point, we will all experience body pain, it is how we deal with it that makes all the difference. There are over 300,000 massage therapists in this country which makes finding one to help you quite easy.

Are you dealing with pain and looking for some relief? Let’s take a closer look at what massage therapy can do for you and your pain.

Dealing With Your Body Pain

Pain is your body’s way of telling you that something is not right. Pain should not be ignored as it may be a sign of something serious that is going on inside of your body.

Unfortunately, some people just deal with their body pain. This means that they are suffering with it because they don’t think they have any other options. 

Chronic pain refers to any pain that lasts longer than 6 months. Chronic pain may be linked to something incurable, or just something that hasn’t been diagnosed or dealt with yet.

Examples of chronic pain include arthritis, fibromyalgia, and Parkinson’s Disease. Doctors often prescribe medications for patients with chronic pain. These are meant to either relieve or numb the pain the patient is experiencing.

Acute pain does not last longer than 6 months and is brought on by an injury or life experiences such as a broken bone, childbirth, or a dental procedure. Acute pain isn’t any less extreme than chronic pain, it just doesn’t last as long.

Massage Therapy For Aches And Pains

Our first thought when we hear the word massage is “relaxing.” This is accurate, but it goes much deeper than that.

Massage therapy is classified as the manipulation of the body’s soft tissues. This may be done with the therapist’s fingers, hands, palms, wrists, elbows, forearms, and sometimes feet (ashiatsu massage).

The number of people booking a massage only to relax is far outweighed by those looking for pain relief from their massage session. Yet, most people walk away feeling both relaxed and experiencing reduced pain.  Even better, some clients leave feeling pain-free.

Where does your pain fall on a scale of 1-10? Did you know that pain relief starts with only a 35% decrease in symptoms? 

Our mind is always active and massage is one way that we can disconnect and let go. The second most prominent way that we relax is having the tension released from our muscle fibers via a massage therapist.

Back Pain

Back pain can stem from a wide variety of sources. Many reasons for back pain are still misunderstood.

Having mystery pain is frustrating and has often pushed those suffering with it to try anything to make it stop.

Those with chronic back pain find relief with all types of massage, but deep tissue specifically deals with connective tissues that are responsible for extreme pain.

A hot stone massage is a mixture of classic massage strokes and the use of warm stones. This is popular in the colder months, but should not be underestimated year-round for back pain (and other body pain) relief.

Neck Pain

Neck pain can be linked to shoulder and back pain, or it can stand alone. Those that have neck pain will often suffer from headaches, as well.

With so much of our time spent working on the computer or staring down at our phone screens, it is no wonder that we are having complications with neck pain.

A massage therapist can spend an entire session working on a client with neck pain. There are over 20 muscles in the neck and they carry a lot of weight on their shoulders.

These muscles can be as tiny as a fingernail, or longer than the length of your hand. They may work on their own, or in conjunction with another muscle to perform the necessary action.

Neck muscles are responsible for holding up the head, turning the head, and also supporting the spine. Once the neck is relaxed, a serious wave of stress relief will echo through the body. 

Various Modalities Of Massage

To someone that is not familiar with massage, the different types and benefits may seem like a mystery. Even those that are familiar with massage may be surprised to hear that there are over 350 different types of massage.

Swedish massage and deep tissue massage are the two most common types that people are familiar with. Also, prenatal and hot stone massages are common.

Not all massage therapies are massage in the regular sense. Only a few modalities include flowing and kneading strokes that we think of as massage.

Trigger point massage deals with specific areas of the muscles that can hold tension and be responsible for pain. Trigger point therapy is performed by putting pressure on these points until the muscles and tension release.

Myofascial release is a massage technique where the therapist stretches the muscle in a specific manner that encourages it to release and relax.

Benefits Of Massage Therapy

A massage therapist provides immediate pain relief and relaxation, which is obvious to anyone that has ever had a massage. But, what about the lesser-known including:

• Lower blood pressure
• Stress relief
• Boost immunity
• Improve circulation

These are just a few of the benefits of massage therapy. Professionals recommend getting a massage every 3-4 weeks for active clients, and every 5-6 weeks for those just looking for stress relief.

You can go more or less often based on your personal preference and pain level.

Relief From Aches And Pains

If you are experiencing body pain, massage therapy can be a very effective tool in finding relief. Requesting a specific modality of massage or intensity of pressure will provide some immediate relief, but you may need more than one session to feel 100%.

To speak with a professional therapist, or to book your appointment, reach out to us at any time at Faces Spa of at 402-384-8400. Our therapists have years of experience and look forward to helping you find pain relief, soon.