Tips for Massage
Massage Tips By Caron Vetter, MD of The Belmore Centre, Nr Aylesbury
- Massages are fantastic for our bodies because they help improve circulation, decrease stress, increase feelings of well-being, can help relieve pain and stiffness, re-balance us, re-energise and release blockages. Having a monthly massage is proven to be beneficial to our health and well-being.
- Don’t eat straight before having a massage. If your body doesn’t have enough time to digest the food before the treatment you won’t be able to fully relax.
- Ask about different massage oils before your therapist starts so you can choose one best suited to your skin and a smell that you like. It all helps with the relaxation process.
- Facial massages are wonderful for anti-ageing. By relaxing the muscles in your face and stimulating blood and lymphatic vessels under the skin, a regular facial massage can even help prevent new wrinkles and tension lines from appearing.
- Having a foot massage is a great way to relieve stress and boost your wellbeing because it aids circulation. The soles of our feet contain more sensitive nerve-endings per sq cm than any part of our body. It is estimated an average person walks around the earth approximately four times! For such hard working feet, when you have a full body massage do ask for your feet to get special attention.
- Different massage techniques can help resolve different concerns. Make sure that you inform your massage therapist about specific pains or injuries before your massage. Therapists can then tailor the massage to help you without causing any further pain or damage.
- A massage at home from your partner can be great after a long day at work. If however you have chronic pain it is always best to seek help from a professional. A massage like the Hot Stone Massage aims to stretch out muscle fibres and help restore them. The heat from the stones helps your muscles to relax and the massage can penetrate deeper.
- To ensure maximum comfort always tell your therapist if you are unhappy with the temperature of the room or it will be difficult for you to relax.
- Your therapist should always ask you if you like the pressure of a massage to be firm, medium or soft. If they don’t ask for some reason then always make sure you tell them so you are not disappointed.
- If you have a bad lower back, make sure your therapist rolls a towel and places it underneath your knees when you are lying on your back and underneath your hips if you are lying on your front so that you don’t stiffen up.