Muscle Repair Massage

Massage’s Healing Touch for Pain Management

Pain Control is a touchy subject because pain is an immensely difficult thing to live with and unless you have ever lived with chronic pain you can not understand. It is persistent like nothing else and it can turn a normal relaxed person into a frighteningly quick tempered not so level headed devil of a person to live with. It can make life unbearable and you will do anything to make it go away even if just for a little while.

So, I tread lightly when I address massage as a pain control because I know that it is not a cure and I do not want to offer false hope where none exist. Massage can offer relief and a possible break. It can offer an alternative and something different, it can give a sense of well being and it can possibly improve your quality of life.

Massage controls pain in a couple of ways.

Gate Control Theory

In the same way that positive and negative thoughts cannot occupy the same space in the brain at the same time pain and pleasure cannot exist in the brain at the same time. If you send enough positive sensory information to the brain the receptors will be overwhelmed and for at least a brief little while you will feel the pleasure of the massage. This may take some mental focus on your part but like many other things in life that do not seem like choices this too is a choice.

Natural Pain Killers

Massage causes the body to release its natural pain killers, that studies have found to be as powerful as morphine. Dopamine is responsible for the pleasure of orgasms and the runners high, both of which are incredibly addictive. Releasing dopamine will have an immediate and lasting effect on pain.

Associated Symptoms

Your pain may not be directly caused by muscle stiffness, muscle soreness, decreased flexibility, or bad circulation, but these can all be causes of pain and improving any of them will assist with pain management. Massage offers relief in all of these areas and while it may not directly effect the cause of the pain it can reduce other symptoms associated with the pain.

Touch Therapy

It is tough to get a massage without any touch and touch has been shown to be a powerful healing tool by itself. Passing healing life touch from one individual to another is an excellent often overlooked side effect of massage.

Deep Relaxation

With persistent pain it can be very difficult to ever achieve relaxation. All of the previously mentioned side effects of massage work together to put you into a highly relaxed state. Find a massage studio that will allow you to relax in their facilities for as long as you want after your massage to gain the full benefit of the relaxation and healing calm.

Who Can Benefit From Massage

The Question of who can benefit from massage has an easy answer, everyone can benefit!!!! The real question should be how can I benefit from massage?

The Too Many Responsibilities Person

The everyday person is most people out there, that have to work a job, take care of kids, have responsibilities, don’t have enough time, get to the gym some of the time, have some old injuries, etc. You get the idea. Most of these people suffer from some sort of stress related symptoms, have difficulty sleeping at times, get pretty sore when they get to the gym and and could use some extra relaxation. For these folks an hour long massage could do wonders to assist with all of the previously mentioned symptoms. One hour a month or even just one hour every couple months can be a great reward and looked forward to with eager anticipation. The days after the massage will be luxurious and relaxed, things that bothered you before will slide away.

The Ouch That Hurts Person

For the chronically injured, make sure you get proper medical advice before starting any massage program. You too could make all the same gains as mentioned above but massage could also help relieve pain, increase range of motion, optimize your body to assist with recovery, and give you a better perspective. Pain is a difficult thing to live with and anything that helps improve your quality of life will be greatly appreciated.

The Weekend Warrior

For you this could be a huge benefit. You may go out on the weekend and run a marathon or spend all of Saturday rock climbing and hanging in a harness. Then come Monday you find the office chair to be more uncomfortable and confining than usual. You could certainly benefit from pain relieving, swell reduction, side effects of a good massage, not to mention the mood related benefits. Help your body and mind recover from a the taxing fun you subject your self too.

For the Athlete

You probably already know all of the benefits of getting as good massage but you may have forgotten that the massage could help give you that extra edge you need to really be a competitor. Athletes are able to operate at peak performance only when they are properly optimized and in a good mental state. After all of the physical training most athletes will agree that the battle is largely mental and any mental edge that they can gain will help them out immensely. Go ahead gain the edge and make sports massage a regular part of your program.

Pros and Cons of Massage

Pros of Massage

It might increase blood flow to the affected areas. There has been research supporting both sides of this theory. With the numerous different types of massage out there I tend to believe that some methods are more effective than others at increasing blood flow, thus increasing nutrients to the muscles and decreasing recovery time.
It helps you relax. The jury is not out on this, just go get a massage and see how you feel.
Related to relaxation, massage decreases anxiety and elevates mood. This is due to the simple methodical pleasure that can be derived from a massage or a release of dopamine the can be caused by a more vigorous massage.
The previous mood related factors work together to reduce blood pressure and cortisol levels. If you are not familiar with cortisol it is a hormone that is released when you are stressed which causes you hold on to fat. Though not scientifically proven you could make the argument that massage has the capacity to help you loose weight.
Massage reduces muscle stiffness. This is another subjective opinion based theory resounding support on the yes side. A massage essentially tenderizes the muscles by twisting, contorting, stretching, and applying localized pressure. This will increase flexibility.
Reduction in muscle soreness. This is accomplished by a couple of factors. One, the increased flexibility often leads a person to feel less sore because they are not as physically restrained. And two, it is thought that massage helps break up and remove the lactic acid responsible for muscle soreness.
Decreased swelling, this is also related to the previous point but I thought that it deserved its own paragraph. Swelling may make you look buff, but it is a symptom of the numerous micro traumas that you inflict on your body when you put it through a difficult workout. Decreasing this swelling means that you are recovering faster.
All of these factors combined lead to a healthier body that is more resistant to injury and sickness and will recover faster from any activity. Massage basically optimizes your body by putting it in its best possible condition. It is essentially a tune up for your body.

Cons of massage

There are a couple of cons of massage one of which is the main reason that it is not more widely used than it is. The cost is the main draw back of massage and puts it into a prohibitive category for many people. Starting at about $30 for a half hour it is a luxury many people can’t afford.
The last con is the time that it takes. Like anything else if you do one thing it means that you can’t do something else. If that something is watch TV great, if it is taking time from your family not so great. Find the balance and don’t let this be the negative aspect it can be.

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