It is very easy to become over-burdened with mental thoughts and stresss that there is a risk in becoming disconnected from our bodies. The soothing sensation of touch is one of the most profound and healing experiences we share. By using the process of touch, it is possible to reconnect the mind and body to achieve relaxation and the unwinding of stress and tension. Utilising massage therapy is a successful means of attaining this.
The problem is that often due to either lack of time or cost, receiving relief from a trained massage therapist is not often possible. However, not all is lost as learning to reconnect with your body yourself can be a profound experience. By understanding and learning the basics of massage touch, different methods of massage can in fact be undertaken yourself which offer opportunities of natural relief that massage provides.
An easy yechnique to start with is by forming your hands into a loose fist so that you can firmly tap your body from head to toe along the meridian pathways. First, tap
your body along both the inside and outside of each arm, then progress to your torso and down the front of your chest, continuing down to the front of your thighs. Repeat the tapping on the inside, outside, and back of your legs to cover the entire lower body. Finally, tap along your neck and behind your back to cover the remaining areas. This practice can be
repeated several times, until you feel your body warm up due to the increased blood flow, a recognised benefit of massage therapy.
Abdominal self-massage is best used after meals to improve digestion or
by women during their menstrual cycle. To perform abdominal massage,
place one hand over the other as they lay above your naval. Breathe
deeply as your move your hands together in a circular-motion around
your belly in a clock-wise direction. The clock-wise direction is
synchronous with the digestive pathway of your colon. Repeat this
motion for several minutes focusing your mind on your hands and breathe
to warm your abdomen and improve circulation.
Reflexology is a specialist treatment where specific points on the hands and feet are used to improve the health of the entire body. You can start by using some massage oil or hand lotion and gently rub all of your fingers and toes. Continue to rub your palms and the soles of your feet, including the back of your hand and tops of your feet. Pay attention to any tender spots you find so that these areas can be subjected to greater attention. Again, this will stimulate blood flow and relax what can be over used and strained muscles and tendons.
How about paying attention to your ears? By using your thumb and index finger, begin to rub the outer edge of your ear, also called the helix. Follow the helix down the ear until you reach your earlobe. Pull gently on your earlobe several times. Slowly move above your ear
lobe and begin to massage each of the remaining areas of your ear.
It is important to understand and practice the movement of the hands and through practice you can give yourself very effective therapy. It is now time to familiarise yourself with the different movements, techniques and therapies that massage offers
and adopt them into your own self massage regime by learning the easy way to give yourself and others
how to give a massage.
