Bodywork… How massage releases tension and promotes relaxation

By Sally Habeeb
MUSCLE tension, whether from normal activity or from awkward movement or stress, contributes to muscle fatigue and pain by compressing nerve fibres in the muscle.Prolonged contractions interfere with the elimination of chemical wastes in the muscles and surrounding tissues, and can cause frequent nerve and muscle pain. If these pains are not properly addressed, the body has a tendency to build them into chronic patterns of stress.
Prolonged tension can cause pain in other parts of the body. For example, headaches are often caused by overly tense muscles in the neck, shoulders and back. Even contracted abdominal muscles can trigger headaches in certain people (a common complaint of women with menstrual difficulties).
For these tension-related conditions, massage can break up waste deposited in muscles and stimulate circulation.
Accumulated metabolic waste often forms trigger points within muscles, creating specific areas that are painful to the touch, feeling like knots or ropes within the muscles; and this can cause muscle tension. Often, by applying deep pressure to these points, the tension or spasm can be eliminated.
We become accustomed to our movements, be they good or bad, and this can lead to any number of physical and emotional problems. It is reasoned that if the negative habitual patterns of movements are interrupted, greater ease, fluidity and motion would result; which in turn improves one’s self-image and simultaneously increases awareness and health.
Balance and poise could be re-established by manually manipulating and stretching the body’s facial tissues. As our body changes, injury, chronic stress or other trauma can lead to its deterioration, thus restricting the movement of muscles and joints. Massage reduces chronic pain and stress, promotes changes in the body’s structure, and enhances proper functioning of the body. Those who suffer from lordosis, or sway-back, experience a reduction in the curvature of the spine.
Nearly everyone can benefit from body therapy, and those who suffer from pains or stiffness in relation to mechanical imbalances and poor posture would be particularly rewarded.
A structural balance is based on the idea that human function is improved when segments of the body (head, torso, pelvis, legs, feet) are properly aligned. Most people are not aware if, and when, their bodies are out of balance, for example, leaning backwards. In order to compensate for this imbalance, the upper body must lean too far backward, thus throwing the pelvis out of alignment.
In addition to this misalignment, they have to tilt their heads backwards in order to see. In order to hold this position the muscles of the neck, back and legs must remain overly contracted, and thus become stressed. Having maintained this posture for months, or in some cases years, the facial tissues (fibrous layers covering muscles) of the body have to adjust themselves in order to hold everything in a balanced position. Movement then becomes impaired, and this reduces mental clarity and increases emotional stress.
Body work plays an integral role in maintaining posture and proper movement. Left untreated, injury, chronic stress, or other trauma can lead to its deterioration. Tissues become increasingly solidified and begin to restrict the movement of muscles and joints. (The author is a qualified massage therapist, and can be reached @ 649-4227)

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