Start a new, healthier way of balancing your life with regular massages. Sounds bougie, we know, but hear us out. Carving out time, cutting back on eating out, and rededicating part of your budget to monthly (or even weekly!) massages will make a noticeably big difference in your life. Both your mental and physical well-being is greatly bettered by that single relaxing hour. There are several benefits to having regular massages, besides your friends being jealous, and that’s what we’re going to talk about in today’s blog!
Holistic Medicine
To truly understand why regular massages are important to our health and balance as human beings, it’s important to first understand the idea of holistic medicine. Contrary to popular belief, “holistic medicine” is not secret code for “hippy-dippy anti-vaxxer.” Instead it’s the idea that every aspect of our very selves, from our kidneys to our toenails to our hopes and dreams, affect one another. When one piece is out of place, the other pieces can’t fit together properly and your body ends up compensating for other areas, compromising your overall health.
While it’s an idea that more common in Eastern cultures of the world, Western cultures and modern medicine have begun to address the idea more and more, but phrased in a different way. For example, statistically, people who are predisposed to migraines also suffer from Depression. It’s not a coincidence either; the migraines keep them from being social which in turn triggers a disposition towards Depression from a lack of social interactions. If you’re wondering why we capitalized the “d” in Depression, that’s because we’re talking about the mental illness, not the feeling of being depressed. One is a chronic illness due to a chemical imbalance in the brain, while the other falls on the normal, relatable, sporadic spectrum of human emotions.
Massages
So how do massages relate to holistic medicine? The art of massage allows both the physical and metaphysical body to relax simultaneously. To be in a safe, welcoming environment, the masseuse is specially trained to help your muscles relax to the status they’re supposed to be in naturally. Muscles are often tense, constricted, or even knotted in an effort to compensate for other stressors you may be putting your body through. As with the idea that a negative imbalance in your body snowballs into a fully negative effect, the same works in the positive sense. Restoring harmony to one of your out of whack pieces affects all the other pieces in a positive way too.
Benefits
So what exactly is so great about “restoring harmony” to your body and pursuing a healthy balance in your life? Let’s talk about some of the benefits!
#1. Relieve Stress
This seems like an obvious one, and it is! We don’t think we have to explain this one, massages are relaxing by nature and the act of massaging those tight muscles relieves the stress and tension they’re holding.
#2. Improve Your Posture
Did you know that your posture affects more than just your walk? People with poor posture often come across as slow or dumb or unengaged. Why? Because poor posture collapses your chest into your lungs, making it hard to breathe. Not only is it a struggle to breathe, but you’re not getting enough air to supply your body meaning your body falls into survival mode and only feeds oxygen to your most vital functions (breathing, heart beating, blinking, blood flow, etc.) and in exchange you’re too tired to move or think properly. All because you’re not sitting up straight! Massages help restore your muscles to their natural position and straightens your spine, both of which are crucial to proper posture.
#3. Improve Your Blood Circulation
Your blood flows best when you’re warm, giving you high amounts of energy. Every notice how you can’t seem to sleep when it’s too hot? Or have trouble focusing on a hot summer day? That’s because your body is ready to get moving! Regular massages will warm your muscles and keep your blood highways (aka veins and arteries) clear, warm, and speedy.
#4. Sleep Better
While you don’t want to be too hot, going to bed with warm, relaxed muscles will help you sleep calmly and deeply.
#5. Immunize
Yep! Getting regular massages strengthens your lymph-nodes, the part of the body that helps your immune system. By strengthening your lymph-nodes, it’s like hitting the reset button on a hairdryer, your body’s immune system is jolted back to life and refreshed with a new strength.
