26. Self-Massage Techniques
Know This:
Massage is one of the best gifts you can give yourself. Not only does it help relieve tension and stress, it improves your circulation and helps detoxify your lymphatic system. It also helps treat digestive disorders, anxiety, depression, anger, and grief.
Do This:
You don't have to spend money on a professional massage therapist. You can give yourself the soothing touch you need to feel calm, energized, and healed.
Here's how to give yourself a full-body massage:
Warm some sweet almond or jojoba oil.
Find a large bath sheet to place over your bed.
Apply the oil to the crown of your head and slowly massage your entire scalp.
Put more oil on your fingertips, and, starting at your neck, begin
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making circular motions up your neck and over your entire face including your jaw, cheeks, forehead, temples, and ears. Next, massage your arms. Start by massaging your palm and working your way up your arm, in long strokes, toward your heart. Do the same for the other hand and arm. For your chest and stomach, use clockwise, circular motions. Next, massage your feet, giving attention to your toes. Massage all the way up your legs, using long strokes. To enhance and deepen the experience, combine this technqiue with mantras, positive imagery, breathing techniques, or meditation practice. Afterwards, take a relaxing shower. 27.
Ease and Please Your Senses
Know This:
If food is the first thing that comes to mind when you're faced with a stressful situation, what you're really craving is comfort. That comfort can come in many different ways that don't involve a trip to the kitchen. When you learn to ease and please your senses in other ways, your food cravings will become weaker and weaker until they fade away altogether.
Do This:
There are so many wonderful ways to please your senses and sooth yourself when you're feeling out of sorts.
Here are some ways to ease into comfort without taking a single bite of food:
When you feel uncomfortable...
Ease your senses by loosening your clothing and taking off your shoes.
Please your senses by putting on something soothing to your skin, such as a silk shirt, fleece jacket, or soft cashmere sweater.
When you’re feeling hot, flushed, or anxious…
Ease your senses by finding a cooler room, pulling the shades down to darken the room, or turning on a fan.
Please your senses by drinking some cool lemon-or mint-flavored water.
When you’re feeling worried…
Ease your senses by mentally letting go of your worries. Inhale and say to yourself, “When I let go of what I am, I might become what I might
be.” Please your senses by holding an object (a pebble, small ball, or anything else that symbolizes your anger) in your hand and closing your palm around it. With your hand still closed, turn your hand over, and then open it. This is much like emotion: We wrap ourselves around it, holding it tight, and becoming attached to it. But you can let it go. When the object falls to the floor, you have handed it over for the world to take care of. You can use this imagery without actually having an item in your hand: simply visualize letting go of whatever it is you are feeling, then watch it drop. When you are feeling angry… Ease your senses with balloons. Write down your grievances on little pieces of paper. Stick the paper into several balloons and blow them up. Place all the balloons on the ground. Please your senses by stomping on the balloons. When you've smashed them to tiny, satisfying little bits, pick up the pieces of balloon and paper and throw them in the trash. Let that be a symbol of throwing your anger away. 28. Soothing With Your Senses Sight: Look around you and find three objects that put you in a calmer frame of mind. Alternatively, you can dim the lights, stare at a candle, gaze at a fish tank, or watch the clouds. Sound: Listen carefully to the sounds around you. Do you hear birds chirping, crickets singing, or children laughing outside? Tune into these pleasing sounds, and really enjoy the moment. Alternatively, you can listen to some soothing instrumental music or enjoy some time in complete silence. Touch: The sensation of touch can be the most comforting and soothing of all. Place a pleasing fabric against your skin like silk, satin, suede, or fleece. You can also try holding a mug of warm coffee or gently stroking your pet. Taste: When cravings hit hard, it's a good time to fully engage your sense of taste by eating a peppermint, chewing cinnamon gum, brushing your teeth, or drinking carbonated water. When you keep your mouth busy and your tastebuds satisfied, you will feel far less deprived and tempted to run into the kitchen and devour that entire pan of leftover lasagna. Smell: There are so many wonderful scents out there to experience besides the ones that can come from food. Take a moment to think about your favorite smell. Is it a specific type of flower, a cinnamon stick, an essential oil, or a particular brand of incence you enjoy most? Surrounding yourself in pleasant smells can help diminish those unwanted cravings.
though its massage may be uncomfortable it opens our eyes to social problems that we still can
never have thought of doing, or been too hesitant to attempt……Don’t settle down and sit
During the early 1900s, the practice of medical science became accepted in our society. Many of the Swedish massage was mingled in with those of medical doctors and medical practices. (A type of “mechano-therapy” emerged of a combination with other therapist preformed by a physician or a nurse’s assistant.) Over time, these practices were absorbed into what would be general medicine. In the 1920s Masseurs and Masseuses had lost most of their market to doctors. They mainly found work with wealthy individuals who wanted a general, relaxing form of massage. After World War ll, a group of massage operators formed the American Association of Masseurs and Masseuses. This later became the forerunner of today’s American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA). The goal of these associations is to raise the status of massage as a unique and effective treatment for healing. In the 1980s the AMTA was formed. The first thing they did was establish a code of ethics and change their titles from masseurs and masseuses to massage therapist. Now the profession of massage is enjoying renewed vigor and influence in alternative medicine. Recent trends have pointed the continuing promise and growth of massage therapy as a health care career.
Kolcaba, K., Dowd, T., Steiner, R., & Mitzel, A. (2004). Efficacy of hand massage for enhancing the comfort of hospice patients. Journal of Hospice & Palliative Nursing, 6(2), 91-102. Retrieved from http://ehis.ebscohost.com.library.gcu.edu:2048/eds/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?vid=12&sid=2de162ef-afff-4a48-8415-83dcedf9530a%40sessionmgr110&hid=104
Touch is as essential to a healthy and happy life as eating right, getting proper sleep, and exercising. With the world growing more technological, the need for healthy human contact is more important than ever. Massage and body therapies are an age old healing refuge for us in this fast-paced, stressed-out world. The practice of massage therapy is rapidly growing in the United States. It has so much to offer and is becoming more widely accepted by doctors and the general public. Massage is touching another person by such movements as rubbing, kneading, pressing, rolling, slapping, and tapping. This type of therapy provides circulation of the blood and lymph, relaxation of muscles, relief from pain, restoration of metabolic balance, and many other benefits both physical and mental. There is much historical evidence to indicate that massage is one of the earliest remedies for pain relief and for the restoration of a healthy body. It is said to be the most natural and instinctive means of relieving pain and discomfort. Massage has proven to be an effective method for treating many conditions for thousands of years and it will continue to be used for thousands of years to come. Massage therapy is a great treatment for the body and soul.
"Stress Feeds the Need for Comfort Food." WebMD - Better information. Better health. Jennifer Warner, 3 Sept. 2003. Web. 15 Feb. 2010. http://www.webmd.com/balance/news/20030909/stress-comfort-food
Massage has been practiced for many centuries and has been used for a number of reasons, from medical treatments to general relaxation therapies. Lots of styles have been developed throughout the years and therapists have adapted their personalised treatments using routines, methods and mediums to create the effects and feelings that they are looking to achieve for their clients. Massage includes the therapist using mainly their hands, elbows and arms to manipulate the body’s muscle tissues. There are many types of massage however the main one we have looked at as a class is Swedish massage. This form of massage includes five main movement groups.
Stop what you are doing, clear your mind, and focus only on your breath. When your thoughts begin to wonder, refocus and bring them back to your breath. This seems like a simple task, but most of us struggle to clear our minds for more than a few moments. Today’s fast-paced and technology driven culture constantly bombards our senses and more importantly, our thoughts. Our thoughts are constantly commandeered by fantasies, anxieties, and worries. We spend most of our time reliving past events and pondering the future. We spend work days feeling resentful, wishing we were anywhere else. We sit through family dinners thinking about all the chores that need to be finished. We worry about attending the class reunion because we aren’t sure what everyone will think. We do all of these things rather than focus on the experiences happening right here and now. Most of us are aware of this behavior, and yet we do it anyway. We spend very little time in the present moment, not for lack of want
Rabasca, Laura (1999) Imagery, Massage and Relaxation recognized as ways to manage pain. APA Online Magazine Volume 30 #10 November 1999. www.apa.org
There are many different things that a massage therapist must do. First off they have to find somewhere to work and get clients, but that’s the obvious. There are also things they have to do after this, other than just massage. In an interview with Stephanie Melroy, who owns and runs The Massage Studio in Holdrege, she said to me, “A lot of high school girls are really interested in massage therapy but most of them don’t realize all the work and education that it requires. The classes that you take aren’t the easiest either. You have to take a lot of anatomy and physiology, know every bone, muscle, and nerve and they work.” You’ll to prepare the client before the massage, which might include: applying heat, alcohol, lubricants, salt, or other rubbing compounds. Of course the massage therapist will massage the client using kneading, rubbing, and/or stroking movements. You also need to know different types of diseases and skin irritations because if they have a certain kind of disease you can’t treat them. But there are also many types of massage or therapy that they might do. This includes Hydrotherapy, Swedish massage, Sports massage, Shiatsu, Trager, Hellerwork, Polarity, Reflexology, Acupressure, Rolfing, and many more. Other than a manual massage they might also use mechanical or electrical machines as well.
Massage Therapy The practice of massage therapy is rapidly growing in the United States. It has numerous benefits to offer and is becoming more widely accepted as a medical practice by doctors and the general public. Massage is defined as: …the systematic manual or mechanical manipulations of the soft tissues of the body by such movements as rubbing, kneading, pressing, rolling, slapping, and tapping, for therapeutic purposes such as promoting circulation of the blood and lymph, relaxation of muscles, relief from pain, restoration of metabolic balance, and other benefits both physical and mental (Beck 3). There is much historical evidence to indicate that massage is one of the earliest remedies for pain relief and for the restoration of a healthy body.
According to Massage Today “Massage therapy is recognized as one of the oldest methods of healing, with references in medical texts nearly 4,000 years old”. I feel that the benefit of rubbing aching muscles and hurt limbs comes to us as naturally as breathing air. Among its many purposes and advantages, massage soothes achy muscles, helps heal injuries, strengthens baby’s muscles and relieves stress. To me, massage is not only a way to soothe the muscles and relieve the everyday stresses of society, massage is a way to connect with others through the common practice of touch. We have needed touch in our lives since the first seconds after our birth, so it’s not surprising that we would seek out touch in the form of massage.
#Try to identify the underlying need. If you are eating emotionally, there is some need being left unfulfilled. Take a moment to assess your current feelings. Are you lonely or missing someone? Did you have a hard day or receive some bad news? Maybe you have an impending deadline that is freaking you out and you turn to food to cope with the stress. Whatever the emotional cause is for your eating, you must acknowledge it in order to change the
Use your food records to identify triggers that cause you to feel psychological hunger. These can be people or situations. Knowing your triggers is very important because they become stronger each time you reinforce them with food. You might have to express your needs for support and encouragement from certain people more clearly and train them by offering suggestions that fit your needs. Including them in your journey can strengthen your relationship and avoid hurtful miscommunications or resentment to your
Think about someone who makes you laugh, something that excites you, some activity that pleases you — it may provide just the escape you need from those negative emotions.