Massage and Mental Health

Massage and Mental Health

Good mental health can be defined as a balanced, healthy approach to life that is reflected in ones attitude. Physiological, psychological, environmental and genetic factors also have a profound effect on the development of ones mental health. Repressed traumas, chronic stress, physical illness, childhood and hereditary issues may cause poor mental health. Massage therapy has been used for centuries to help individuals overcome some of these problems. Read on to find out more.

How Regular Massage Biochemically Benefits Us

Symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression (all diseases of poor mental health) may be alleviated in massage therapy. In treating pain-causing injuries, physical illness and the individual as a whole, mental health can be restored with the healing touch of massage. Through touch, massage pushes down on nerve cell receptors under the skin, activating the nervous system and stimulating the release of mood-enhancing chemicals such as dopamine or serotonin. Massage also generates a calming effect through the stimulation of the parasympathetic nervous system, and reduces the stress hormones cortisol and adrenaline. Massage also stimulates the release of natural endorphins, creating a natural high and relieving the body of any pain. Brain activity is also altered, as it increases the alpha brain waves present in a state of relaxation. Individuals are likely to also experience a stabilization of blood sugar, increased immunity and improved lung function from massage therapy.

Massaging for Anxiety & Depression

Anxiety could be described as a perpetual state of fear experienced when encountering everyday tasks and events. It may simply be part of one’s personality, or potentially instead their genetic, biochemical make up. Scientific research has shown that massage can reduce our anxiety levels. Those suffering from chronic anxiety disorders, muscle tension and pain, that did not respond to all medications available, did respond after several sessions of massage. Biochemically, massage was found to decrease cortisol and noradrenalin levels in the bloodstream of these individuals, both of which are usually high in times of stress. Depression has also been linked by science with low serotonin levels in the brain. As discussed, massage stimulates the release of serotonin in the body, creating feelings of well being and happiness. Recent studies have concluded that whilst this link is obvious, massage only treats the symptoms of Depression (does not cure), helping sufferers to cope better with the disease and lead a more fulfilling life.
Benefits of Massage for Mental Health

Symptoms of the following mental health conditions may be alleviated with massage therapy:

    * Chronic Stress
    * Anxiety disorder
    * Depression
    * Insomnia
    * Eating Disorders
    * Other feelings massage may help you overcome include:
    * Paranoia
    * Feelings of doom and gloom
    * Fear
    * Powerlessness
    * Stress
    * Anger
    * Shyness
    * Rage
    * Worthlessness
    * Feeling like one is without purpose
    * Addiction (Smoker)
    * Laziness
    * Pessimism
    * Suicidal thoughts
    * Obsessiveness
    * Depleted energy levels
    * Delusions of Grandeur
    * Distrust
    * Extremism
    * Jealousy and envy

Other positive mental emotions you may experience after a massage include:

    * Clarity of mind
    * Increased energy
    * Decreased stress levels
    * Increased creativity
    * Increased rational thinking
    * Increased body awareness and general consciousness.
    * Blissful, mental state
    * A new sense of purpose
    * A great sense of personal satisfaction and achievement
    * New hope
    * Relaxed state
    * Greater self-respect

If you suffer from mental health issues, it is always good to check with your doctor to confirm it is ok for you to undergo massage therapy as some conditions, such as epilepsy, may be induced with massage.

Massage Feels Good Because It Changes Your Gene Expression

Massage Feels Good Because It Changes Your Gene Expression

Stiff muscles definitely benefit from a rub down, but scientists have never quite known why. Now, a team of researchers has shown that it works by changing your gene expression — quite literally, your body is hard-coded to release pain-easing chemicals when you're massaged.

If you listen to people in the world of alternative medicine, they'll normally tell you that massage "releases toxins". That is bull, and scientists know it. But knowing an answer is wrong doesn't give you the right one. No, doing some science does.

So, a team of researchers from McMaster University decided to look at what massage does on a cellular level. Their findings appear in Science Transnational Medicine, and they're actually pretty surprising. In reaction to massage, the body changes gene expression to reduce inflammation and promote repair of muscle fibers.

How the hell did they work that out? First, they rounded up 11 men and made them "cycle to the point of exhaustion". Then they randomly chose one leg from each guy to massage, and left the other one alone. Just when the volunteers thought the pain was over, the researchers took a muscle biopsy from both the massaged and non-massaged calves both 10 and 190 minutes later.

From those biopsies, they could work out what was happening at a cellular level, by analyzing the level of messenger RNA (mRNA) in the samples. mRNA acts, as its name suggests, just like a messenger: it tells the body to increase or decrease the rate of production of proteins that affect how our body works.

Turns out that the massaged legs had all been informed by mRNA to produce more of a protein called PGC-1alpha and less of one called NFkB. In English? Well, increased levels of PGC-1 alpha leads to the creation of more mitochondria, which in turn generates energy for cell growth. Basically, it increases the rate of muscle fiber repair. Reduced levels of NFkB, on the other hand, reduces inflammation.

So, while it's not only nice to feel the hands of an attractive massage therapist over your body, it also does actually do you some good, on a cellular level. Now you just need to convince your partner.