Back To The Daily Grind: 3 Pain-Relieving Massages To Get You Ready For School

Posted on: 7 September 2016

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Summer is often the most relaxing time of the year for everyone – longer, brighter days, warm weather, and a plethora of outdoor activities to choose from – but is especially great for students, who get a three-month break from the toil of school. But now that school is starting back up again, you may be finding yourself incredibly stressed as you adjust into your new routine. So if you're looking for a few massage suggestions to help to ease you back into your scholarly pursuits without too much stress, then here's a few you need to know about.

Swedish

The most common and most popular type of massage is probably a good place to start, especially if you're kind of new to the whole massage scene. Based wholly on anatomy (rather than energy pathways like some Eastern massage techniques), Swedish massage generally begins with your massage therapist lubricating your muscles with some type of massage cream or oil (exact recipes and ingredients will vary from place to place) and then massaging your muscles, beginning often with the top of your back and going down through your legs. During this time, you'll traditionally be nude underneath a towel, but many people choose to keep their underwear on so that they're more comfortable.

Hot Stone

A bit more intense than the Swedish massage, hot stone massages are a type of specialty massage, meaning that massage therapists usually take a class or two training them how to perform hot stone massages without injury to themselves or others. As the name might suggest, hot stone (or hot rock) massages involve the careful placement of water-heated stones on your body, and the use of a single stone kept in the massage therapist's hand. Not only is the heat of the stones incredibly relaxing for you, it warms up your muscles so that the massage therapist can massage you more deeply with less warm-up time. Ask for a massage therapist trained using the LaStone method, which is widely held to be the best and safest.

Shiatsu

Perfect for those whose tension runs deep into their muscles, shiatsu massage is far more intense than either Swedish or hot stone massage, but can also penetrate deeper to relieve chronic aches and debilitating tension. Shiatsu involves your massage therapist using their fingers, knuckles, elbows, and even knees and feet to stretch and relax your joints and the pressure points throughout your body. This type of massage intends to restore the balance of energy throughout your body, While shiatsu can be too rigorous for those who bruise easily, it's a great method for relieving deep-set tension and restoring balance to your health.

For more information, talk to a professional like Crum Joseph M DC.