When we think of a massage we generally envision a calm day in a spa or massage parlor to get away from the hustle and bustle of life; what many don’t know is that massage therapy is widely accepted as a method of rehabilitation therapy due to its ability to manipulate muscles and other soft tissue to bring relief from muscle tension and pain.
There are several different types of massages that can benefit your recovery process. If you are considering using massage therapy as a means of rehabilitation after an injury or accident, or for your overall health and wellbeing. Here are six benefits massage therapy has on the body to aid in it’s recovery.
1. Deep Relaxation for Your Body
Traditionally, when you receive a massage you go in with one goal in mind, to relax. You probably aren’t aware of the benefits relaxation of your body can have on you as a whole. Stress has negative effects on the way we think and how our body functions. Any injury will add to that stress, and massage is a wonderful way to deal with both the physical stress and even emotional stress.
Regardless of what type of massage you receive, it will increase the temperature of your body’s soft tissue which will release hormones that help encourage relaxation throughout your body. So overall, massage helps to improve your feelings of happiness and overall calmness. This improves your mental state and overall positivity, and helps your body relax as it heals from pain, injury, and stress!
2. Injury Recovery for Your Muscles
Tight muscles in your body cause a lot of pain and discomfort. There are lots of things that can cause a variety of common types of pain. Whiplash is a common injury that causes lots of neck pain. And there are lots of ways massage can help address pain.
Massage therapy can drastically improve pain by releasing tension in your muscles, and increasing blood flow to bring nutrients to any area that is causing your pain. Massage therapy will increase your body temperature and blood flow, it will help to break down adhesions and increases the amount of oxygen sent to these areas which allows the areas affected by an injury, pain, even stiffness, to become more flexible and increase your rate of healing.
3. Better Range of Motion
As the areas that are causing your pain, are massaged they will continue to receive oxygen and increased the blood flow, this will dissolve and release tense muscles. So for your muscles to increase their range of motion, they have to be able to have movement, and massage will warm up those muscles and your ability to move that area. Overtime particularly when massage is combined with chiropractic care it will increase movement in your joints, in your tendons and even your ligaments.
Massage will also help release toxins stored up in your muscles, reduce swelling, and improve the elasticity of your muscles.
Massage alone cannot guarantee that you will have a better range of motion. But it is part of the process of healing, and increasing your wellbeing. Massage outside of a rehabilitation or recovery program can still bring many benefits including preventative care to keep your body and muscles in a place that will reduce and protect you from potential injuries.
4. Improved Blood Flow
Through the use of massage therapy blood flow is re-established in congested areas that have build up or adhesions. The pressure applied during a massage and the motions your therapist uses on affected areas, actually draws blood flow into the blocked areas. Once adhesions are removed or “broken down”.
5. More Nutrients are Utilized in Your Body
As you get older you often hear others, and maybe even yourself complaining about how your metabolism doesn’t work as well as it once did. You might think back on your younger days and wish you could be as limber and have your bodywork as effectively as it used to.
Massage therapy is a great way to get your metabolism working at a higher rate. Massage therapy helps release toxins in your body, which is why you often hear that you need to increase your water intake and hydrate after a massage.
Hydrating after a massage with water will help to flush out toxins and increase the movement of key nutrients and antioxidants throughout your body. Everybody needs nutrients, antioxidants, and blood flow to work together to increase our overall energy as well. Massage has been proven to help reduce body cramping and tenseness (this includes the stomach), bloating and can even help to relieve constipation.
6. Decreases the Length of Time for Full Recovery
When you are recovering from an injury or accident, the amount of time it will take you to recover is a huge factor that contributes to stress. When will you be able to get back to living your extraordinary life is a question we take seriously at Axcess. Although we want recovery to be quick, everyone’s recovery time is different and varies depending on the extent of your injuries.
This is a key reason we recommend massage therapy to our clients.
Massage therapy will decrease the length of time that it takes to fully recover from an accident and injury. Because of the many benefits we have discussed so far, massage really provides that relief for your muscles and chiropractic care really aligns your bones and joints so that your body can work together for it to do what it needs to.
Every component of massage therapy for rehabilitation is key in helping you to recover as quickly as possible. There are essential parts of rehabilitation therapy that can only be achieved through the use of massage therapy paired with an integrative approach.
If you are struggling after an accident or injury or you are experiencing unnecessary pain from tense muscles, pain when utilizing a muscle, or limited range of motion, massage therapy may be beneficial to your recovery. Axcess Accident Center is committed that you are able to live your extraordinary life, and we know that life with pain creates limitations on what is possible.
If you have been in a car accident in the last 45 days, we provide a free 30 minute massage, and you can sign up for that on our website. If you are experiencing pain we also have monthly memberships that give you access to monthly massages, and other chiropractic care to empower you to live your extraordinary life.
