How to choose your massage: Which style is right for you?
Some clients know exactly what type of massage to request and others are uncertain with so many choices. These guidelines will give you a good start to your massage service.
GOAL MASSAGE STYLES
Relaxation Swedish or Swedish with hot stones
Or a facial.
First time client Swedish or Swedish with hot stones
Athlete Deep tissue, sports or therapeutic
Deep Pressure Deep tissue massage or Ashiatsu
Pregnant client Pregnancy massage or Reiki
Sinus problems, headaches, Manual lymphatic drainage with
Post surgical relaxation massage
Mental or emotional stress Hawaiian Lomi Lomi. Reiki,
Due to overwork a facial, or reflexology.
Backache due to muscular tension Raindrop therapy
Tired feet due to overwork Raindrop therapy or reflexology
Being around other people
Who have colds Raindrop therapy
Sinus problems, headaches, neck aches or low mental energy
Use the “neti pot”; a nasal rinse cup made popular on Oprah in 2008.
Available online or any drugstore. I have had great success using “hot – cold therapy” also. This can be as simple as having two containers of water, one warm, one cold, and two washcloths. Alternate placing each washcloth in place for about 1 minute. Another quicker method is to simply take a plastic container of ice cubes with you into the shower. Shower first with warm (not hot) water on trouble area, then step away from the water and immediately place a few ice cubes on that same area for a few seconds. Then step back under the shower. Continue to alternate until ice cubes are melted and you feel better.
Morning Wake-up Needed—without caffeine!
During your morning shower, set the tub stopper so that when you finish showering you can march in place in ankle deep water. Cool water is more vitalizing! Cool water marching is said to help vitalize the immune system. Deep breathing or meditating for 5 minutes helps to clear the cobwebs and set the tone for the day.
Constant neck or back ache, aching feet: The importance of good posture
After more than 15 years of practicing massage, I have only met a handful of people who had perfect muscular tone and health. They all had in common: Upright posture with a mental attitude of not sweating the small stuff.
Constant neck or back aches could be a direct result of poor posture, improper lifting or moving techniques. With the help of a friend, a camera or video you can easily determine how imbalanced you sit, stand, walk or lift objects. Many of my clients who came to me with these problems have made vast improvements with regular massage therapy, simple stretches and daily postural monitoring. Many no longer suffer headaches or constant neck strain with self correction of postural alignment.
Posture remedies: For posture improvement, go upside down! If you are in good health, then the inversion table is a great piece of equipment. Otherwise, yoga and pilates can provide specific stretches or movements to help correct the posture.
Aching feet. Although a nightly foot massage would go a long way for aching feet and sound sleep, it is not always practical or enough especially if one is prone to bunions or hammertoes. Your feet bear your entire body weight and the weight must be distributed evenly over the bones weather standing, sitting or lifting. Bones are stronger than muscle and therefore can handle “weight bearing.” When a person has poor posture, the muscles will do more work than the bones, thus causing muscular strain and pain. Most people who have “forward head syndrome” will often have foot problems. People whose knees knock together while their feet are wide apart will often have bunions. So straighten up!
Postural Problems often produce muscular pain and eventually affect the bones, since muscles are connected to bones.
Examples:
Forward Head: Client may have headaches and neckaches, which leads to:
Rounded shoulders: Client may have tight upper back muscles and weak chest muscles. This leads to:
Upper or mid back roundness: This is unflattering for anyone and will lead to back and neck tension and weak abdominal muscles. The weak abdominal muscles may lead to poor circulation in the organs of the abdominal region. This leads to tilting the pelvis forward and up and the tailbone down and under and placing more body weight over the fragile toes rather than the stronger ankle and heel bones.
Tilted pelvis: Does not provide support for the abdominal muscles above or the legs below. This will in turn shorten and tighten the hamstrings while tensing the thigh muscles. Tight thigh muscles will disrupt:
The knees. If a person’s knees are unsupported and fall inward, it could lead to painful bunions.
The reason one area affects the area below is because the body is attempting to self-correct its postural imbalance. For instance, if the head, shoulders, pelvis, and legs were all forward or back, you would probably fall in that direction. So, if one area is forward, the area below will generally moved backward, then the next area slides forward, then one below moves back and so on until the uneven weight distribution lands on the 26 small, fragile bones of the feet.
Posture Remedy: Take a picture of yourself against a geometrical background, so that you can have a reference point of symmetry, then begin standing tall, literally. Having correct posture is the best abdominal strengthening exercise you can do!
Fun to do for your mental health!
Williamsburg Salt Spa
Williamsburg AleWerks (they have a daily tasting at 3:30 p.m.)
York River State Park
Waller Mill Park and the Dog Park
Farmer's Market at Colonial Williamsburg (seasonal)
Quarterpath Rec Center
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