Self-massage techniques to relieve tension
Last week we looked at how both short-term and long-term stress can have detrimental effects on the body. Booking in for regular massages can certainly help relieve symptoms of stress and improve your overall health as well as boosting the immune system. Massage has been shown to reduce the levels of cortisol (also known as the stress hormone) in the body as well as increasing our feel-good hormones such as oxytocin, serotonin and dopamine.
But what if you do not have the time or the money for regular massages? Today we are going to look at some self-massage techniques that you may find useful in releasing tension; and although helpful, do not replace a full body massage.
Headaches
Tension headaches, also known as stress headaches, account for nearly 90% of headaches according to Wikipedia. The pain can radiate from the lower back of the head, the neck, eyes, or other muscle groups in the body. Common causes are stress, eye strain, sleep deprivation, bad posture and irregular meals – all of which can apply to the stressed out office worker! Try these simple methods which may help relieve the tension without reaching for pain relieving drugs.
Rub your head, applying fairly strong rotating pressure, as if you were massaging in shampoo, paying attention to your scalp. Any tension will be released and little by little and you will start to feel relaxed.
Using your fingers, massage your forehead, the area around your eyebrows and your temples for 2 to 3 minutes.
It is also important to keep well hydrated, take regular breaks from the screen and eat regularly with healthy snacks to hand.
Stiff neck
A common cause of neck pain is muscle tension and strain. Office workers and those that use computers for large amounts of time in the day are often bent over a desk; most people have their computer monitor either too high or too low, which also puts unnecessary strain on posture. Try these simple techniques:
Either sitting or standing, move your arms above your chest and glide your fingers lightly along the line between the base of head and your shoulder. Try stroking down the length of your neck and repeat this a few times. Try leaning your head slightly towards the opposite shoulder, stroking downwards and massage the neck – repeat with other shoulder.
Place the heel of your hand at the base of your neck and let your fingers drop down on each side of your spine. Grab hold of your muscles with your fingertips, pull upwards and hold between your palms and fingers. Repeat along the length of your shoulders.
Massage your jaw! We hold a lot of tension in our jaw area; you may unconsciously clench the jaw when anxious or even asleep so try taking some time to focus on this area. Open and close your jaw. Pretend you are chewing gum and feel the tension release. Next place the pads of your fingers on your lower jaw line and make small circular movements with the tips of your fingers. Try a side-to side jaw stretch. Close your mouth and place your right hand on the right side of your jaw. Try to push your jaw sideways into your hand. This is a gentle stretch - you should not experience pain or discomfort. Perform this stretch on both sides of your mouth.
Shoulders
When tense or stressed we often pull our shoulders up towards our ears, try just simply dropping the shoulders now; and then use these techniques for the shoulders to feel loose and easy:
Using your thumbs and index and middle fingers gently squeeze and release the flesh around your shoulders and upper arms.
Place your left hand on your right shoulder and squeeze the muscle. Hold the squeeze and slowly rotate your shoulder backwards. A grinding noise indicates that muscles are tense and should be freed up. Repeat with the right hand on the left shoulders.
I hope that these simple methods have left you feeling a little more relaxed!
Timo Massage Therapy
Monday, 15 October 2012
