Enhance Your Self Care with Massage
Massage has numerous health and wellness benefits to relieve both physical and mental tension. Finding this relief has become even more important with the stress and tumult presented by COVID-19, especially for parents as their kids are heading back to school. Despite the many benefits of massage, people often tend to see it as a periodic indulgence rather than an essential part of regular self care. Taking time for a massage session can be a powerful way to unwind, reduce anxiety, and promote overall well-being, helping parents to maintain a positive mindset and stay energized while navigating the new school year’s challenge.
Self care is a critical part of reducing stress and tension in daily life. Many people find it difficult to practice regular self care for a variety of reasons, the most common of which is a distorted definition of what self care means. Say the words “self care,” and some people immediately envision waking up before dawn to exercise and do yoga, while others imagine sitting in a bubble bath with cucumber slices over their eyes while sipping a glass of wine. No matter how you define self care, the common factor is that it takes time, and self care might not always feel like the best way to use your time if you’re busy with work, home projects, family, and other stresses of daily life.
Self care doesn’t have to be a total lifestyle change that occupies a daily block of time on your calendar. It should begin with small attitude and mindset shifts that work toward an overall outlook change—going from “I need to make the most of my time” to “I’m worth spending time on.”
HOW DOES MASSAGE HELP SELF CARE?
The physical and mental benefits of massage have been studied and proven to reduce stress, tension, and physical pain. Depending on where you focus your self care efforts, massage can further boost and enhance the effectiveness of these practices.
If most of your self care so far has been focused on eating well and exercising, including a monthly self care massage as part of your routine can help. If you’re experiencing muscle pain, tension, or tightness in the joints, your massage therapist can work with your fitness goals to help soothe and stretch the muscles. Massage also helps improve circulation, flushing out lactic acid buildup in the muscles from strength and cardio routines. Be sure to drink lots of water after your massage to maximize the effects.
If your self-care routine is more focused on reducing mental stress than with improving your physical fitness, there are many massage benefits for mental health. One study found that regular massage therapy not only decreased the production of cortisol—the stress hormone—but also significantly increased the production of serotonin and dopamine, which are critical for managing stress and enhancing positivity. If you practice meditation, a massage offers a perfect window of total relaxation for your practice. At Massage Studio, we even let you select music that perfectly helps you unwind and get in the appropriate headspace for mindfulness.
HOW DOES MASSAGE FIT INTO MY ROUTINE?
To fully experience the self care benefits of massage, we suggest regular massages at a minimum of once a month. We make this affordable and simple with our monthly memberships, which give you access to regular massages at 25% off of our standard rates, with the flexibility to choose a time that works with your schedule each month and the ability to roll over or gift unused monthly massages. Whether you come in as a member or just to try a massage for stress relief, we help you make the most of every appointment by giving you a full hour or 90 minutes of massage time, rather than taking off ten to fifteen minutes of your valuable time for check-in and check out.
Like most self care practices, the most common excuse for not getting regular massages is time. At Massage Studio, we’re open seven days a week, including evenings during the week. It’s our goal to make the benefits of massage accessible to anyone, making it easy to stop in for a massage after work, on your way home from the gym, or whenever it fits into your schedule. Ready to give it a shot? Explore which massage is right for you and book your appointment today!