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Posted on: June 22, 2012

Any type of massage provides some benefits. Simply being touched by another person in a caring manner can reduce stress by triggering the release of certain neurochemicals and anti-inflammatory hormones. Massage therapy can also be used to reduce or eliminate symptoms and change the course of underlying diseases. These applications require an intimate understanding of the interdependent relationships between muscles, organs, fascia, and arterial blood flow.

Some practitioners excel in seeing the big picture, and others easily remember details of discrete anatomical systems. Both viewpoints are necessary to perfect the practice of massage. This perfection should always begin with the self. Meditation should be used in massage therapy training to enhance understanding of anatomy and physiology. A background in the subject is useful, but there are guided meditations available from many medical traditions to function as tour guides through the body.

The practitioner can put this understanding to use with self-massage. A beginning technique is balancing arterial flow. During meditation, place a finger from each hand on the femoral arteries as they cross the pelvic region. The flow in a balanced body will be exactly the same. Focusing on unbalanced rhythms will bring them into balance. This technique can also be used for the neck, behind the knees, and on the inner ankles. Practitioners will develop increased sensitivity in the fingers and responsiveness to subtle differences.

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