February 2015February 2015

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What Massage Can Do For YouBeyond Pain Relief, Massage is Valuable for Preventive CareKarrie Osborn

Massage helps you maintain a healthy body.

"The time torelax is whenyou don't havetime for it."-Sydney J. Harris

Office Hours and Contact

BE WELL Massage Therapy, LLCRanae Reehten, LMT, NCTMB618.530.9683By appointment only.

In this Issue

What Massage Can Do For YouPrevent the Afternoon SlumpBe Immune to Inactivity

This article first appeared in the Summer 2013 issueofBody Sense.

Whether it is an aching back, recoveryfrom an injury, a case of carpal tunnelsyndrome, or a host of other debilitatingphysiological conditions, there's nodoubt massage and bodywork works torelieve pain. But once your therapist hashelped you tackle your pain, do you quitcalling? When the pain is gone, are yougone, too?

Massage therapy is highly effective forpain relief, but it is an amazingpreventive therapy as well. Massage helpsbuild and maintain a healthy body (andmind), it combats stress, and it works to

keep the immune system strong. Inshort, massage can keep on working foryou, even after the pain is gone.

MASSAGE FOR WELLNESSIf it's been a while since you bookedyour last massage--because your pain isno longer an issue or your injury is fullyrehabbed--you might want to considermassage for preventive care.

Massage can play an important role in agood health-care regimen. Just as youeat healthily, exercise regularly, and takeyour vitamins to ward off illness andmaintain a fit body, you should considermaking frequent massage a part of yourwellness lifestyle.

According to Benny Vaughn, a sportsmassage expert in Fort Worth, Texas,one of the benefits of consistent andregular massage therapy is betterflexibility. "This happens becauseregular and structured touch stimulusenhances the nervous system's sensoryand spatial processing capacity," he says."That is, the person becomes moreaware of her body's movement in spaceand becomes more aware of tightness or

pain long before it reaches a criticalpoint of mechanical dysfunction."

As a preventive measure, frequentmassage puts you more in tune with yourbody. "The consistency of massagetherapy over time creates a cumulativestress-reduction effect," Vaughn says.

Regular massage helps reduce stress and improve your quality of life.

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"The person becomes acutely aware ofstress within her body long before it cancreate stress-driven damage."

And the more massage you receive, themore benefits you reap. "Massagetherapists know that people who getmassage regularly demonstrate greaterimprovement and notice a reduction inpain and muscular tension, as well as animprovement in posture," says AnneWilliams, author ofMassage Mastery: From Student to Professional(Lippincott Williams Wilkins, 2012).

"People regularly make a commitmentto fitness," Williams says. "Peopleregularly make a commitment tochanging their diet. The differencethey'd experience if they regularly madea commitment to massage ismind-blowing."

STRESS IS A KILLERStress is more than just a word we throwaround to describe the nature of ourhectic day. Today, we understand thatstress kills.

According to the Benson-HenryInstitute for Mind Body Medicine,60-90 percent of all US medical visitsare for stress-related disorders. Chronicpain, headaches, heart disease,hypertension, and ulcers can all bewrought from stress. Many would arguethat the best benefit of massage is itsability to reduce the stress in our lives.

From the perspective of daily living,think about the stress you felt at today'smeeting--now it's hiding in your neck.Tomorrow that can turn into stiffnessand eventually begin to affect other partsof your body. If you see your massagetherapist for your regular session thisweek, the chances are good you won'treach the tipping point. Think ofmassage and bodywork as a way torebalance your body.

Noted researcher Tiffany Field and hercolleagues from the Touch ResearchInstitute at the University of MiamiSchool of Medicine report that massagecauses positive biological changes whenit comes to stress. Through the course ofmore than 20 studies, these scientistsfound that massage decreases cortisol (astress-derived hormone that negativelyaffects immune function and kills ourimmune cells) and increases dopamine

and serotonin (the neurotransmittersmost associated with emotionalwell-being).

Add to this the research that showsmassage can lower your heart rate anddecrease your blood pressure, and youhave a mighty effective,nonpharmacological, stress-fightingtool that's about as natural as natural canget.

A ONE-HOUR VACATION AND SOMUCH MOREYou may no longer need to rehab thatknee or work the scar tissue from yoursurgery, but don't forget abouteverything else massage can do for you.Massage is the entire package, helping toheal body, mind, and spirit. Think of itas a one-hour vacation with amazingreturn on investment.

Whether it be maintaining joint

flexibility, managing blood pressure, orenhancing immunity, massage works.From repair to relief and from recoveryto relaxation, massage is a magnificentpiece of natural medicine you shouldalways have as part of your health-careroutine.

Karrie Osborn is senior editor for Body Sense.Contact her at karrie@abmp.com.

Avoid the drain office settings can bring on.

Prevent the Afternoon SlumpSome Tips for P.M. EnergyJerry V. Teplitz

Be Immune to Inactivity

If you're like most people, you'veexperienced the afternoon slump. Youknow the feeling -- it's only 2 p.m., yetyou feel drained. Fortunately, you canemploy methods to reduce the slump'sfrequency and shorten its duration.

Drink water.Your body uses water even if you're notexercising. If you wait until you feelthirsty, you're already dehydrated. Keepa water bottle handy all day.

Avoid sugar and simple carbohydrates.While a mid-afternoon candy bar maygive you a quick rush, it actually worsensthe slump. Instead, choose protein-richfoods and complex carbs.

Eat small meals.Have six small meals over the course ofthe day instead of three large ones. Bigmeals cause the digestive process todivert blood from your brain to use inthe digestive track.

Evaluate your lighting.

Most offices are lit with cool, whitefluorescent tubes, which have a terribleeffect on how people feel and functionat work. A better option isfull-spectrum, fluorescent tubes.

Take time for walks.Walking gets your blood circulating,helps you breathe better, and stimulatesyour brain due to the increased bloodflow. Take a 5- or 10-minute walkduring the day.

Meditate.Meditation is great for rejuvenating yourbody. By meditating for 15 to 20minutes twice a day, you're keeping yourbody continually energized and rested.

Take time to breathe and stretch.Deep breathing exercises give you anenergy boost. Also, stand up and stretchto increase blood flow and stimulate thelymphatic system.

Handle negativity.Negative people and images can have a

draining effect on your energy. Make aconscious effort to stay positive.

The World Health Organization hascalled inactivity the second-leading riskfactor for non-communicable diseasesand the fourth-leading risk factor forglobal mortality.

In the United States, inactivity hashelped contribute to the fact that 35.9percent of adults age 20 years and overare obese, as well as 18 percent ofadolescents and children ages 6-19.

With risk factors like high bloodpressure, high cholesterol, coronaryartery disease, stroke, type 2 diabetes,and more, it's important to make sureyou get enough exercise and activity tostay healthy.

Here are some tips to help you keepmoving.

Be Aerobic Every DayThe Centers for Disease Control (CDC)recommends getting 2.5 hours ofmoderate-intensity aerobic exercise eachweek. If you break it down, that's justover 20 minutes a day of activities likewalking, water aerobics, riding a bike, orpushing a lawnmower.

Want to cut that down even further? Ifyou bump the exercise up to vigorousintensity, you can cut the time in half.Vigorous-intensity activities includejogging or running, swimming laps, andplaying basketball or tennis.

Add Muscle-StrengtheningLifting weights, working with resistancebands, and doing body-weight resistanceexercises, heavy yard work, or yoga areall considered by the CDC to beimportant muscle-strengthening

activities. The recommendation is to getthis type of exercise at least twice a weekto the point where your muscles aretired.

If you focus on setting realistic goals andgetting just a bit of exercise each day,you'll be on your way to meeting therequirements in no time. Find exercisesand activities that you enjoy doing, andit won't seem like such a burden. Plus,you'll feel great about reducing the riskfactors associated with a sedentarylifestyle. So get a plan, get out there,and get moving!

A healthyoutside startsfrom the inside.-Robert Urich

Mission:"BE WELL in my practice, BE WELL in life."

BE WELL Massage Therapy promotes a holistic approach tohealth care by offering clinical massage. My practiceapproach is derived from Swedish massage andpressure/trigger point therapy.

As a licensed therapist, I will use my knowledge, expertiseand intuition, along with your requests, to create yourpersonal and professional session.

BE WELL

bewell.stl@gmail.comSt. Louis, MO