It’s Been Emotional
I’ve had people say to me post-treatment that they are so relaxed to the point of feeling dazed and feeling really happy, I’ve also had clients say they’ve never felt better and felt like they were walking on air, I’ve even had people tell me they feel a little bit high and some people have even been close to tears or even burst out crying. I’ve done nothing wrong – honest!
Massage Therapy has been used as medicine to cure illnesses, a spiritual way to connect and heal for as long as records date back. In ancient times, it was an indulgent luxury for the wealthy luckily times have changed and in today’s world, many use massage as a way to escape their busy lives, relax and take time out for themselves. But what is it about massage that brings out these emotions? Why do we feel this way? Well, it’s a normal response to massage.
Tissue Memory
When we cleanse our bodies and allow ourselves to relax and enjoy the relaxation that comes from massage, it disrupts something deep within us in some way. Touch is so very important part of living so when it comes to emotions and situations, touch in some way is related. We seem to store emotion related to touch not only in our minds, but also in our muscles and our spiritual body.
It all comes down to tissue memory. This is largely disputed that it exists. Tissue memory shows how muscles hold memory through repetition, sending a message to the brain along neural pathways e.g. typing, using a knife and fork, playing an instrument, practising martial arts. It’s been suggested that the same way muscles store this kind of movement through encoding along neural pathways, muscles can store emotions.
Be at one with your Body and Emotions
Emotions are designed to move thorough the body, so when this is prevented, issues arise e.g. If you are happy, you smile, if someone tells you a joke, you laugh, there’s a reaction to the emotions felt and the body responds. Imbalances occur when we suppress an emotion. Resistance can cause an emotion to lock into the body tissue leading to physical ailments. When a negative emotion is felt, pain and discomfort is recognised by the body and quickly repressed by the brain, meaning it never moved through the body.
As massage puts pressure on specific areas and muscles, it acts as a natural release for toxins held in the muscles, if the tension felt from a particular emotion is stagnant within the tissue, as with waste which has not been correctly dispersed around the body, it will also push these through, meaning the anger or whatever emotion you felt two weeks or two years ago eventually finds its way out of the tissue and along the path it’s designed to go.
Massage allows you to let go of stress and be at one with your body. So it’s no wonder emotions that have been suppressed rise to the surface. When you are feeling down and just about holding it together, we go about our day and block the negative emotions out but as soon as someone hugs you what happens? We start crying!!!
I think in some way Massage Therapy is the hug you’ve been avoiding. I can honestly say I care for my clients and I don’t mind if you cry – it’s totally normal.
