Why do we sometimes recommend longer treatments?

In my last blog article, I explained the benefits including scientific evidence from a 15 minute Seated Acupressure Massage.   So if 15 minutes has all these benefits, why do we offer 30 minute treatments and why do we sometimes recommend them?

Quite simply, its based on experience.  I find that some clients start to notice their neck & shoulder loosing mobility and their level of muscular tension increasing but they are too busy to book in.  Frequently we find that people leave it 3 weeks before they book in or sometimes up to a month, by which time the knots have multiplied and grown!!!

The 15 minute treatment is designed to nip things in the bud, before the tension gets chronic.   However I appreciate that my clients have very busy lifestyles so this isn’t always possible so we offer longer treatments.

Finally, some people get home from work and instantly switch off while other people take a while.   This different rate of response is what we as therapists see when we treat people, so we recognise when your muscles are releasing really slowly.  Indeed over the years some of my clients have commented on how it took a long time for their right/left shoulder to relax.  In cases where your muscles are releasing very slowly we often suggest you book a longer treatment.

Related Posts

  • Is a 15 minute Neck & Shoulder Massage beneficial?

    Fifteen minutes is a very short space of time, so I am often asked by potential clients if they will receive any benefits from such a short massage. Well the good news is that you do receive benefits, and its not just me saying that, or the subjective experience of other clients there is scientific evidence too.

    • In 1996 Shulman, K.R. & Jones, G.E. in the Journal of Applied   Behavioural Science, looked at the effectiveness of chair massage in reducing anxiety in an organisation. An on-site chair massage therapy program was provided to reduce anxiety levels of 18 employees in a downsizing organization. 15 control group s participated in break therapy. Subjects’ stress levels were measured with the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, which was administered twice during pretest, post-test, and delayed post-test to achieve stable measures. The study concluded that significant reductions in anxiety levels were found for the massage group. 1
    • In 1996 Field, Ironson, Pickens et al. in the International Journal of Neuroscience concluded that chair massage therapy offers benefits in not just alleviating the physiological effects of anxiety, but also in improving mental alertness.2
    • In 1997 Cady et al. in Perceptual & Motor Skills evaluated the effectiveness of a 15 minute chair massage on reducing stress as indicated by blood pressure. 52 employed participants' blood pressures were measured before and after a 15 minute massage at work. Analysis showed a significant reduction in participants' systolic and diastolic blood pressure after receiving the massage. High Blood pressure is associated with anxiety and stress, this study supports the conclusion that chair massage is relaxing and reduces stress. 3
    There is solid scientific evidence of the benefits of a 15 minute seated acupressure massage, so why not book now. References
    1. KR Shulman and GE Jones, 1996, The effectiveness of massage therapy intervention on reducing anxiety in the work place, Journal of Applied Behavioural Science (32), p160 – 173
    2. Field T; lronson G; Scafjdi F; Nawrocki T; Goncalves A; Burman I; Pickens J; Fox N; Schanberg S; Kuhn C, Sep 1996, Massage Therapy Reduces Anxiety and Enhances EEG Pattern of Alertness and Math Computations, The International Journal of Neuroscience, 86 (3-4) p197-205Read More: http://informahealthcare.com/doi/abs/10.3109/00207459608986710
    3. Cady SH and Jones GE, Feb 1997, Massage therapy as a workplace intervention for reduction of stress, Perceptual & Motor Skills, (1) p157- 158Read More: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9132704
     

  • Headaches Treatment & Prevention – Part 3

    Having looked at how to describe and classify headaches & migraines in my introduction, I then moved on to look at how massage can help sufferers in part 1. Then in part 2 I looked at how nutrition and Bowen technique could help.  I want to continue to explore the impact of complementary therapies on headaches. Cranio-Sacral Therapy Cranio-sacral therapy is a system of alternative medicine intended to relieve pain and tension by gentle manipulations of the skull regarded as harmonizing with a natural rhythm in the central nervous system. Cranio-sacral therapists suspect the occipito-atlanteal junction at the top of the neck may contribute to the cause of headaches especially migraines.  If the first vertebrae and the occipital condyles at the base of the skull become jammed together or fixed, which effects the vagus nerves, throwing the parasympathetic nervous system into dysfunction.  Cranio-sacral therapists report releasing the occipital condyles nearly always results in the reduction of migraines patterns in clients. Acupuncture Acupuncture is a treatment derived from ancient Chinese medicine in which fine needles are inserted at certain sites in the body for therapeutic or preventative purposes.  There is some scientific evidence acupuncture has a beneficial effect on headaches and migraines (see >> http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Acupuncture/Pages/Evidence.aspx)

  • Massage Therapy and Neck Pain

    Painful neckOne of the most common conditions we treat is neck pain which can range from a simple stiff neck, to inability to turn your head to either the right or left. So in this blog post I wanted to discuss the recent scientific research regarding massage therapy for neck pain in people with neck arthritis.

    Background

    • 1 in 5 people who visit a massage therapist do so because of neck pain
    • 28% of people with neck pain due to neck arthritis are likely to book a massage

    Until the most recent research the scientific literature on the effects of massage therapy on neck arthritis pain was mixed.  In this study an attempt was made to enhance the effects of weekly massage therapy by having the participants massage themselves daily.

    Methods

    Forth eight participants from a medical school, suffering from neck arthritis pain, were randomly split into two groups, one that received massage treatments and a wait list control group. The first group received a course of four 30 minutes weekly moderate pressure massages and supplemented this with 15 minute daily self-massage.  The control group started the same course of treatments after four weeks without massages.

    The effectiveness of the treatments were measured through self-reports and range of motion assessments, completed after massage treatments on the first and last days of the monthly study period.

    Results

    The group that received the monthly course of weekly massage treatments, showed significant reductions in pain and improvements in range of motion.  These ROM changes occurred specifically for nodding your head (flexion) and right and left lateral flexion motions.  Between the first and last day of the course of treatments showed on average a 50% decrease in pain during flexion.  Conversely the control group reported increases in pain and reductions in range of movement while waiting for massage treatments.

    The study Field T, Diego M, Gonzalez G and Funk C G (2014) Neck arthritis pain is reduced and range of motion is increased by massage therapy, Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice 20(4): 219 - 223 supports my subjective experience that massage therapy helps reduced neck pain and increase clients range of movement when it has been compromised.