Has fibromyalgia robbed you of your energy and vitality? Do achy muscles and pain cramp your style? Would you like to have less stress in your life? If your answer to any or all of these questions is a resounding “YES!”, then you should have massage regularly. Experts believe that stress accounts for 80-90% of all disease. Even when it is not the direct cause, it aggravates health challenges, making it harder to maintain well-being. People with fibromyalgia tend to be stressed out over-doers. Receiving massage on a regular basis reduces stress and pain, and helps the body function in a more harmonious way. Massage therapists, or “bodyworkers”, as they are also called, apply a wide variety of techniques to aid the muscles and other soft tissues of the body. They use rubbing, kneading, percussion, and stretching, to name but a few. Some people believe that a massage is simply pampering that feels wonderful, but there are numerous reasons why having routine massage is a good idea. Fibromyalgia and many chronic conditions, such as arthritis, bursitis, low back pain, diabetes, high blood pressure and fatigue respond well to massage. The body under stress is in a state of “fight or flight.” In other words, the system reacts as if there were imminent danger. Breathing is shallow, the heart is working overtime, and the repair and restore functions of the body are put on hold. Sleep patterns are disturbed by the pain. Stress and pain are locked in an unending cycle, each making the other worse. Massage is one way to break the vicious circle. Massage puts the body into a “rest and digest” response that allows it to repair and renew itself, digest food, and absorb nutrients. Breathing becomes deep. Heart rate slows. Pain decreases. Anxiety loses its hold.
Fibromyalgia and Massage
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