Massage Therapy
Recently, the practice of massage therapy has grown remarkably in the United States. It has become more widely accepted as a medical practice by doctors as well as the general public. We massage ourselves nearly everyday without even knowing it. The natural reaction to reach out and massage a painful part of our bodies is massage.
I became a Massage Therapist about 15 years ago. I was looking for a career that I could make my own hours, do something that I liked, and help others. My mom was dying of cancer and I was told that I could massage her to help in her pain management. Massage in cancer patients used to be contraindicated but now new research has shown that is not necessarily true anymore with some cancers.
Massage is defined as: …the systematic manual or mechanical manipulations of the soft tissues of the body by such movements as rubbing, kneading, pressing, rolling, slapping, and tapping. Massage is used for therapeutic purposes to promote circulation of the blood and lymph, relax muscles, relief from pain, restoration of metabolic balance, and other benefits both physical and mental. The use of massage therapy has many benefits that even medicine or other methods of relief cannot offer.
Historical evidence has led to indicate that massage was probably one of the earliest remedies for pain relief and for the restoration of the body. The roots of massage can be traced back to ancient civilizations where many artifacts have been found to support the belief that prehistoric people massaged their muscles and perhaps even used some form of oil. Early civilizations including ancient Chinese, Japanese, Indian, Hindu, Greek and Roman used some form of massage therapy treatment. The Renaissance period brought back the interest in health and science, and massage once again became a popular practice. Charles Fayette Taylor, a physician from New York brought the Swedish Movements to the United States. False practitioners...