Deep Tissue Massage Techniques – A Variation on Swedish Massage
A deep tissue massage uses many of the same massage techniques as Swedish massage, simply with more focus and intensity on any troublesome areas. Many people want to know whether or not a deep tissue massage is going to hurt, and while it may be more painful that a traditional Swedish massage, the amount of pressure applied can still be specified to your own comfort level. One should never be afraid to speak up during a massage to let the therapist know what amount of pressure is acceptable.
Deep Tissue Massage Technique
In a deep tissue massage, the goal is to realign the deep muscle layers and connecting tissues in painful, stiff joints. While this massage technique can cause discomfort at first, it doesn’t usually last for longer than 24 hours, and the overall benefits outweigh the discomfort considerably. Many medical problems can be greatly affected by a deep tissue massage, including muscle spasms, fibromyalgia, carpal tunnel syndrome, osteoarthritis and more.
The massage technique is an extremely slow focused massage on any given area of the body that experiences pain or muscle tension. Inflammation and joint pain can be a result of extremely tight muscles and a deep tissue massage can help alleviate these symptoms.
While any massage can help someone relax, a deep tissue massage using specific massaging techniques that are focused, slower and deeper can help heal troubled areas. Since deep tissue massage therapy can help increase blood flow and the release of toxins, it can be a little uncomfortable at first, but once the area has been released and any knot slowly removed over time, the result can be quite freeing.
The use of deep tissue massage techniques aren’t always recommended however and should not be used if you are pregnant, have heart disease, if you have osteoporosis, have recently broken a bone or had an operation, if you have a tumor, hernia or have a rash or viral infection or if you have an open would or bruising.
Results from a deep tissue massage are not instantaneous either, you cannot possibly heal or remove a knot entirely from one session, nor would you want to as this would cause a considerable amount of discomfort. But with a variety of sessions targeting troublesome areas, the benefits of using deep tissue massage techniques can be highly effective in relieving pain and/or tension.
