Feeling stressed? So are we. It’s no doubt that the current state of the world has everyone on edge. We already know that prolonged stress impacts your mental health, but it can also weaken your immune system — which increases your risk of infections.
To stay healthy, it’s essential to take care of your body. How can you do that? With a self-massage. Studies have shown massage can reduce inflammation in your body and improve your mood.
Here we dive deep into the benefits of massage and how you can give yourself the best massage without leaving your home.
What Are the Benefits of a Self-Massage?
As mentioned, a massage can yield some serious benefits for your health and well-being. In fact, a 2015 study, involving intensive care nurses, found that a massage twice a week significantly reduced stress levels.
Researchers also say that massages can help manage health conditions, some of them include:
- Autoimmune disorders (e.g., lupus, multiple sclerosis)
- Autism
- HIV
- Dementia
- Pain syndromes (e.g., arthritis, fibromyalgia)
- Parkinson’s disease
- High blood pressure
- Asthma
We don’t know about you, but we’re totally sold on self-massages. Let’s get into a few techniques you can try at home.
How To Give Yourself a Massage
Before doing a self-massage, we recommend preparing with a warm shower. You can even use enhance your shower experience with our ultra-soothing Spa Shower body wash. The therapeutic pressure helps to relax your muscles and increase the effectiveness of the massage.
Hand Massage
For a hand massage, you don’t need any additional equipment or tools. All you need is hydrating hand lotion or essential oil.
Our hand and nail balm is the perfect option for a hand massage. Its deep moisturizing properties relieve dry hands and strengthen nails. Not to mention, the anti-aging ingredients vitamin B5 and allantoin help stave off wrinkles and age spots.
Here’s how you can give your self the best hand-massage:
- Start by sitting in a comfortable position.
- Next, apply a dime-sized amount of lotion to your hands.
- Place one hand on a table while using the other hand to perform the massage strokes.
- Use your palm to apply moderate pressure and slowly stroke your wrist, forearm, and fingertips.
- You can also use your elbow to knead the area below the thumb— the part of your hand that holds the most tension.
Face Massage
You may not realize it, but we hold a lot of emotional stress on our faces. Your face is probably full of tension right now. What many also don’t realize is that facial tension impacts your head posture, which can cause a sore jaw and neck — ouch!
For a face massage, you can use a fancy face roller or you can simply use your hands. Here’s how you can do it:
- Clean your hands thoroughly with an anti-bacterial soap.
- Massage a nourishing moisturizer into your face in a circular motion.
- Give your forehead extra attention— this part of your face holds the most tension.
- With medium to firm pressure, press your fingertips in a circular motion from the top of your cheekbones to your jaw.
- Repeat as needed.
Neck and Shoulder Massage
If you’re currently working from home, chances are you spend most of the day hunched forward over a computer. Sitting in this position for long periods of time puts a strain on your neck and back.
Here’s how you can massage away the tightness :
- Relax your shoulders and tuck your chin to your chest.
- Place two fingertips on the area where your back and neck meet — this is your pressure point.
- Apply firm pressure and hold, releasing when the muscle feels relaxed.
- Next, use your fingertips to apply firm pressure to the area behind your earlobe.
- Repeat as necessary.
Ashley Austin
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