With the pressures of life today, mental illnesses like depression and anxiety are increasing. Therapy and medication are the first line of defence, but for some, complementary therapies are the next best thing to augment their well-being. Among the successful, yet not-often-enough-esteemed, weapons is massage therapy.
Massage relaxes both body and mind. For people with chronic stress, emotional overcharge, or depression, such low-tech care can make its presence felt. Be it applied by a professional licensed massage therapist or as integrative medicine by an osteopath, massage is an invaluable companion for combating depression and anxiety.
How Massage Supports Mental Health
Massage therapy is the soft tissue manipulation—muscles, tendons, and ligaments—by numerous different techniques for tension relaxation relief, the improvement of circulation, and relaxation induction. But apart from its physical impact, massage does thoroughly influence the nervous system and mood as well.
Below are the modes by which massage can be helpful for patients with depression or anxiety:
Reduces Cortisol (Stress Hormone) Levels
Cortisol is your stress hormone, and high levels of cortisol are most commonly associated with depression and anxiety. Research has proven that massage therapy actually lowers cortisol levels dramatically, soothing the mind and calming nervous tension.
Boosts Serotonin and Dopamine
Massage releases positive neurotransmitters like serotonin and dopamine. These are hormones of mood and emotion, present in minute amounts in depressed patients. A regular course of massage can restore this balance naturally.
Improves Quality of Sleep
Both depression and anxiety can disturb sleep, and the condition of poor sleep can only worsen. Massage is able to produce deeper, refreshing sleep by calming the parasympathetic nervous system and releasing tension within your body that’s irritating you.
Increases Mind-Body Awareness
A massage session quiets the head chatter and allows you to come back to your body. Being present in the duration of the session may make you body-embodied, disentangle wispy thinking, and allow space for healing on an emotional level.
Massage vs Osteopathic Care: What’s the Difference?
While massage therapists are primarily soft tissue practitioners, an osteopath is more integrated-brained when treating the body. Osteopaths are fully qualified doctors of medicine that specialise in the diagnosis and treatment of musculoskeletal imbalance causing mental and physical sickness.
Osteopathy may involve massage as a component, but it would not stop at the massage – there would be joint mobility manipulation, your posture correction, and problems within causing harm to your state of health. For an agony sufferer causing depression or anxiety, a postural disorder, or an osteopath in Richmond, it is generally a more balanced choice.
The Science Behind It
Scientific study has more and more been disputing the use of massage in psychiatric illness. A meta-analysis in the Journal of Clinical Psychiatry showed that depression symptoms were greatly affected by massage. Massage lowered anxiety scores in patients with chronic disease, as documented by Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice.
Massage and physical touch stimulate the body’s relaxation response. The mere touch—upon reception in a safety net of a healing environment—has lowered heart rates, calmed the muscles, and told the brain the time is right to heal and relax.
Massages for Anxiety and Depression Relief
Not all massages are the same. These are some of the most therapeutic for mood lift:
Swedish Massage: Smooth, calming, and relaxing, wonderful to release all tension and unwind you.
Aromatherapy Massage: Calming lavender or grounding chamomile are used to calm the mind and promote relaxation.
Deep Tissue Massage: More intense on deeper tissues, which are supported if mental tension suggests tension is still present.
Craniosacral Therapy: Developed by osteopaths, it is an extremely gentle therapy on the nervous system and letting go of emotional as well as physical tension.
If you are not sure where to turn, go see a good osteopath or massage therapist who will take you through a process tailored to your individual symptoms and overall health.
When to Seek Help
Though massage is a wonderful complementary therapy, it is not a substitute for professional mental health care. If your depression or anxiety is chronic or severe, consult a psychologist or doctor. Massage can be a great complementary addition—but it is most effective when it’s part of an overall treatment plan.
Final thoughts
Anxiety and depression are usually treated by employing a combination of approaches. Massage is a calming, restorative therapy that mends body and spirit. Whether you have been hurt emotionally or tensed physically, the routine application of massage in Richmond can bring real relief.
To get the whole story, visit an osteopath, who can assess your musculoskeletal and nervous systems at the same time. With direction in the right way, you can become crystal clear, balanced, and calm—one therapeutic touch at a time.
