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Can Massage Therapy Help Me Sleep Better?

A good night’s sleep is crucial to our wellbeing and our health. If you’ve ever had trouble falling asleep or staying asleep, then you know that being tired or craving sleep can impact your entire day. You feel drowsy or irritable, your thoughts may be foggy, and you may start to notice a difference in your body as well.

If you’re having trouble falling asleep at night maybe it’s time you consider massage therapy to help you sleep better.

The Importance of Sleep

Sleep is such an important part of our wellbeing. While some people need more sleep than others, getting too little sleep is associated with a host of medical issues, and a habit of poor sleep can lead to a decline in your overall health.

The Centre for Disease Control has reported that a lack of sleep is associated with a host of medical issues:

●      Diabetes

●      Cardiovascular disease

●      Obesity

●      Depression

An ongoing issue with sleep can really start to affect how you feel physically and emotionally, and grow into a larger health issue.

Massage for Better Sleep

Some research is illuminating how massage therapy can benefit people who are having difficulty sleeping. For example, one study followed several people with lower back pain and sleep disturbances. The group that received massages reported feeling less pain, with fewer depression symptoms and improved anxiety and sleep.

This study followed these adults with lower back pain and sleep disturbances for five weeks. Each of the adults chosen for the study had been experiencing lower back pain and related sleep issues for at least six months.

One group received 30-minute massages, two times per week, and the other group received relaxation therapy sessions twice a week for 30 minutes. Each participant filled out a questionnaire at the beginning and end of the trial, and those in the massage group reported benefits in anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbance. They even showed improved trunk and pain flexion performance.

Massage and Fatigue

Sleep issues will lead you to feel fatigued. Another study followed the effects of massage therapy for patients with poor sleep quality who had also received a coronary artery bypass graft surgery. This study looked at whether massage therapy was an effective way to improve sleep quality for these patients.

The 40 participants in the study were randomly assigned either to a control group or a massage therapy group after they had been released from the ICU. For three nights following their release from intensive care, the participants in the massage therapy group received massage therapy sessions.

Every participant in both the control group and massage therapy group were evaluated the following morning for pain in their back, chest, and shoulders, and also on fatigue and sleep. While both groups reported feeling an improvement in their back, shoulder, and chest pain over the course of the three days, the participants in the massage therapy group also reported fewer complaints of fatigue on the first two days, and more effective sleep throughout the entire study.

Another reason, and this one you won’t believe:  poor sleep can also contribute to weight gain.  With the amount of work I have done to try and lose menopause weight gain there is no way I am letting this one creep up on me!  Menopause itself can lead to insomnia due to waking up lots during the night due to the horrible night sweating. 

The soundproofing in my flat is not as good as it could be, so for me, it’s earplugs for the win!

Other things you can do is have lavender essential oil to hand, and sprinkle it on your pillow as part of your bedtime routine. Counter balance this with rosemary essential oil first thing in the morning to help with concentration.

I know how much sleep matters, and I’m a firm believer in the benefits of massage therapy for sleep disturbances, sleep disorders, and fatigue. Let’s work together to help you experience the benefits of massage therapy, so you can sleep better at night, and wake up feeling rested, happy, and well the next morning. Contact me today, and let’s set up an appointment.

In days of yore, when I had clients that were feeling poorly or had the start of a bad cold, I would ask them in anyway for a full body tune up to stimulate their lymphatic/immune system.  These days with a whole new load of bloody viruses and variants going around, I can’t do that, as the symptoms mean a wider public health problem!

If you DO find yourself feeling drained, look up a foam rolling class, give yourself a good foot massage and really get in between all your toes etc.  Have a lovely hot bath, or get in the sea, flowing water actually stimulates your lymphatic system as it gently glides over your nodes.  The highest concentration of lymph nodes are under your armpits and in your groin area.  That’s why these areas ache when you are feeling under the weather, its your lymph nodes working super hard.