Aromatherapy Massage - A Natural Combination

Aromatherapy massage is a popular form of natural healing work that involves using aromatic essential oils to promote health and well being. The essential oils are usually combined with the massage oil and applied to the skin during the massage. Also a therapist might add the oils to a oil diffuser, that allows the natural fragrance to dissipate throughout the room. Using both techniques, the client gets the double effect of breathing the fragrance as well as absorbing the oils through the skin.


Other ways to receive the benefits of aromatherapy would be adding some drops of oil to a warm bath. A small bowl of hot water could also be used as a steam for inhaling. A few drops could be added to a tissue and held close to your nose and breathed in.Essential oils can also be used in hot or cold compresses and soaks to treat muscle aches and pains (e.g., lavender and ginger) Because of their potency, essential oils are diluted in a carrier oil or lotion before being applied to the skin. Any vegetable oil or olive oil can be used. A popular oil for massage therapists is almond oil, because of its pleasant texture and scent. Standard dilutions of essential oils in carrier oils range from 2 to10%


In aromatherapy massage, essential oils are individually selected for their medicinal properties.These properties can be both physical and psychological. Some essential oils have a relaxing effect, other a more uplifting and energizing effect.Some are anti- inflammatory, while others increase the circulation. Following is a list of the more common essential oils used in aromatherapy and their health benefits.


Peppermint (Mentha piperita). Relaxes and soothes the stomach muscles and gastrointestinal tract. Peppermint's actions as an anti-inflammatory, antiseptic, and antimicrobial also make it an effective skin treatment, and useful in fighting cold and flu symptoms.


Chamomile (Chamaemelum nobilis). An anti-inflammatory and analgesic. Useful in treating otitis media (earache), skin conditions, menstrual pains, and depression.


Lavender (Lavandula officinalis). A popular aromatherapy oil which mixes well with most essential oils, lavender has a wide range of medicinal and cosmetic applications, including treatment of insect bites, burns, respiratory infections, intestinal discomfort, nausea, migraine, insomnia, depression, and stress.


Clary sage (Salvia sclarea). This natural astringent is not only used to treat oily hair and skin, but is also said to be useful in regulating the menstrual cycle, improving mood, and controlling high blood pressure. Clary sage should not be used by pregnant women.


Tea tree (Melaleuca alternifolia). Has bactericidal, virucidal, fungicidal, and anti-inflammatory properties that make it a good choice for fighting infection. Recommended for treating sore throat and respiratory infections, vaginal and bladder infections, wounds, and a variety of skin conditions.


Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). Stimulating essential oil used to treat muscular and rheumatic complaints, as well as low blood pressure, gastrointestinal problems, and headaches.


Ylang ylang (Cananga odorata). A sedative essential oil sometimes used to treat hypertension and tachycardia. It is also valuable in stressful situations in helping to deal with irritation, impatience or anxiety. It has a calming and nurturing effect on the heart. A sedative essential oil sometimes used to treat hypertension and tachycardia.


These are just a few of the many popular essential oils used in aromatherapy massage. Combined with massage, aromatherapy provides still another dimension of emotional and physical healing to the treatment. A simple and subtle,yet profound addition to any massage therapy session.


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A Simple Foot Massage Will Do, Try It

You Don't Need to have a Foot Fetish to Enjoy a Foot Massage!

You don't need to have a foot fetish to enjoy giving or getting a great foot massage! You'll be surprised how incredibly relaxing it can be.

Many people are concerned they'll be too ticklish to enjoy a foot massage. You use a firmer pressure than you would when being tickled, so that you don't have that same sensation.

You have over 5,000 nerve endings in your feet!

If you're going to a spa or massage therapist the proper name for a foot massage is "Reflexology". You can even buy Reflexology Socks for use at home, which will help you see where each point connects with!

Reflexology is more about pressure points, where as a foot massage will be more about stroking the foot and kneading it with your hands.

Start by having your partner soak their feet in a warm water bath. Both of you will feel more comfortable if the other person's feet are fresh and clean.

I find that having a person sit in a chair, while I'm seated on the floor or a pillow, puts me at a comfortable position.

Take the foot into your hands, applying enough pressure that the person isn't ticklish.

You can stroke the foot from the base of the ankle across the top of the foot, while supporting the foot with your other hand.

I like to hold the heel in the cup of my hand for support. If the foot is resting, you can use both hands in a sliding, kneading and stroking motion on the top of the foot.

I like to place my hands then underneath the foot, with my thumbs upon the top of the foot, and slide my thumbs down the top with enough pressure.I will also use circular motions with my thumbs on top of the foot.

If the foot is cupped in your hand at the heel, turn your hand around, and massage the heel as well.

Take each toe and gently pull on it, and stroke around and between each toe. I like to also extend the massage up onto the calf area as well. A nice firm pressure will be soothing to your partner.

If your partner has high blood pressure or Diabetes, check with your doctor first before doing a foot massage. This foot massage is not medical advice, and if you have any concerns or questions, you should also seek the advice of a professional.

Tag : massage,massage spa,foot massage,oil massage,massage therapy

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Massage – A Perfect Medication without Any Side-effect

Massage is a perfect medication for good health. As a healing tool it has a prominent place in medical treatment. The term is supposed to derive from the French massage "friction of kneading," or from Arabic ‘massa’ meaning "to touch, feel or handle" or from Latin ‘massa’ meaning "mass, dough".


This is popular for around thousands of years in many cultures. It refers to carry out of soft tissue treatment with bodily, useful, and in some cases psychological purposes and goals. There are so many healers who have autonomously built up an ample variety of therapeutic techniques using touch. We still use them today. This is benevolent for people for variety of disease starting from treating chronic diseases and injuries to lessening the mounting anxieties of our modern lifestyles. It contributes more than just relax your body and mind. There are explicit physiological and mental changes which take place, even more so when it is utilized as a defensive, frequent therapy and not simply mere luxury. It not only feels good, but it can cure what makes you sick.


Advantages of Massage

It is a helpful medicine without any side effects. It offers a drug-free, non-invasive and humanistic approach based on the body's natural ability to heal itself. We can briefly summarize the benefits of receiving regular massage and/or bodywork treatments in the following way.


 Massage offers exercise and stretching for cadaverous muscles and shrinks limitation of the muscles for those with restricted range of motion.


 It contributes to diminish recovery time, helps organize for strenuous workouts and abolishes successive pains of the athlete at any level.


 It adds to circulation; letting the body to propel more oxygen and nutrients into tissues and vital organs.


 It helps to stir up the flow of lymph, the body's natural defense system, against toxic invaders. In case of breast cancer patients, it has been revealed to enhance the cancer fighting cells.


 It amplifies circulation of blood and lymph systems improve the condition of the body's largest organ - the skin. It relaxes and softens injured and overused muscles. Reduces spasms and cramping.


 Assists with shorter labor for expectant mothers, as well as less need for medication, less depression and anxiety, and shorter hospital stays.


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Panasonic Massage Chairs

Panasonic provides a full line of massage chairs. There are two basic levels of massage chairs offered by Panasonic. On the high end of the line, they offer the Real Pro Ultra line. This consists of their model numbers EP-30003 to EP-30007. They also offer on the entry level side the new Urban Collection. This consists of a variety of more contemporary style massage chairs. These two lines are offered by Panasonic.

The Swede-Atsu New Urban Collection is the newest introduction from the company. They have redesigned these loungers to be much more stylish and contemporary. They offer sleeker designs with curved armrest and different accents in the chair. These loungers come in leather and some models have a separate leg ottoman.

The EP-1082 offers an air compression massage with eight airbags. It comes with the separate leg ottoman and has the Swede-Atsu massage roller mechanism. There are eight basic massage modes included in this lounger. This chair also offers the new chiropractic style massage techniques. This is to help with better muscle relaxation in helps promote better posture.

Another model in the new Urban Collection is the EP-1285. This model is similar to the EP 1082, with the exception of the attached leg rest. This massage chair has the built-in leg ottoman. The number of airbags and the EP 1285 is 14. This provides better coverage for compression massage for your legs.

Both the EP 1082 and the EP 1285 have Swede-Atsu floating massage mechanism. This is interesting new technology from Panasonic. This floating massage mechanism performs various massage actions. It stimulates the movements of the wrist. It is able to rotate to replicate a lifelike massage.

The air ottoman system which is separate for the EP1082 is the first and a separate unit. This separate unit contains eight airbags. It provides a compression massage for the legs and feet. He airbags are specially designed to provide a kneading in loosening of the shins and calf muscles. This helps to promote better circulation and provides a more contoured massage for the lower body.

The high end line for Panasonic is the Real Pro Ultra. The Real Pro Ultra line is the successor to the real Pro elite line. This line starts with the model EP 30003. This model has all the main features of the ones above it. As you progress up the line to the EP 30007, slight changes are made to the massage chair.

The Real Pro Ultra EP 30003 comes with a new quad style roller mechanism. This specially designed roller follows the contour of your spine. These massage heads will actually open and close which allows for some additional massage movements. It has the grasping and just motions for additional soothing relief.

The Real Pro Ultra line comes with three the body scan technology. The roller mechanism will scan up and down your back. It then creates a three-dimensional virtual map of your back. It locates the top of your shoulders and will adjust the program to follow the curve of your spine. This provides a much more tailored massage.

The model EP 30004 comes with an arm massage. This is an air compression type massage utilizing airbags. The armrest has a cover which can be opened. The arm and hand is placed inside. This enables the airbags to provide a gentle squeezing and compression massage to the hands and arms.

The Real Pro Ultra line also consists of models 30005, 30006 and 30007. These models come with a more penetrating roller mechanism called ultra deep. The shoulder and hip airbags for the EP -- 30005 have been removed compared to the 30006 and 30007. The only difference between the EP 30006 and the EP 30007 is that the 30007 is made in Japan. This is the lineup for Panasonic's high in massage chair line the Real Pro Ultra.

Looking for a Panasonic Massage Chair? We have a full selection of massage recliners to choose from. Panasonic Massage Chairs are known for their advanced technology and many manual massage techniques. Panasonic has been building massage chairs for over 25 years.

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Orthopedic Massage Therapy - What Are the Benefits

Orthopedic massage therapy can be referred to as a type of massage therapy that mixes various types of massages techniques; both sports and medical forms. Orthopedic massage therapy is usually given to a patient with pain in soft tissue or injuries. This therapy ensures relief of pain during injury. It also works towards promoting fast healing.

The Orthopedic massage therapy consists of three primary elements, irrespective of the medical treatment or injury involved. The elements include the following:
a) Assessing of injury
b) Matching the injury treatment
c) Adapting the treatment as required

All the three above mentioned points are very important as the therapy is different from other types of massage therapies in the way that it focuses basically on understanding the injury and the treatment it requires to heal up the injury.

Here are some of the primary benefits you can enjoy via going in for a Orthopedic massage therapy:

a) Benefit one - Enhanced blood circulation:
The therapy helps in increasing blood circulation and this is a great way to heal an injury.
b) Benefit two - Minimizes pain:
The massage can work wonders when it comes to reducing pain from the injury.
c) Benefit three - Provide relax:
The therapy is powerful enough to provide you immense relaxation to the muscles adjacent to the injured area.
d) Benefit four - Strength:
The therapy is very helpful in providing good amount of strength to the body muscles that have been weakened due to the injury.
e) Benefit five - Realignment of tissues:
The therapy is known to be really powerful when it comes to realigning damaged and dislocated tissues. This helps in preventing further damage or injury.
f) Benefit six - Releases adhesions:
This is known to be a scar tissue that can form due to an injury and tend to stick itself to adjacent muscles or other tissues.
g) Benefit seven - Minimizes tension:
The therapy is extremely beneficial when it comes to minimizing tension in case of sprains and other injuries.
h) Benefit eight - Performance enhancement:
The therapy is the top choice for athletes to enhance overall sports performance.
i) Benefit nine - Stress reduction:
We experience a lot of stress in our daily lives. The massage therapy is a boon to all those who want to get rid of daily life stress in body.
j) Benefit ten - Rejuvenates body:
Our body needs to get rejuvenated once in a while after all the stress, tension, hard work and other problems we face in our daily life. Hence, this therapy is recommended even if there is no injury in the body.

These days, several spas offer these services for a reasonable price. You can easily find an orthopedic massage therapy center near your area online or offline. All you require to do is to make some research and take time to analyze the services provided at a specific center.

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A Massage Chair For Every Pain, Stress Or Tension

A massage chair comes in various shapes and sizes. And while each may be designed to perform the same basic function, to assist in making our bodies more relaxed and free from tension, they actually help to get this done by quite different means. If you are like most people with tension or tightness in your muscles, it doesn't matter what the means are, you just want relief. A massage chair can help. Lets take a closer look at three types of chairs.

The first type of massage chair is used by a massage therapist when a full table isn't needed or practical. They look like you have to be a contortionist to get into them. They actually remind me of a praying mantis the way the cushions are designed to be minimal but adequate, as they perch on a sprawled out leggy-looking frame. The design of this type of massage chair is actually pretty ingenious. It allows the therapist to position their client in the way best needed to get at those tight spots. The body is an amazing work of art, a mechanical wonder really. With a chair like this, the therapist can position the body just right for the most effective massage. There is a cushion for nearly every part of the body. Arms, knees, face, seat and chest. If you are lucky enough to have a therapist work you over while in one of these chairs you'll see just how nifty they really are.

The second type of massage chair is what I think of as a 'wanna be', or at least certainly a cheap version of a more deluxe chair. This chair is relatively inexpensive and doesn't have all the bells and whistles that the more deluxe models have. However, for the money they can still be pretty effective for general purpose massages. They can be found at most home supply stores, and in big box discount stores. These have kneading mechanisms that try to replicate the human touch. Some do it well enough to feel okay, but aren't really all that great. They usually just don't apply enough pressure to do the job. Still, they are relaxing and can be easily moved to whatever location in your home or office that works best. They typically recline and have options for massage speeds and vibration patterns.

The third massage chair type is the real thing. These can cost hundreds, even thousands of dollars and provide the maximum satisfaction and benefit to the user. Think luxury and relaxation. With these high end chairs you position the body into the chair so that the feet, legs, buttocks, back, arms, nape of your neck all receive the much needed attention they require. Life is full of stress and pains, and these chairs can be set to vibrate, kneed, roll, and even grip and release the different parts of the body. All of this attention to the muscles helps improve blood circulation and helps the body heal itself by enlivening the natural immune system. I can't give you the chemical processes involved, but I can tell you that whenever I've experienced a few moments of bliss in this sorts of massage chair I feel like I've died and gone to heaven.

A massage chair can be simple, complex or just functional. If you have tension, pain or stress in your body, a massage chair, of any sort, can help in delightful ways.

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Massage Neck and Shoulder Pain Away in a Few Minutes

All of us suffer from neck and shoulder pain from time to time. No matter what the cause, sleeping in a bad position, cricking with a sudden movement, general stress or sitting in front of a computer for too long, it can be very distracting and if it does not get better, downright painful. It doesn't have to be that way and I am going to give you three massage tips you can carry out on yourself to relieve these pains in a few minutes.

The first concerns neck pain involving those long muscles that run up either side of your neck from behind your jaw bone up behind your ear until it finally disappears into a narrow vee of bone in your skull. That final point is almost level with the top of your ear. Run your thumb slowly up that muscle until you are able to pinpoint it exactly. When stressed, this muscle is tender all of its length, in which case you can slowly move your thumb along it with a screwing motion and pressure to suit, to relieve the pain. Very often it is most tender right at the very top of the vee. If this is so, you can press your thumb into it as hard as you dare, pushing into it, and hold the pressure for say thirty seconds or so and then release really really slowly, just as slowly as you can. Repeat several times or as many as you wish.

The muscle will of course remain tender for a time, but you will find you can move your neck more easily and you will get relief from the pain.

Now, moving to your shoulders, once again, those long muscles running up behind each of your shoulder blades can be really annoying when sore. You can get relief by doing the following. Lean forward in a sitting position at your desk placing both of your elbows on the surface. Flop your hand over the shoulder where the pain is. For example, if the pain is in your right shoulder use your left hand, leaning on your right arm, and if in the left shoulder use your right hand leaning on your left arm. Feel right down the muscle as far as you can reach and dig around with your finger tips until you find it exactly. You will surprise yourself as to just how far down you can reach. Using the soft pads of you fingers commence massaging in a circular motion. Work your way slowly up the muscle all the way to the top or where the pain runs out. Repeat as many times as you wish or you feel some relief.

This practice is probably not as good as getting a professional massage, but it is something you can do on your own and in a few minutes only, that will give you relief until you can get treatment or it subsides of its own accord.

The third technique is the real killer, to do with the shoulders and is more proactive as you can practice it anytime, anywhere. If you get in to the habit of doing it regularly you will find that many of the shoulder muscle pains previously experienced will disappear completely, be much moderated and occur with much less frequency, if at all. So it is worth learning.

To begin, in a sitting position, with your hands in your lap, grasp one wrist with the other hand. With your eyes closed and looking straight ahead as if you were looking at your own back, imagine a horizontal line between your shoulder blades with arrows at each end thrusting outward as if they are spreading the shoulder blades. This is what you need to achieve, spreading your shoulder blades outward. Push your elbows forward slightly and begin to work the muscles high up in your back in an outward spreading motion.

This will feel quite strange to begin with as nothing seems to work. You will jiggle your shoulders and roll them around to no effect. Keep your shoulders absolutely still. You will need to persist over and over and work those muscles in all sorts of directions until you click on the right one. When you find the right combination you will suddenly find that you can push those muscles outward along that imaginary line quite easily and with quite an amount of pressure. This opens up your whole shoulder blade area and with practice and in time you will find that upper back muscle pain will pretty much, if not completely, disappear.

I mentioned earlier that this is a proactive technique in that if you practice regularly it will keep that area of your back in a more relaxed and healthier state so that you will prevent muscular pain rather than fixing it once it arrives.

Once you have mastered the technique you can practice anywhere. For example, standing with hands clasped in front of you, hands in your pockets, grasping a horizontal bar, both hands on the top of your steering wheel when driving, sitting anywhere, the list is endless.

The key to all this is to keep your muscles relaxed and happy and the beauty of these three techniques is that you can do them all yourself. You can do them in a few minutes, you do not need to go to a professional and if you work on them in a pro-active way they will go a long way toward keeping your shoulders and neck in a relaxed and healthy state so that pain in those areas will be largely pre-empted. Much of your earlier muscle pain will disappear and if your muscles are relaxed and happy, then so will you be.

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How to Learn About Tantric Massage

If you have heard about tantra massage before then you know that is one of best ways to relax at the end of a long and hard day. Even tough this massage does not include any sex it is a very sensual ritual between two people. If this is something that you would like to learn more about then there are several things you can do such as reading books that will teach you about this delicate subject and you can also read other books that will explain how to actually practice it.

When you are performing tantra massage on another person you have to keep in mind that the other person will probably be feeling vulnerable and they have to trust you completely. That is why it is up to you to learn about is as much as you can. Another great resource is the internet of course where you will be able to find all the information you need from what are the benefits of this massage and how to properly give it. Doing some research before is the best thing you can do because it means that you care about the other person and you want them to enjoy it.

Finally when you have learned as much as you possibly can about tantra massage you can try it for the first time with the person you are closest to. You can always learn more about this subject and there are always new techniques you can learn and eventually master. Also if you are in a relationship this will without a doubt bring you closer than you have ever been. This is a great way for couples to try something that is new and exciting and both of you can learn how perform this massage on the other person.

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