Jan 10
6
Is a Massage Just a Massage, or can it be so much more?
Darren Hutchison, RMT
Or felt a pain somewhere that you don’t ever remember hurting? Have you felt an urge or compulsion to move in a certain direction, but maybe thought it was only in your head?
Our body is constantly sending us messages, or clues to guide us along the path. Are you too busy to hear them?
Only you have the answer to the question, “What is my body telling me and what does that mean?”
I’ll often have clients say something like, “I feel like I’m carrying the world on my shoulders,” and as I’m massaging them I can feel their entire stress load in their shoulder.
Another client may say, “I don’t know what direction to take my life,” and I’ll notice that their legs and hips are restless, tired and overused.
We all carry a certain level of tension and stress in our body. Life is filled with both good and bad stress, but what are those constant messages our body is sending and we are not receiving?
Our bodies are constantly communicating and reaching out to us with messages that sometimes we don’t hear, but can feel through our body.
When we feel out of touch, Massage can be a connector for your body. It could be as simple as helping the feet reconnect to the legs, hips, heart and shoulders so that they function as one.
Massage connects the flow of energy of the body systems, eliminating blockages along the nervous, muscular and energetic pathways of the body, bringing us into a more grounded, body awareness state.
Not only does it connect the energy, but it helps reconnect our body and help us feel more complete and whole.
When we feel a strange disconnect with our body, it’s like we’re walking in a fog; not knowing where our feet are moving or what our arm is grabbing… or where our conscious and unconscious thoughts are taking us. We’re not in the driver’s seat.
Have you ever noticed how clumsy and unaware we can be in this state?
Using massage on a regular basis can help reconnect and energize the body, lifting the fog, bringing us into a whole new state of body awareness and moving us closer to our authentic self.
I often have clients with back pain ask why I work on their legs if the pain is in their back. Sometimes the symptoms are what we are treating, while we’re missing the cause. Our whole body is connected and the stress and tension in one area may be affecting another.
A whole-body massage approach keeps us connected in body, mind and spirit and helps us decipher the messages our body is sending out and what they may mean for us. The key is to stay connected and stop long enough to listen to what our body is saying to us.
Through our body awareness we’ll be given our next step along the pathway, bringing us closer to our authentic self.
Darren Hutchison
Registered Massage Therapist
Soul Vitality
Lethbridge, Alberta