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Self-Massage
Massage is a great way to lift your spirits and restore physical comfort, and you don’t even have to spend thousands of dollars at a spa to feel good. Your own two hands are all you need to begin relieving headaches, muscle pain, insomnia, tension, and stress.
Why Self-Massage Works
Studies have shown that rubbing the soft tissues of the body offers a wide array of health benefits, from relaxing muscles to improving circulation to easing digestion. Massage can
directly relieve the physical symptoms of stress and improve
your emotional state as well.
How to Massage Your Hands
In contemporary society, people are carrying more and more stress in their hands because of computer and PDA use and other repeated actions that cause cumulative tension in the hands and fingers. Relax your hands with the following steps:
- Use one hand to stroke the back of the other hand firmly, pushing toward the wrist and back again gently.
- Squeeze the whole hand between the palm and fingers of the other hand.
- Squeeze each finger and massage each joint with the circular motion of your thumb.
- Grasp each finger at the end near your wrist and pull it gently to stretch it, sliding your grip up the finger and off the tip.
- Use your thumb to massage between the tendons on the back of the hand.
- Upturn your hand, supporting the back with your fingers, and make firm, circular strokes all over the palm and around the wrist.
- Rest a hand in your lap and push with the heel of the other hand, stroking the palm of your hand back and forth.
- Repeat for the other hand.
How to Massage Your Neck and Shoulders
- Use one hand to massage the opposite shoulder, molding the hand to the contours of the neck and shoulder.
- Firmly drag the hand downward from the base of the skull, down the neck, and over the shoulder.
- Move your fingers in circular motions down both sides of your spine and around the base of your skull.
- Knead each shoulder, squeezing and releasing.
For more on massage techniques and supplies, see the Quamut guide to Massage.
| Acknowledgments & Disclaimer |
