Post Massage Self Care

Easy Does it! The first twenty-four hours after your massage is the most important time in your healing process. We usually suggest that you take it easy, don’t get into vigorous exercise. Let your body heal and recover, but don’t just lay around. It’s still essential that you move. During your massage, we are moving metabolic waste (toxins) throughout your system. This consists of dead blood cells, damaged tissue, bacteria, and edema. Your body sends these fluids to your lymph nodes, and then on to your kidneys, before leaving your body through your urine. The only thing that moves lymph fluid is muscular contraction, so it helps to go for a walk, or move your limbs using active Range of Motion.

Drink Water! We are made of water, at least 75 percent of or body consists of water, and if we don’t stay properly hydrated, we are doing a dis-service to ourselves. When you drink water, you are ridding your body of metabolic waste, softening your muscle tissue and skin, and revitalizing your cells.

Stretch! Stretching is probably one of the most important activities you can do. Tight muscles compress joints, damage discs, break down cartilage, causing arthritis, headaches and joint pain. When you receive massage, your muscles are being lengthened, decompressing joints and discs. When your muscles are too tight, you are increasing risk of torn tendons, ligaments and broken bones. If you fall when flexible, you might get away with just a bruise, but when you’re inflexible, you’re more likely to do serious damage. When you’re stretching it’s important to keep in mind that you should stretch lightly, so as to not activate the stretch reflex. The stretch reflex happens If you stretch too deep, bounce, or hold a stretch too long, you will shorten the tissue you are trying to lengthen. So, stretch with a pretty please, not an exclamation point.

Ice. Massage can cause tenderness and sometimes bruising. This is because when you receive massage, we are forcing fluids from muscle tissue, usually these fluids enter what’s called the interstitial space that flows into the lymph system, but sometimes these fluids move toward the surface of the skin causing bruising. When we ice, if done properly, we are creating a pump, that pushes these fluids into your lymph system and sending your blood to your internal organs to warm your body. This reduces inflammation, reducing pain in return because ice is an analgesic (causes numbness). When Icing, I suggest putting the ice pack directly on your skin while paying attention to the sensations you feel. You should feel three things: Cold, pain, numbness. When you first put ice on your skin, your nervous system detects the cold and sends blood to the area to reduce potential tissue damage to the tissue by warming the area (this rush of blood can cause pain or burning). When the cold persists, your circulatory system then sends your blood to your internal organs to reduce the possibility of hypothermia (this causes numbness). At this point you should remove the ice, allowing your circulatory system to slowly send a fresh blood supply back to the area. This process usually last 10-12 minutes.