What Is a Medical Massage?

 Alternative medical treatments are becoming popular among patients who are no longer satisfied with pills and other medical procedures. Luckily for those in need of treatment, medical options are expanding. One way that is happening is through the implementation of medical massage therapy.

But what is a medical massage? In simple terms, a medical massage is an option that might be helpful in your health recovery journey. Curious to learn more about types of medical massage and its benefits? Keep reading!

A medical massage is a standard medical treatment for various medical conditions. A medical massage is an alternative form of healing. It is an outcome-based treatment that allows the masseuse to create personalized sessions to achieve a specific goal.

To better understand its purpose, let’s go through a comparison between traditional and medical massage.

Confusing a medical massage with a traditional one is quite usual for many people. Well, at its core, a Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) applies pressure to your body in both scenarios. The main difference, however, lies in two factors. With that being said, let’s take a detailed look at each of them.

MEDICAL MASSAGE is based on results. A medical massage concentrates on a medical necessity in addition to stress reduction and relaxation. It’s frequently used to address different health issues, manage pain, lower inflammation, boost circulation, alleviate nerve compression, enhance flexibility, and promote digestion. On the other hand, traditional massage mainly focuses on relaxation and stress reduction without expanding into other medical areas for possible treatment.

How your session is organized depending on your unique needs is another way the two kinds of massage differ. Think about how a professional runner could seek a medical massage to manage a challenging injury throughout the year. On the other hand, whiplash can cause someone who has been in a vehicle accident to have entirely different demands.

Because of these variations, medical LMT's need to approach your visits keeping in mind your particular demands. Even though a traditional spa LMT has received education in the art of massage, medical massage specialists have extra education and training, which enables them to offer sophisticated care for your health.

Massage therapy is increasingly regarded as an effective treatment for chronic pain and other health issues. In addition to providing comfort, a medical massage offers relaxation and has little-to-no adverse side effects. Now that you know that getting a massage is more than a good experience, you must be curious about its specific benefits. So, let’s name some conditions that medical massage can treat:

• Strained muscles
• Sciatica
• Carpal tunnel syndrome
• Headaches
• Tendonitis

Clients can benefit greatly from a variety of medical massage treatment techniques. Some massage techniques frequently used and suggested for patients who choose medical massage to reduce their symptoms are briefly described below.

Swedish massage is one of the most popular therapeutic techniques used in the medical massage industry. Massage therapists use gentle to medium pressure on their clients’ muscles, ligaments, and tendons. Applying this much pressure while using lengthy gliding strokes is a great technique to promote blood flow and circulation.

Myofascial therapy is frequently used to treat myofascial pain syndrome. This chronic condition is caused by sensitivity and tension in your myofascial tissues. All of the muscles in your body are surrounded and supported by these tissues. The “trigger points” in your myofascial tissues are typically where the pain first appears. During a session, your LMT massages the myofascial to target stiff or tightened areas.

Other medical massage techniques include:

• Neuromuscular Therapy & Deep Tissue
• Lymphatic Drainage
• Prenatal & Maternity Massage
• Reflexology

Massage treatments are no longer limited to spa days and weekend getaways. They can become an important part of your routine, especially if you suffer from various medical conditions. Medical massage is advantageous in a lot of different ways. It treats your entire body, mind, and soul.

Several advantages of medical massage are listed below:

• Helps reduce inflammation and pain;
• Deactivates myofascial trigger points;
• Helps with digestion;
• Calms the nervous system;
• Improves posture;
• Helps in preventing future chronic pain conditions;
• Improves flexibility and range of motion;
• Releases sore and tense muscles, etc.