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Wednesday, June 3, 2009

Massage Chairs For Chronic Pain

By Claudine Balsells

Massage therapy is a treatment that has been used to treat sore muscles and to help the body relax. As the massage penetrates the muscles it helps to relax the mind as well. Massage therapy is used to help those with chronic also. New research studies are showing the many benefits of massage therapy. Various treatments have helped many patients with chronic conditions such as migraine headaches and chronic pain and the lumbar spine region.

One interesting study was performed by the Puget Sound Center for health studies in 2001. This study found that massage therapy provided greater pain relief to patients than either acupuncture or self-care. This study reported that even after one year that massage therapy for back pain provided more benefits than acupuncture and self-care.

Chronic pain has two main impacts on the patient. One is dealing with the constant pain felt throughout the body. The other is dealing with the psychological impact of constantly having pain. Massage therapy has been shown to reduce one's stress by relaxing the mind as it sues your aches and pains.

Chronic pain is typically associated with arthritis, migraine headaches, sciatica and fibromyalgia. Many of these conditions can affect the soft tissues of the body. This includes the joints, ligaments, tendons and muscles. Many of these soft tissues become stiff and fatigued. Massage is known to soothe these muscles to help them regain their flexibility.

When you suffer from chronic pain, you may also have increased stress. Stress produces a reaction in the body that releases adrenaline. The adrenaline serves to give the body energy to protect itself. Under sustained stress, the energy starts to fatigue the muscles.

Massage chairs are designed to provide therapeutic benefits. A remote control is built into the massage chair. The remote control allows the user to set automatic programs or manual programs. Massage chairs come equipped with a multitude of massage techniques. Sophisticated software programs replicate many traditional and popular massage techniques.

Massage chairs are designed with additional therapeutic treatments. The application of heat is popular in sports to reduce swelling and to help blood circulation. Designers of massage chairs have included heating elements which can be applied to particular muscle areas.

Traction systems are being added into massage chairs as well. Traction is a way of pulling or stretching the muscles and soft tissues of joints. Massage chairs have lower body stretching systems which can stretch the body from the hips down to the ankles. This type of stretching can be very therapeutic for the lower body.

Massage chairs are being designed to provide a total relaxing environment for the user. Massage chairs come with MP3 players and headphones so the user can listen to relaxing music. Music helps the mind to relax and remain quiet. This helps the body and muscles to relax and release their attention. If the mind is unable to relax then the muscles remain stiff and the massage is less effective.

Many new technologies continue to be integrated into massage chairs to provide therapeutic benefits to the users. This is an excellent trend as these features can help provide effective relief. Suffering from chronic pain is a tough situation. Massage chair therapy on a periodic basis helps to keep those symptoms in check. - 17273

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