Reduce Anxiety and Boost Immunity with Massage Therapy
Treating yourself to massage therapy can feel like a special event, something that happens only on birthdays or anniversaries. Consider this, going to a day spa is a way to take care of yourself on a regular basis. In our changing times, self-care is more important than ever. Paying attention to your body’s needs is no longer considered a luxury; it’s preventative medicine. Receiving bodywork aids in your overall well-being.
Your Autonomic Nervous System
Stress and anxiety are unavoidable. When you encounter difficult situations, your autonomic nervous system comes to the rescue. This system regulates your internal organs and consists of two parts, the sympathetic and the parasympathetic. Ideally, they work together to maintain balance, also known as homeostasis in your body. One is for survival, the other is for rest.
The sympathetic nervous system kicks in when you’re anxious, stressed, or scared. This response is referred to as fight or flight; your heart rate increases, your blood pressure rises, adrenaline and cortisol flood your system; breathing gets heavy. When the threat or stressors are no longer an issue, your parasympathetic nervous kicks in and helps your body return to a state of relaxation. Digestion returns to normal; blood pressure drops, and all your internal systems rest.
These Relentless Times
When stress is unrelenting and it’s one thing after another, upsetting news on social media, the car breaks down, the kids are at home full-time and driving you crazy, your parents need help, you don’t know where you’re going to find the time to do anything and you just want to scream, part of your reactive state is due to your nervous system being stuck in fight or flight. This state of being also taxes your immune system. You need help.
Taking Care of Yourself is Taking Care of Others!
There’s a Zen quotation, “If you don’t have time to meditate for an hour every day, you should meditate for two hours.” Along those lines, if you don’t take the time to take care of yourself, you won’t be able to take care of anyone else, effectively.
You Can Help Yourself Relax
Studies have shown receiving massage therapy kicks the parasympathetic nervous into action by shutting off the sympathetic system. Once the fight or flight mechanism shuts off, blood circulation is increased, cortisol levels drop, and you’ll find yourself able to respond instead of reacting to the events in your life. You get along better with everyone, especially yourself. We’re here to help bring you back into balance. In Microspa’s next blog post learn about the ways self-care helps your immune system.
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