#3- Anxiety and Depression Management: Similar to simple stress reduction, regular massage allows you to feel more relaxed and happy. Women diagnosed with breast cancer who received massage therapy three times a week reported being less depressed and less angry, according to a 2005 study published in the International Journal of Neuroscience.
When you feel anxiety and stress, your brain floods your nervoussystem with hormones and chemicals designed to help you respond to a threat. Those that suffer from high stress on a continued basis often have a harder time recovering, as their body becomes more used to being in a stressed state than in a relaxed one. Massage calms the nervous system, allowing the body to "let go" of the perceived threat, and return to homeostasis.
The next time you feel anxious and/or depressed, notice how your body feels. It may be telling you that it needs some help to relax, and a massage will fix you right up!
Miss the first 3 reasons? Check them out here.
