How to Treat Sleep Deprivation with Massage Therapy

One of the most inconvenient and stressful events we can experience is losing sleep. What’s worse is that it can escalate into chronic insomnia if not properly treated. A type of treatment for insomnia that has been gaining popularity is massage therapy – not only is it a fantastic treat, but it also has the ability to equally alleviate and soothe both the physical and mental symptoms of insomnia. If you are in need of getting your quality of sleep back on track, here’s how to treat sleep deprivation with massage therapy and why it is imperative to implement into your life:

Lowers cortisol levels
Stress is the main catalyst that triggers insomnia since it is caused by numerous reasons, such as personal circumstances, an unfortunate event, or even your field of work. If your profession is a stressful job, for example, it may translate the negative emotions you experience at work into the rest of your life – especially sleep. Massage therapy winds you down from the external factors that stir stressful emotions and reactions because the pressure and kneading techniques used stimulate the production of serotonin and dopamine, which as a result, lowers cortisol and adrenaline levels.

Alleviates uncomfortable muscle tension
You may find yourself tossing and turning in bed or reacting to the discomfort of being unable to fall asleep, which directly results in uncomfortable muscle tension. Regardless of where you experience the most muscle tension, massage therapy can relax the areas that need the most attention, such as the shoulders or neck. Ironically, muscle tension also occurs as a reaction to stress, but massage therapy can combat this natural reflex by loosening the muscle fibers and targeting deep tissues that have become so wound up.

Improves circulation
Lastly, massage therapy improves overall circulation of blood in the body by its rhythmic squeezing and pulling motions. When under levels of high-stress, your body is unable to eliminate toxins and produce the oxygen necessary to flush out lactic acid, which builds up in the muscles during exercise. If not eliminated from the body, you develop muscle fatigue and soreness, which can leave you restless and physically uncomfortable for long periods of time. Evidently, if you improve overall circulation in the body, you reduce the risks of suffering hypertension as well.

Author Bio: Rachel is part of the content marketing team for Happy Head Foot Reflexology & Massage.

Happy Head Massage

Sources:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16162447
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4925170/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3759268/
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/health-and-medicine/circulatory-system-diseases/hypertension/a/what-is-hypertension