Healing and Hypnotherapy Volume 4 Issue - 4, 1 October 2019 | Page 14

Amazon or go to your local health food store and they will probably stock
some.
7. Self-massage
Of all the self-soothing practices listed in this article, the one I enjoy (and do)
the most is self-massage.
When we are stressed our muscles tend to contract as it’s the body’s way of
entering the fight or flight mode. But what happens when anxiety and fear
form the backdrop of your life? The answer is that muscle contraction starts
evolving into deep-seated muscle tension and knots which need to be
massaged out.
Massage helps to loosen your muscles, improve blood circulation, detoxify
the body, and revitalise your energy. Like hugs, massage involves pressured
touch which stimulates happy-hormones in your brain like dopamine and
serotonin.
You don’t need much for self-massage – only really your hands. But I do
recommend getting some kind of tool as it will make the experience much
more enjoyable. I have three different massage tools which I will link to below
and describe what they are for:
•
A Gua Sha Chinese massager for kneading out the knots that
form in my neck sometimes due to stress (this is the exact one I use)
•
A massage ball for deep-muscle massage throughout my entire
body (I heat up the ball and lean against a wall with it) – this is the exact one I
use
•
An electric massager for easy neck and shoulder massage at the
end of the day (this is the one I use)
I’m not necessarily saying that you need all of these tools – this is just what
works for me. But if I was to recommend my favourite, it would be the
massage ball. That little heatable ball has helped me get through some
intensely chaotic and stressful periods in life. If you would like to try it out,
simply put on some calming music, heat your ball, and sit against a wall with
it nestled into your back. Close your eyes and breathe deeply. You can also
try deep-tissue massage with a tennis ball. However, I like how it’s possible to
heat the ball and enjoy the nibs which help separate muscle tissue.
If you are traveling or at work, you can always pop a small massage tool (like
the Gua Sha Chinese massager) in your bag or purse. Alternatively, you can
learn self-massage techniques that only involve your hands – many of which
can be found simply by doing a basic google search.
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