News: June 2018

How to ease depression with gentle self massage and acupressure

If you are one of the millions of people worldwide who suffer from depression, this video is for you. Self care can be a real challenge when you're depressed. This video makes it easy for you to give yourself some much needed TLC. This self massage was designed to ease depression and alleviate stress and anxiety. Give yourself a mood lift by following along with this simple but effective self massage.

The power of massage for children

An interesting new study showed that massage and storytelling help reduce aggression and increase academic performance in elementary school children. Both massage and storytelling allow children to share a new experience and interact collaboratively. They both also improve self-esteem and decrease anxiety.

One hundred second graders in a public school in Brazil were randomly divided into three groups. One group received 10 massage classes, one had 10 storytelling classes, and the control group received 10 classes on a variety of subjects. The weekly classes lasted 50 minutes.

The children in the massage group were paired up and taught massage techniques to perform on each other. They were then instructed to practice on one another for 10 minutes every school day. In the storytelling group, the teacher read a different book to the class each week. The children were then instructed to retell the story to their partners for 10 minutes every school day. The students in the control group chose a school subject to focus on each week. The teacher taught the class weekly for 50 minutes. The students were paired up and told to summarize the lesson of the week to each other for 10 minutes every school day.

The students in the massage group and the storytelling group showed significantly less aggression and a marked improvement in academic performance as compared to the control group. The study's authors state, "After the intervention period, we found a reduction in the number of types of verbal/physical aggression, meetings ... due to inappropriate behavior, and parental complaints in the [massage] and [storytelling] groups."

To measure academic improvement, exams were given before and after the interventions. The grades in both the massage and storytelling groups improved, but the massage group "had the highest mean grade in the period studied, exceeding the expectation of school."

Source: NCBI

What's new with me ...

As I turn (ahem) years old this month, I feel so fortunate to have a loving and supportive family, a busy massage practice, a best-selling memoir, and a beautiful home in the best city in the world. Thanks to all of my family, friends, clients, readers, and viewers for enriching my life. I've learned so much from you all and I am forever grateful.

As always, I am taking continuing education in massage therapy so that I can grow as a therapist and continue to provide an amazing experience for every client, every time. I am so lucky to be able to do what I love.