Massage Terminology

Massage therapists have many different techniques and skills that they may apply to help you to get the most out of your massage therapy sessions. Massage therapy is practiced worldwide and there are many different types of massage that you may receive in order to benefit your health. In order to know exactly what is the most helpful for you to undergo in terms of massage therapy, you should do your best to familiarize yourself with some of the basic terminology associated with the practice. In this article, we’ll give you a brief overview of some terms that you may want to learn so that you can have the best possible line of communication with your massage therapist.

On-site massage: This is one type of massage that many people choose to undergo. This type of massage is usually performed in a specialized massage chair that is brought on location to wherever you need to receive your massage. These massages are very informal, and usually performed while the patient is fully clothed. A typical on-site massage can be expected to last between fifteen to thirty minutes, and is not usually performed in order to treat injuries. Instead, on-site massages can provide benefits such as stress relief and relaxation.

Petrissage – there are many different terms which work to describe some of the different strokes that a massage therapist uses in order to benefit their patients. Petrissage is one such stroke, and it consists of kneading motions that are commonly used in types of massage such as the traditional Swedish massage that many massage therapists base their programs off of.

Tapotement – this is another type of massage technique that many massage therapists incorporate in their programs. The tapotement technique involves the massage therapist cupping their hands and lightly tapping on the muscles that are being massaged.

Effleurage – yet another type of massage stroke, effleurage is a part of the Swedish massage, like the petrissage technique. The effleurage technique incorporates smooth strokes of the hand which glide across the muscles, and it is helpful when it comes to relaxing soft tissues that may have been manipulated via a different type of technique.

Trigger point therapy – this is a type of massage that is vastly different from most others. In trigger point therapy, individuals can receive relief from pain in their muscles by the massage therapist working on ‘trigger points’, super-sensitive points within muscles that may cause pain to occur in other parts of the body. Problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome may receive benefit from a trigger point therapy session.

These are just a few terms which can help to give you a basic idea of some of the techniques and terminologies that are associated with the practice of massage therapy. Be sure that you have an in-depth discussion with your massage therapist so that you can become more familiarized with what they will do to benefit your health. The more that you know, the better suited you’ll be for receiving the most benefits from your massage therapy treatment!

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