Massage To Soothe PMT And Period Pain

Premenstrual Tension and period pain are not really ailments that can be cured. They are just things women have learned to live with, particularly as the symptoms recur every month, regular as clockwork. If you are unlucky enough to suffer from either complaint, then you know how easily they can turn you from a pussycat into a tiger.

They affect your mind, so you can burst into tears, be irrational, irritable, depressed, and lethargic or crave sweet foods all in the same day. They make your body bloated and spotty, with back ache or cramps that feel as if you are wearing an iron girdle. Unfortunately, massage does not wipe away all of these symptoms. It can certainly make you feel better, feel pampered and feel more like a pussycat again. It can also reduce the bloated feeling of your swollen abdomen and soothe cramps and the nagging lower back ache that seems to drag you down all day.

As everything from the waist down seems to feel tender during a bad period, the strokes in this massage are all gentle, light and soothing. If you feel you need a firmer touch, particularly for the lower back pain, try the massage specifically for that. Or if it is a month when you have little discomfort but feel very, very bloated, try the anti-cellulite massage instead.

How To Soothe PMT And Period Pain
It is important to soothe the mind as much as the body, so this is a good massage to have while playing your favorite music and lying in a dimly lit room with the door locked to keep away the world (which includes children or pets!). If it makes you feel better, have a box of chocolates close to hand. Use plenty of oil so your hands slip easily as this is not meant to be a deep or firm massage. The lighter the strokes, the more soothing they feel and do as many repeats as possible.

1. Steps one to five are done with the person being massaged lying face down. Place your hands, palms down, on either side of the spine near the tailbone, 5 cm (2 inches) away from it. Push your hands up and fan them smoothly out to the sides at the waist, then pull them down the torso and across the buttocks to the start position. Repeat for several minutes, using this stroke to pull and push flesh up, round and down.

2. Place hands, palms down, on either side of the top of the waist. Using the heels of your hands and the little fingers, press firmly in as you slide your hands down to the hips, then draw them into either side of the spine. Slide your hands up the middle of the back, still using the heels and little fingers for the stroke, then fan them out to the top of the waist. Repeat for several minutes.

3. Place the palm of your right hand over the tailbone (sacrum) and use pressure from the heel of the hand to stroke around in circles. Then place the heels of your hands on either side of the tailbone and slowly push up the length of the spine to the waist, then lightly glide your hands back down. Repeat the entire stroke for several minutes.

4. Using your thumbs only, make small circles to knead all the way up the lower back. Start with them 5 cm (2 inches) out from either side of the tailbone and slowly work up the spine to the waist. Repeat several times. Then place your hands, palms down, under each hip and pull the flesh up with your fingers into the middle of the lower back. Repeat as a smooth, flowing stroke.

5. Knead one side of the torso, from the top of the thigh up to the waist. Use the thumb and fingers of both hands to pinch, twist and squeeze the flesh, with your hands working in unison. Repeat on the other side of the torso. Then, repeat the same kneading stroke across the top of the buttocks and up the middle of the lower back to the waistline.

6. The person being massaged should turn so that she is lying face up. Place your left hand over her solar plexus at the base of the ribs, and leave it there throughout the stroke. Place your right hand, palm down, above the navel and make large clockwise circles down one side, across the groin and up to the start position. Keep the stroke light, gentle and rhythmic for several minutes.

7. Place both hands, palms down, over the solar plexus at the base of the ribs, with your fingers pointing upwards. Slowly fan your hands out to the sides, slide them firmly down the waist, sweep them round under the navel them gently slide them up the tummy to the start. Repeat for several minutes, keeping the stroke smooth and flowing throughout.

8. Place your hands, palms down, on one side of the waist, with your fingers tucked well under the back. With one hand following the other, firmly pull the flesh up towards the navel, working from the top of the thigh to the top of the waist. Then gently bend the knees of the person being massaged up to her chest, with your hands pressing down at the top of her shins. Hold for a count of ten, relax and repeat.