The Miracle of Massage

At Home With Massage
Touch is so powerful that it can soothe the mind almost as much as the body. The bonus of being able to massage your partner, family or friends at home is that you can treat many of the things for which doctors can only prescribe pills. These include depression, irritability, tension, tiredness, insomnia, stress and bad moods.

Another bonus of doing it in the privacy of your own home is that many people who are too shy or too uncomfortable to have a massage with a stranger, find that they can lie back, relax and enjoy it when it is done by a friend. Not only that, but people of all ages can benefit - babies will fall asleep during the massage, and grandparents will be fitter for life after the massage. It is easy to learn massage at home. You might not have been taught at school, but the good news is that, unlike mathematics or French, it is easier to pick up at a later stage in life. This is because the first rule of massage is feel rather than think - and as long as it feels good, you are doing it right.

How To Massage
This site has been designed so that you quickly master all the basic tips, tricks and techniques for different massages. Learn the simple hand movements, read the rules of when not to massage, study the routine for the chosen ailment and, from then on, improvise. The main thing is that you must enjoy massage. If you try to balance the book in one hand and turn the pages with oily fingers it will not be much fun. Instead, prop the book up, open on the right page, to remind you of the steps as you go along. Do not be frightened to use the basic strokes, but add your own special touches. Even if you follow one of the routines exactly, repeat the strokes that seem to give the most pleasure - you will soon learn which these are because your 'patient' will grunt, sigh, moan or fall asleep!

Doing the same stroke over and over again is one of the secrets of a really good massage. You do not need to do hundreds of clever thumb contortions to make someone feel good. You can even use the same single, rubbing movement throughout a 30 minute massage and make it feel very different just by varying the amount of downward pressure, speed and rhythm, changing direction or making long or short strokes. The more you experiment and follow your instincts, the more you and the person you are massaging will enjoy it.

As a general rule, soft and slow strokes are soothing, while firm and brisk ones are invigorating. So you instantly have the power to relax or energize someone just by altering the speed of a massage. You can do different strokes one after the other in any order, as long as you keep the same rhythm going during the changeover.

Lying In Comfort
The best position to do any massage is the most comfortable one. You need a firm, flat surface: a futon, a 5-8 cm (2-3 inch) thick foam squab placed on the floor or on a table top, or a bed big enough for you to kneel or sit on. If the person you are massaging is lying on his back, a folded towel or pillow behind the nape of the neck and under the knees will relax the body, especially if he has sore muscles, a bad back or aching legs. If he is lying on his tummy, a rolled towel under the collar bone will help relax the neck.

You should wear loose, comfortable clothing and, as you are the one who is doing all the exercise, something short-sleeved is best or you will get too hot. The room needs to be very warm, as the body temperature will drop once skin is exposed; it helps if it is dimly lit and quiet. You will find that some people want to doze off during a massage, and others unburden themselves by talking non-stop as they start to relax - either way, you should follow their lead.