Massage
In massage therapy, a masseuse rubs and kneads the soft tissues of your body. The soft tissues include muscle, connective tissue, tendons, ligaments and skin. The massage therapist varies the amount of pressure and movement.​ There are plenty of reasons you might opt to get a massage for some much-needed relaxation.
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While massages are certainly relaxing and stress-relieving, these benefits may just be the beginning.​
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Studies have shown that it can:
Help reduce stress
Lessen pain and muscle tightness
Increase relaxation
Improve the work of the immune system
Hormones can have a significant impact on your stress levels, and massage therapy may be able to reduce the negative impacts and increase the positive ones. For instance, the stress hormone cortisol has been shown to drop more than 30 percent with massage therapy — and feel-good hormones, such as dopamine and serotonin, have been shown to increase by the same amount.
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