Massage bodywork and Sleep Disorders
Sleep disorders occur for a variety of reasons and by their very nature both massage and rhythm mobility body work are holistic, seeking to understand the range of factors which may be causing the symptoms as well as listening carefully to the clients aim in coming for help.
Massage and bodywork both have at their core an overall aim of restoring balance, relaxation and working with the client to find a path to ‘letting go’ of both physical and emotional tensions and therefore are well placed to help restore a natural and healthy sleep rhythm. For example if a child cannot sleep, it is an instinctive response to stroke their head or back or rock them gently back to sleep as touch and rhythm are naturally soothing and relaxing.
We all have a nervous system comprised of two parts; the parasympathetic (rest and repair) and sympathetic (ready for action). Ideally they are in balance. Our sympathetic nervous system is triggered if we are in danger and need to run away or more commonly in our culture when we have to perform in an exam or live up to challenging expectations at work. In this state our body does all it can to switch of the unnecessary functions in the moment i.e. digestion, immune response, and diversion of blood from everyday needs to muscles which need to be ready for ‘fight or flight’. At the same time it makes the body ready for action, heart and breathing rate increase and hormones are released into the bloodstream to reinforce and maintain the action of the sympathetic nerves. This is all great if in fact we do need to run away from danger or need to stay very focused for a short period of time, however it is essential for good health and wellbeing that the sympathetic switches off and allows the parasympathetic to resume.
A key feature of long term low level stress (chronic stress) is that the parasympathetic mode is blocked by a constant level of stress and readiness. When this happens a whole range of our basic and essential bodily functions are put out of balance i.e. heightened blood pressure, shallow breathing, digestive problems, low immune response, tight and tired muscles (held in too much readiness for action which does not come) , initially an inability to sleep and then feelings of constant fatigue and tiredness.
Massage and bodywork can really help to switch off the sympathetic nervous system and stimulate the parasympathetic. Initially it may be that for clients the switch over only lasts as long as the session itself, however regular massage sessions can help clients to move out of a sate of chronic stress by regularly allowing the parasympathetic to kick back in re balancing hormone levels, allowing digestion, relieving muscular tension, and finding a path to a ‘letting go’ which in turn will allow regular restorative sleep, and regular day to day levels of rest and repair.
Information Centre
How does massage and touch therapy trigger the Parasympathtic Nervous System?
‘When the skin is touched, a flood of physiological reactions occur in the body, most of which are unconscious. Not only do the skin receptors relay information to the cerebral cortex about what is happening in the here and now, but this information is also relayed to the association cortex to be compared with memory of similar events. Messages from both centres are sent to the hypothalamus which downloads messages into the body, activating a physiological and emotional response.