Techniques in Massage Therapy 

Massage therapy techniques refer to different types of massages and techniques used by masseur during their session to provide utmost relaxation to an individual.



But with that common root, techniques vary one from the other, not only in the way that pressure is done, soft tissues manipulated, but on the general approach to the therapy.

In some cases massage therapy techniques are primarily a physiological approach, in others a more spiritual or mind focused point of view, but in most cases there is a combination of both, since it requires physiological knowledge from the therapist and is applied to improve a specific body condition or relax a certain tensed muscle, but also considers the effects of the mental relaxation that it allows the client or patient to achieve.

Traditional Indian medicine or Ayurveda has massage therapy among its healing practices and combined it with aromatherapy and is still being used in our days around the world.

As mentioned above, there are many massage therapy techniques and it is good to know what we can choose from if we decide that we want to have massage done on us.

Swedish massage is the most widespread technique in western cultures. It uses five types of strokes which are: kneading, light touch, rhythmic tapping, vibration and compression. 

Traditional Chinese massage is in demand too and it is based on the principles of traditional Chinese medicine. There are two types of it, one is based on stretching and pushing the muscle and the other is based on pressing the acupressure points.

Thai massage has originated in India and combines ayurveda and yoga principles; combining yoga positions with massage session.

Shiatsu is Japanese therapy that focuses on thumb pressure, energy centers and some stretching.

Champissage is another massage therapy technique that is supposed to balance the chakras and works on the head, face and neck.

Bowen technique is another massage type based on the systems developed by an Australian named Bowen. It requires rolling movements but does not involve deep muscle massage. It is said that helps with muscle tension and meliorate lymphatic flow.
Stone massage is gaining adepts, mostly between those who adhere to alternative therapies and a combination of them. It uses cold or heated stones that are applied to the body. Essential oils are often used with this massage type.

Medical massage is the massage used in medical profession, and there are several conditions that use this therapy, like for breathing issues, cystic fibrosis, descongestive use of it for lymphedema, cardiac massage  like Valsalva manoeuvre for supraventricular tachycardia, patients in bed for long periods get massage for blood circulation, muscle stimulation ,  some cases of post surgery are issued to get massage too, and many, many more conditions get the benefits of massage therapy.

It is clear that there are a lot of massage therapy techniques available, it is then necessary to know what options we have before deciding with which one we will be involved and trust our hopes of mental and physical health.