Anxiety and depression are common yet serious disorders. Massage therapy may help.
An estimated 18% of adult Americans suffer from some type of anxiety disorder and approximately 10% suffer from some type of depression. These disorders may coexist and are often untreated. Depression and anxiety can interfere in social functioning and lead to increased risk of unemployment, illness, and even death. They can play an aggravating role in other health conditions and render an individual more vulnerable to disease. While anxiety and depression can often be treated successfully with medications, psychotherapy, or a combination of both, these options are not always sufficient, desirable, or available. Some individuals may be unable or unwilling to take medications because of health conditions, drug interactions, personal beliefs, or unpleasant side effects.
Psychotherapy is not available in all communities and may be prohibitively expensive and time-consuming. Social stigma may prevent some individuals from seeking treatment. Some individuals just don't respond well to conventional therapies. Clearly, an easily accessible treatment devoid of bothersome side effects could be helpful.
Research has shown that massage therapy can have a beneficial effect on both anxiety and depression.
Early research at the Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami Medical School demonstrated that 30 minutes of daily massage therapy to hospitalized depressed adolescents over a 5 day period brought about an improvement in mood and behavior. Since then, many studies have documented that massage therapy can have a beneficial effect on depression and anxiety. In fact, it is one of the most consistently documented results of massage.
Anxiety can be divided into two general classes: state anxiety and trait anxiety. State anxiety is a temporary reaction to a stressful situation. Trait anxiety is an ongoing, chronic state of anxiety. There are many specific anxiety disorders, such as panic attack disorder, post traumatic stress disorder, social anxiety disorder, etc. Massage therapy has been shown to have at least mild benefit for both state and trait anxiety, and even a single session of massage may help to alleviate the symptoms of state anxiety. However, a series of massage sessions has been found to offer the most benefit and seems to be particularly helpful for trait anxiety disorders.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/7798355
Comments
Post a Comment