As a professional massage therapist, you already know that massage is an excellent way to reduce stress, improve health and increase a sense of well being. Using only your hands, and maybe some soothing oil, you can help clients relieve headaches, aches and pains, insomnia, tension, and everyday stress.

In part, the therapeutic benefits of massage are based on touch. Research has shown that simple touch can alleviate depression and reduce stress. The benefits having a professional massage away tension and stiffness are multitude.

As a massage therapist, you know you can’t always find the time to trade services with another professional when you need it most. So what do you do? You give yourself a quick self-massage and get on with your work. Why not offer the same option to your clients? Let’s face it: clients can’t always afford to come to a professional every time they experience pain, stress, depression or tension.

By offering to teach your clients a custom-tailored routine for self massage, you ensure that they maintain the benefits of the massage you gave them over a longer period of time. As a bonus, this actually reinforces in their minds the value of the services you offer.

Self massage between visits can help clients do more than just ease the daily aches and pains. Research has also shown that your clients may also benefit from:

• boosting immunity as massage stimulates the production of white blood cells
• relaxing overall, not just in the areas being massage
• improved mental energy
• increase productivity at work

One University of Miami study determined that those who practice a brief self-massage at work were able to reduce stress and boost job performance. After a 15-minute massage, workers indicated that they were more alert and could complete math problems faster and with more accuracy.

For clients who can benefit from more frequent massage, a home routine may be the perfect answer. It’s important for you, as a health care provider, to educate your patients on the rewards of daily massage as opposed to coming in once a month, or only when their muscles are so strained and knotted that several sessions are necessary to give them lasting relief.

The benefits of a self-massage are similar to one done by a professional. Research from the American Massage Therapy Association shows that a deep tissue massage provides important health benefits including improved blood circulation, muscle relaxation, improved range of motion, and heightened endorphin levels that increase the overall sense of well-being.

Some possibilities you might suggest include:

• Massage your feet while watching TV
• Massage your hands while talking on the phone
• Massage your hands, neck and shoulders after a few hours on the computer

Self massage routines can also include targeted stretches for your client’s problem areas, especially those that would help correct work-related muscle tension and overuse.

A variety of tools are available to help your clients massage their necks, backs and shoulders, as well as hands and feet. Some of these will be discussed in later articles. In the meantime, why not do some research and start stocking products that you can incorporate into your client education program?