This might sound crazy, but I’ve actually ran into people who have said that they don’t want a massage because their mood isn’t great. Or that they don’t want to come in for their massage because they’re grumpy and don’t think they would be “good company” or something. Can you believe that people don’t realize how massage can stabilize their mood?
Guess what?! YOU SHOULD COME IN WHEN YOU’RE GRUMPY!!
First off, if you’re worried about being “bad company,” please don’t. We see people in all sorts of different levels of vulnerability. We have clients who talk the entire time–about their problems, life, exciting news, whatever–and we have clients who say almost nothing despite seeing them regularly. If you’re grumpy and don’t want to talk, don’t talk! If you want to make sure that your massage therapist doesn’t talk, just start off by saying “Look, you do amazing massages, and I enjoy you as a person, but today, I really need to just focus on me. I’d appreciate it if we only talked if necessary or when you’re checking in with how the session is going.” I guarantee you no massage therapist here will have a problem with that, nor will they be offended by it!
Massage also has a myriad of great benefits. In a Livestrong article from July, massage can help:
- Reduce Anxiety
- Improve Mood
- Increased Relaxation
- Promote Energy
With the improving mood part, it’s because massage can release endorphins which make you happy. So if you’re unhappy or grumpy, it would make sense to seek out something that is going to boost the endorphin levels in your body. Massage has more benefits than that, but we just want to focus on the mood stabilizing parts right now. There are also acupressure points that help stabilize moods, which can easily be incorporated into massage.