QuestionI am in search of anything written about the effects of massage on emotions, and how massage brings up memories, how it can aid psychotherapy thru self awareness.
Thanks for your help.
AnswerGreetings Eileen. There is, unfortunately, very little official research done on this phenomenon. Searching the web for massage and emotions, I found a few articles, listed below:
http://www.janbrumfitt.co.uk/massageemotions.htm
http://www.arvigomassage.com/Touching_The_Core.html
I have just briefly skimmed them, so am not totally sure on everything they say. I found one article, reviewing the book "Deep Tissue Massage: A Visual Guide to Techniques", mentioning the connection between massage and the emotions.
By searching for massage and psychotherapy, I found this more scientific article, http://www.massagetoday.com/archives/2004/07/04.html and found a few places that seemed to cater to this sort of thing: http://www.imt.co.il/welcome.htm and http://www.bodymindsoul.org/ . I also found a review of a book called "Body in Psychotherapy; Inquiries in Somatic Psychology".
Looking at some of these places, this arena seems to still be on the fringe of the healing realms, something that will, I think, become more mainstreamed in a few more years. Massage itself is still in the process, so you can expect more research, studies, and acknowledgement to come.
I say this because I have felt the effects of massage on my emotions. Once, during a class on rocking, I cried for the first 45 minutes of the session (and had my heart chakra opened the last 15 minutes). I think that as all of the benefits of massage become more recognized, this will come out as one, and will eventually become more studied and validated. And while we therapists know of this benefit, others need more scientific research to believe in somethng.
I hope this is of some help, Eileen. Please feel free to write if you have any other questions. Also please feel free to rate me on AllExperts; both positive and constructive feedback help me learn to help others better.
Sincerely,
Christopher Hall
