Essential Massage Oils and You

You wish you could have a massage.  You desperately want a massage.  You seriously need a massage.  A massage now leads your list of life essentials. You want and need a skilled massage with your favorite essential oils. 

Although you luxuriate on the receiving end of your masseuse’s miracle-magic healing touch, you should develop essential oil expertise nearly equal to hers.  The more you know about essential massage oil, their specific benefits for your body and how different ones boost for your psyche, the more you can guide your masseuse to meet your needs.  In addition to developing your knowledge and discernment about them, you also must develop reasonable command of different massage techniques—their purposes, targets, and movements. 

Although your masseuse can deliver a generic, all-purpose, totally ordinary massage when you announce, “I so need a massage!”  She will manage your body far more expertly if you agree on the physical complaints your massage ought to remedy and the psychological needs your essential massage oils ought to satisfy.

Own Your Needs and Love Your Body

Planning for your massage, consider which therapeutic purpose it must serve, and match your mix of essential massage oils with the masseuse’s technique: 

• Do you need relief?  If you can feel tension—especially in your neck and shoulders, thighs and calves—and if you feel aches and pains to match the knots in your muscles, plan your massage technique and the aromatherapy in the oils to reduce your tension.  Your masseuse probably will use motions that run the full length of your major muscles, stretching them.  And you should mix carrier oils and essential massage oils to relax your muscles, relieve the pain, and generally help your muscles recover from the wear and tear they suffer in your everyday life.  Similarly acknowledge that stress has tied your brain in sheepshanks, choosing aromatherapeutic massage oils—the “top notes”—to soothe, clarify, refresh, and restore focus to your addled cortices.
   
• Are you ready for correction?  After a couple of therapeutic massages to relax knotted muscles and relieve their pain, your massage therapist probably will recommend a “corrective” massage featuring essential oils rich in base notes for strength and middle notes for healing—choose woodsy and spicy ones to maximize the benefits of a corrective massage.  Your professional masseuse may suggest a “deep tissue” massage, somewhat more aggressive than your rubdown for total relaxation, and directed at relaxing muscle fibers so that they will release accumulated lactates and begin genuinely to heal.  A corrective massage also will stimulate your lymphatic system, promoting your muscles’ recovery.
   
• Should you begin strengthening?  If you have relaxed and recovered, you probably will feel ready for a massage designed to strengthen your muscles, fortifying them against further stress damage.  Lighten-up the base notes in your mix, and similar lighten-up the consistency of the carrier oil your massage therapist uses during your bodywork.  Especially mix-in cheerful, confident top notes, so that you energize your mind and pump-up your optimism while you strengthen your muscles.  And, about the same time you feel ready for strengthening massage, begin a regular program of strengthening and stretching exercise, too.  Yoga naturally complements naturopathy, and swimming simply complements everything.
   
• How about routine maintenance?  After your series of recuperative and restorative massages, as you advance through your low-impact strength-building exercise program, schedule regular massages to keep your muscles supple and strong, less prone to injury from stress or exertion.  In these massage sessions, use light and sweet carrier oils and all your favorite top notes.  A regular “maintenance” massage should be all about keeping you feeling terrific and performing at your peak.