Head, Neck & Shoulder Massage

The wonders of a massage are a beautiful thing, offering people amazing help benefits. This alternative form of therapy has been around for ages and doesn't rely on often addictive pain medications. If you're looking for tips to deliver an effective massage for the head, neck and shoulders, MassageTools has the information you desire.

Causes of Face and Scalp Irritation

Who hasn't suffered from a pounding headache or an actual pain in the neck? The cause of headaches and scalp tension are due to tightness of the muscles that surrounds the skull. Tension or muscular headaches occur when you strain the muscles of your head and neck, often without even realizing you have done it. Millions of people suffer from the crippling pain of migraines. Migraines consist of throbbing in your head, especially on one side behind your eyes. This often debilitating headache occurs when the blood vessels in the scalp expand. Migraines can be triggered by certain factors like stress, foods, alcohol, caffeine, bright lights, strong smells, changes in sleep/wake patterns, weather, certain medications and even sex.

The face contains a huge number of nerve receptors and, therefore, a face massage can have profound effects all through the body, change your mood, enhance relaxation and control pain. Stress can have a profound effect on the body. So reducing stress through a facial massage can leave people looking and feeling years younger.

Ways to Relieve - Face and Scalp Irritation

Aromaland's aromatherapy bath and body blue collection is a great way to get a head or scalp massage. The soothing aromatherapy scents found in these unique bath and body products are not only good for your scalp, but help relieve tension and stress. The face contains a huge number of nerve receptors and, therefore, a face massage can have profound effects all through the body, including increasing circulation. A facial massage is a natural facelift, making you look and feel younger.

The scalp can store a surprising amount of tension, causing the skin to feel taut and difficult to move if it is not relaxed. When massaging the face, stroke your whole face with soft, molding hands. Then, with the fingers of both hands, stroke slowly and firmly from the center of your forehead out to your temples. Continue to stroke under your cheekbones, from your nose to your ears. This is a great alternative treatment if you suffer from sinus congestion. Next up, stroke from your mouth out toward the edges of your jaw. Then, use the pads of your fingers to tap lightly under your eyes and over your eyelids. This relaxing sensation should resemble lightly falling rain. Using this particular movement helps disperse congestion in the area and reduce puffiness around the eyes that can be caused by tiredness.

In order to release tension in the scalp, place your palms on your temples, and slowly circle your palms ten times in one direction and ten times in the other. Then, apply circular palm pressure all over your scalp. Another scalp massage method is to clasp some strands of hair at the root, twist them around your fingers, and gently pull. Imagine you are pulling out the tension. Hold the hair for a few seconds longer and release it. Then, repeat the sequence using hair from all over the scalp. You can use both hands or one hand after the other. The Tingler is a very effective head massage tool and extremely useful for stimulating the nerve endings in the scalp. All of your tension and stress seem to melt away as your head is tingled by the gentle copper fingers. You will actually feel the pleasure shoot down your spine and throughout your entire body.

The Squiggler massage tool is a motorized Tingler on steroids! For more massage tools, explore MassageTools' diverse selection of professional massage tools. You can learn more techniques on how to give head, neck and shoulder massages with Atpeace Media's instructional massage DVD.

Causes for Neck and Shoulder Pain

There are many reasons for neck and shoulder pain, with many of them starting with bad posture. Sitting cramped over a desk, being hunched over a steering wheel, playing certain sports such as golf and illnesses like as asthma can all cause strain and tension to build up in the neck and shoulders.

Chest muscles shorten and contract, which causes the muscles in the upper back to become overstretched. This can result in rounded shoulders and tight, inflexible muscles in the neck and upper back. Stretching and relaxing the chest muscles, along with kneading the shoulders can help in reducing pain and discomfort in the neck and shoulders.

Ways to Relieve Neck Pain

In order to relieve neck pain caused by slumping posture, you should first lengthen out the front of the neck. The easiest way to do this is to lie on the floor and place a rolled up towel right under the top of your back. Think of the top of your back like a hand clock and place it between 11 and 12 o'clock. The towel should be thick enough so that it allows the front of your neck to fully lengthen out.

Stay lying down in that position for five to ten minutes. This exercise is great for people that work on the computer or drive a car a lot. Another way to relieve this type of neck pain is to massage each side of the neck. Both the Slimfairy Electric Massager and Thumper Mini Pro 2 are highly effective at massaging the neck, while the Epulse Neck Massager most closely simulates tapping of the hands. These massage tools do all the work, letting you just relax and enjoy the effects. If the muscles feel real cord-like, start with gentle pressure when stroking the neck. When the muscles soften up a little, you can increase the pressure a little.

Neck pain caused by stress or an upper chest breather can also be very painful. The muscles all around the neck and chest tighten up, causing extreme discomfort. The first thing to do is lengthen the chest muscles. Then, you can use a massage tool to stroke the back of the neck, especially the crevice area, which is called the occipital. Start with light pressure, and gradually increase it as the muscles loosen up. A good method for the sides of the neck is kneading. Kneading simply means to grab the muscle, and slightly pull like you are gently working with a batch of cookie dough. The Thumper Mini Pro 2 is excellent for massaging the chest as well. Keep the hand massager on low speed and you'll be truly satisfied.

Ways to Relieve Shoulder Pain

To get relief from shoulder pain, try lying on your side. It is the most effective position for stretching and massaging the shoulder area. In order to lengthen the shoulder muscles, bring one arm up and over the head and hold position for at least one minute. Then, repeat this stretch two to three times on each side. Stretching tense muscles is very important to do before massaging because it lengthens the target muscle and opens up the jointed area.

The brachial nerve plexus, which supplies the arm, may be affected by soft tissue dysfunction in the shoulder area. So, be sure to take into consideration the location of the brachial nerve and massage around the nerve. Be very careful not to work directly on the nerve and be aware of any painful areas close to it. The painful areas around the nerve and numbness in the fingers are an indication of nerve impingement. Massaging the shoulder from front to back will help to reduce muscle tension and soften connective tissue in the area. It is also helpful to use a massage tool like the Thumper Mini Pro 2 or even the Backnobber II on any knotty areas in the shoulder area to release the tension.