I always knew I loved a good massage (don’t we all?!), but my adoration grew by leaps and bounds when I realized the incredible impact of massage on the adrenal fatigue recovery process.
While researching this issue recently, I realized my golden opportunity to get my hubs the best Valentine’s Day gift ever. You see – he actually specifically requested that we “do that Melt thing again“, so I’m making him a book of coupons for massages at home using the Melt professional massage for couples videos.
How absolutely perfect is that?! (The man seriously loves his back massages, people. Not exaggerating in the slightest.)
But since this is a reciprocal gift, I’ll be enjoying some massages too. That’s when it occurred to me: massages are called therapeutic for a reason, right? We’ve used them in the past for various health-related reasons: sore muscles, mostly. And hmmm – they’re also great for relaxation and decreasing stress…
Are you seeing where I’m going with this yet?
That’s right – I’ll be winning my award for Best Wife Ever, AND reaping the rewards of adrenal fatigue healing (which just so happens to be my number one health goal for this year.)
Massage Decreases Cortisol Levels, Increases Seratonin and Dopamine
Since adrenal fatigue is a result of a whacked-out HPA axis (hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal), massage for adrenal fatigue is actually an ingenious addition to my healing protocol because it has a direct, measurable impact on your biochemistry!
As I explained in this post: What is Adrenal Fatigue? An Introduction and My Story:
“The adrenal glands are located on each kidney. They secrete cortisol, the hormone responsible for regulating the effects of stress on our bodies (all kinds – physical, emotional, psychological, environmental, and/or infectious).
When these glands are overworked, they cease to function optimally, which effects all of the major physiological systems in the body. This includes how your body handles nutrition, weight gain/loss, immune system response, moods, sex drive, cardiovascular and gastrointestinal function, blood sugar regulation, energy levels, and sleep patterns, and tons more.”
It’s absolutely vital for adrenal fatigue sufferers to take extra care in helping their bodies manage stress on a daily basis. Massage can assist significantly with that task.
Massage therapy has been extensively studied and discussed in medical literature. It lowers cortisol levels, and increases seratonin and dopamine – perfect for defusing that adrenally fatigued brain on high alert (mistakenly thinking that it’s being chased by an angry bear) so that your hormones can come back to a more normal balance. (source: The International Journal of Neuroscience)
Because hormones and neurotransmitters have such wide-spread impact on our health and well-being, the benefits of massage can be powerful indeed.
(And it also might win the award for most enjoyable health protocol ever! Imagine getting a prescription for a couples massage: um, yes please!)
Since cortisol levels are typically highest in the evenings, this is totally the perfect scenario for a nice relaxing home massage from your partner, with major side benefits on your health.
Of course, massage alone won’t fix the issue – it’s part of a bigger picture for a more mindful lifestyle that takes care of your needs and helps support your body in the healing process.
But the incredible benefits of having your loving partner massage you in the comfort and intimacy of your own home with soft music playing and candlelight flickering after the kiddos are asleep? Well, that just rounds it out perfectly, doesn’t it?
I can’t believe it took me this long to connect massage with adrenal fatigue recovery, but I’m glad I finally did!
The Perfect At-Home Massage Solution for Adrenal Fatigue Sufferers (or Anyone!)
It can tough to get out of the house for regular massage appointments when you’re juggling an already-busy schedule, and trying not to overcommit and stress yourself out more. Massage therapy appointments can also be quite expensive when you add them up over the long-term.
To this, I have the perfect solution for you:
Melt is a series of online video massage tutorials that you can follow from home. I‘m a huge fan of this brilliant idea created by Registered Massage Therapist, Denis Merkas, in Australia.
There’s no nudity or awkwardness, and Denis skillfully shows you how to massage at home without any special equipment, with techniques that will feel AMAZING. (We used to try to give each other back massages but had no idea what to do, and they weren’t great at all. The difference when we started using Melt was a stark contrast.)
Pay once, get lifetime access.
With that in mind, this is easily considered the most frugal option for incorporating massage into your adrenal fatigue protocol (or any stress management and relaxation goals, really!)
Thanks to Melt Couples Massage Course for sponsoring today’s content, and letting me get the word out about another piece of the adrenal fatigue recovery process. I am genuinely using and loving these videos, and I hope you will too!
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Melissa
Good blog Beth. I am a licensed massage therapist for many years now. There’s a reason why people get professional Massages! We are educated and put ALOT of time and effort into it. People who aren’t licensed and don’t know the body well can actually hurt someone through massage if they aren’t educated . Sure a soft massage won’t hurt but people will massage on bones and other places which is not helping anyone! I could write a book why you should see a licensed massage therapist. Not everyone can do safe massages IF they don’t have the proper classes and training at a school. Just my 2 cents worth thankyou! ?
Bob McCormick
I’m 70 years old and I’ve never had any help with my adrenals I know that I need work.
Victoria
Very well written post. As a person with serious adrenal fatigue syndrome, just a word of caution…. I finally found a specialist and I am at a medium level for adrenal fatigue (occasional crashes, occasional vertigo, cannot sleep through the night, hypoglycemia, etc.). The specialist said I can only handle very light and gentle massages at this level. My favorites are deep tissue massages. The specialist said that would release too many toxins into my blood stream and my organs cannot process that correctly at this time and it would make things worse by overloading the organs that flush toxins out, such as liver, etc. Just thought to share this as this article is helpful but AF is an odd duck and you have to be careful.
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Charlisa
Great article! I do have a question… You state that Cortisol levels are higher in the evening. Are you referring to someone with adrenal fatigue? In all of my research I found found that Cortisol is highest in the morning in a normal, healthy person.
MamaV
So we watch videos NEVER… There’s not another way to do this, is there?
Beth
Like – you *can’t* watch videos? Or you just don’t usually? I’d encourage you to try the free sample ones… they’re not too long, and really helpful. And, once you watch it a couple times, you’ll have the technique down, and able to perform the massage without it. 🙂