Menu


Join our Newsletter:
Email
Name
Subscribe
Unsubscribe

Swedish Massage

The word ‘massage’ is thought to be derived either from the Arabic for ‘press softly’ or from the Greek for ‘knead’. Massage is a form of treatment that has been passed down through the centuries for thousands of years. Records show that in acient China over 5000 years ago there was a system of massage and exercise in use. The peoples of ancient civilizations in Persia, Japan and Eygpt practiced the art of massage for cosmetic purposes and found that they also gained therapeutic effects when they rubbed oil into their bodies

There are four basic strokes used in Swedish massage:

  • Effleurage: relaxes and stretches the superficial muscles of the body.
  • Petrissage: kneading and squeezing of superficial and deeper muscles and soft tissue.
  • Friction: breaks down adhesions between tissues and relaxes muscle fibres.
  • Tapotement: a variety of percussive strokes to stimulate skin and muscles to increase blood flow.

Oil, cream, lotion or talcum powder is applied on the skin to reduce friction and allow smooth strokes. This style of massage is generally attributed to the Swedish fencing master and gymnastics teacher Pehr Henrik Ling (1776-1839). However, it was in fact the Dutch practitioner Johann Georg Mezger (1838-1909) who adopted the French names to denote the basic strokes under which he systemized massage as it is known today, as Swedish or classic massage. Ling’s system was the Swedish Movement System or Swedish Gymnastic Movement System. This may be how he has become incorrectly associated for so long with Swedish massage. Swedish massage began to be advertised in North America only in the first half of the 20th century, often, but not exclusively, offered by Swedish immigrants.  There are many different types of massage that have been developed; some approaches focus on the physical effects that the massage techniques have on the body, whilst others focus attention on the flow of 'energy' within the body. All types of massage can have an effect on the skin, muscles, blood vessels, lymph, nerves and some of the internal organs.

 A full body massage usually consists of back - shoulders and neck - buttocks - legs and feet – abdomen – chest – arms and hands – face and head. The treatment is easily adapted to give additional attention to specific areas or to avoid overly sensitive areas or areas you may not wish massaged. Benifits may include improved muscle tone, improved circulation, relieving tension, calming the nervous system, improving digestion and elimination, reducing stress and anxiety.