There’s nothing more relaxing than a wonderful massage. It’s a treat to our bodies and believe it or not, it is a rudimentary form of exercise as it stimulates blood flow through our bodies. It’s a gift to receive this healing touch.

As a busy career professional, you may think that massage may just be an indulgence on occasion but it is also great for prevention as well as rehabilitation for many conditions. More often than not, routine massage can help you prevent pain and assist your body in its natural healing process.

But finding a good therapist who understands this can make all the difference; especially when you are facing chronic stress and diagnosed conditions such as sciatica or tendonitis. A qualified therapist should be able to assess the problem, treat the client’s present issue as well as make an action plan for recovery.

For example: say someone has lower back pain. The therapist should ask about any recent trauma or activity that may have contributed to the pain and discomfort. If there have not been any recent injurious events, the therapist would look at a repetitive action that may be progressively creating the discomfort such as running or exercising without stretching consistently. Once this has been determined the therapist would palpate the area as well as recommend a series of stretches, exercises, modalities and possibly recurring massage to assist in a complete recovery of the area. If the client does not make progressive improvements a good therapist would suggest a referral to a different treatment possibly PT, MD or Doc for further evaluation.

Sara Harring is a licensed massage therapist in West Michigan who works with corporate and individual clients to help promote proactive healing and the importance of making a massage a must.