Breathing habits play a significant role in a number of aspects of our health, including (but certainly not limited to) the development of tension in our neck.
Thai Massage vs. Swedish Massage
Is Thai Massage better than Swedish Massage?
Now that’s a pretty controversial question, and I hope it’s not taken the wrong way. I have many Registered Massage Therapist friends and colleagues and I believe their work to be wonderful and effective and get many treatments of my own. But one major difference between these two modalities is that one is covered by health insurance and the other isn’t [very often].
A Dedicated Self Practice
I’ve been reading a lot lately on what some term a “traditional” approach to practicing Thai massage. There are many interesting thoughts and opinions on this topic and I think they’re all valuable when formulating your own opinion on such things. Amongst these readings, there is the mention of “Ruesri Dat Ton” and “Wai khru.”
Therapeutic Thai Massage
At the present time Thai massage is considered a “recreational” practice. As a practitioner and teacher of this incredible form of bodywork, this saddens me. As a profession, we are rarely taken seriously as a method of therapy (except by those of us who have experienced it first hand). As a wider demonstration of this, the majority of insurance companies do not provide coverage for Thai massage. In fact, we’re not even allowed to use the terms “massage” and “therapy” together after the “Thai”.
What is Thai Massage?
If you’ve ever received, practiced or taught Thai massage this might be an oddly complicated question. It might sound like a simple one but there is often much more involved in how we define this practice. There are so many definitions of Thai massage out there, and it largely depends on who you’re talking to! As an interesting project we’ve had people from all over the globe contribute to this discussion by commenting their thoughts below. If you’d like to contribute your own definition, please do! This way you get a really broad picture of what Thai massage is.
Compensation vs. Overcompensation in Movement
Cobra Pose: Possibly the Worst Thai Massage Technique
Google “Thai Massage” and some of the top images you see are of Cobra Pose. Why is that? Is it because it’s such an amazing posture that everyone should know about and receive? No, I don’t think so. I think it’s because it looks flashy and special.
Parkinsons Disease and Thai Massage
For almost 3 years now I’ve been working with a someone who has Parkinson’s Disease. He’s had the condition for at least 19 years and is now wheelchair bound after some accidents a few years ago. He comes for a massage every week and it’s been incredible to have the opportunity to work with him and to see how Parkinsons Disease and massage interact.
Rediscover Relaxation – You’ve Forgotten What It Feels Like
Society trains us to be tense. More and more, people are seeking out both relaxation and massage in order to bring more balance into their lives. The beauty of Thai massage is that relaxation is tied up into all the other benefits of a massage as well. A trend that I’ve noticed over the past few years is that unfortunately many of us no longer remember how to truly let go.
Do You Get Enough Massages? Let’s Be Honest…
Probably not. But hey, I’m not judging you, much. In complete transparency, I don’t get as much massage as I should either. One of the more common questions that I get after treatments is “How regularly should I get a massage?”. Even though I could be really selfish and suggest everyone comes in for a massage each week, that’s not necessarily useful or, let’s face it, financially possible for a lot of people. So when someone asks me this I generally say that there’s not one correct answer for everyone, and there are numerous factors to consider when it comes to how often you should go for a treatment.
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