Receiving a massage feels oh so good, not only because your massage therapist gives a great massage – but also because of biology! By kneading and working through muscular and connective tissue, the body receives a healthy dose of nutrient rich, oxygenated blood flow. This in turn flushes out stagnant byproducts that get stuck in the muscle fibres from tension and inflammation.

The nervous system processes the changes that happen by releasing natural opioid-like hormones, such as serotonin and relaxin, which in turn decreases pain while bringing you to a place of deep relaxation and calm.

Massage is a great tool for maintenance as well as rehab, though sometimes it’s beneficial to see Physiotherapists or Chiropractors as a tool to collect more detailed information about the root cause of your issue and how we can work together for the ultimate goal – getting you pain free and at your best!

Massage therapy is an excellent option for focusing on compensatory issues that arise as you rehab from injury. If you have a more severe injury such as recovering from surgery, have a more severe tear of a muscle or ligament or have a more complicated issue to address, it’s usually best to start with Physio for your rehab plan and then utilize massage therapy for ongoing maintenance of flare ups, pain and to put more focus on the body in a more holistic sense – not just addressing one direct issue.

Many clients describe their post treatment vibe as being in a “massage haze” where you float out of the treatment room in a lovely, dopey, happy place. This is the body processing all the clever treatment modalities your RMT has applied throughout your session that get results. The feeling is usually temporary lasting a few minutes to an hour if you’re lucky!

Depending on how in-depth your treatment was, it’s normal to feel some tenderness in areas that were more deep tissue focused, either in the evening or the next day following a massage. Usually it’s just a little tender to the touch from the muscles being worked through and at times can have a bit of “kick back” discomfort in more clinical based treatments for rehab.

Otherwise, you should feel relaxed, grounded and renewed. With better awareness of your posture and how much of a shift you feel from when you first arrived!

As a general rule, it can take 3 solid massage treatments for a more substantial issue to resolve itself with massage. Sometimes even one massage can do the trick if it’s a milder issue. And if it’s something that’s been lingering for a while, it most likely will need a couple treatments in conjunction with each other (usually over the span of a couple weeks to a month) to really feel a big shift and have lasting results. It’s equally important to take the homecare advice your RMT will offer to help with ongoing maintenance you can do on your own, to keep the issue from coming back.