Turns out that the three remaining sessions from the years prior had not expired. Immediately, I scheduled them for fear that they'd find out about the glitch and promptly void them. Since then I've used those sessions and completed several more. The difference between this time and when I got massages before is the frequency in which I experienced them. Although, I didn't really expect it, I got some decent results as a reward for my consistency.
The first session was right around the time that I was working with a personal trainer. My trainer was excellent at working various muscle groups that I didn't know existed. Unfortunately, we didn't spend as much time stretching, post workout, as needed. After my first massage, the young lady asked me "do you work out?" "Yeah, why do you ask?" "Cause you had a lot of tension in your muscles, I usually see this when the person doesn't do enough to stretch out the muscles after exercising." Although I hadn't felt any real tension in my body. It was there. And this was at least a month after I stopped working with the trainer.
The next time I visited, the massage therapist performed an impromptu hot stone massage. Probably because she noticed the tightness I was still carrying. Tight muscles are not something you want to leave unaddressed. Basically, it creates imbalances in the body that can eventually affect your range of movement. Even when I wasn't working out, I always carried a bunch of tension in my shoulders. This thanks to a high stress work environment. That stress builds up inside of you and just stays there, festering in your body. But, because of multiple sessions, my body was easily able to release the tension. During my last session, the therapist rubbed my lower back and said that most people she massages have tension there that she could physically feel. She let me know that I didn't have any of those stress bubbles. "That's 'cause I come here so often" I responded.
Then there was the time I caught a slight cold and requested a lymphatic drainage massage. I rarely get sick and I have a sneaking suspicion that my cold was a result of the toxins released in my system post massage. They say it's good to drink a lot of water after a session to release the toxins from the body. I figured a good lymphatic massage could accelerate the detox. Days later, everything cleared up and I was back to my old self. If you ever find yourself fighting congestion and sluggishness, consider massage as part of your strategy to bring everything back to balance.
There was another huge benefit I got from regular massages. I notice less "popping and cracking" when I move around. I sometimes hear cracking sounds (especially near my hips) when I moved suddenly or got up after sitting for a while. Hubby calls me "old lady" whenever he hears the popping sound, and I was convinced that I'd need hip replacement surgery as part of my future. It wasn't painful, just annoying. Recently, I noticed that popping is gone. There are no more trapped air pockets in my body (I'm assuming). Not sure when it happened, but my movements are now smooth and fluid, thanks to regular massage.
The message I want you to leave with is that regular massages aren't just some luxury deemed for the ultra-rich, they're actually really good for you. And if you do them regularly, you may experience amazing benefits beyond just feeling relaxed and refreshed. I did it to feel abundant never expecting tangible benefits. You might even experience relief from pain, insomnia, etc. If you're thinking about the cost of regular massage sessions, do what I did and find a reputable school that offers the full service experience minus the hefty price. The price I paid for four sessions was around what I pay for my cell phone bill, and completely worth it.
Now I wanna experiment with regular facials and see what unfolds.
