Try a Massage for Stress Relief

By Valerie Doubet, LMT

If you want to feel less stressed, consider massage therapy. It’s good for sore muscles and mental well-being. After a massage, many clients feel as if the weight of the world was lifted off their shoulders.

As the massage therapist at the OSF Saint Francis Center for Health, I often find that I have to perform a “shoulderectomy.” This is a word I use to describe lowering people’s shoulders from around their ears. Most workstations are not set up properly, so people keep their shoulders elevated most of the time. And if you hold all your stress in your neck and shoulders, massage is a terrific way to relieve it.

If you feel that you could benefit from massage therapy, make regular massage therapy appointments. Massage therapy is a wonderful way to make everyday stresses a little easier to handle.