3 Different Types of Massage Therapy

Not all massage is one and the same. The type of massage therapy you receive can depend on a wide range of factors. These range from geographic location, therapist preference or specialization, your specific physical needs, price point, and the type of spa or business offering the therapy. There are dozens of different types of massage therapy. Ayurveda, hot stone, reflexology, Swedish, Thai, craniosacral, trigger point, lomilomi, and more are available.

At Ozark Chiropractic Clinic, we are proud to offer massage therapy types that are rooted in addressing the musculoskeletal and therapeutic needs of our patients.

Deep Tissue Massage

• Deep tissue massage does exactly what you’d think — it works on the deep tissues of the body. This means therapists use greater pressure to locate specific areas, muscles, and tendons that are causing you problems and pain. This pain may be in your neck, back, shoulders, or legs.
• Your typical Swedish massage is a gentler approach mainly used to provide stress relief and increase circulation. However, deep tissue massage takes a more medical approach and works to treat chronic problems like whiplash, postural issues, spasms, and muscle tension.
• Therapists work layer by layer to release tension in the connective tissues using their hands, elbows, and forearms to get deeper than a typical massage. This does not mean that deep tissue massage is painful — it shouldn’t be. However, it will border that line between pleasure and discomfort as your sore spots are worked on.

Sports Massage

• Sports massage takes your level and mechanism of physical activity into consideration. Designed to help people who play a particular sport, sports massages can target muscles and tissues used by an athlete. For example, while a golfer might need to focus more on their back muscles, a tennis player may have more needs in their arms.
• Using sports massage before the activity can promote flexibility, range of motion, and help prevent injuries. The use of sports massage during activity can relieve cramps and spasms that occur on the court or field. Perhaps most commonly, it also aids healing after a sports injury, such as sore muscles and muscle strains.
• Therapists use a variety of massage techniques in order to achieve the desired results. These include superficial and deep movements such as stroking, kneading, compression, vibration, gliding, stretching, and trigger points.

Prenatal/Postnatal Massage

• Carrying around a baby-in-progress comes with a whole slew of aches and pains for expectant mothers. Prenatal massage therapy considers the pregnant body and provides treatment accordingly, including the use of cushions to support the body or having you lie down on your side, rather than on your stomach or on your back.
• Prenatal massage works to specifically address the needs of pregnant women. This type of massage reduces stress, increases blood circulation, flushes toxins, reduces muscle and joint pain, and promotes a better sense of wellbeing.
• There are precautions that therapists will take when delivering a prenatal massage that is specific to the nuances of pregnancy. Therefore, therapists should have at least 16 hours of training in prenatal massage and know how to perform a safe and effective massage that does not cause any undue risk. This includes avoiding leg massages due to the increased risk of blood clots, avoiding having you lie on your back which can cause compression of the placenta and blood vessels, and refraining from massaging your tummy.

At Ozark Chiropractic Clinic, our trained therapists are focused on providing massage therapy treatments that fit each individual person. There is no one-type-fits-all approach. We take your unique needs, pains, and anatomy into consideration when performing therapies. This way, we ensure that you are receiving safe and effective treatment. Contact us today at Ozark Chiropractic in Baton Rouge to make an appointment for your chiropractic and massage needs.