Hot stone massage is a technique used in ancient cultures including Native American healing practice. Hot stones provide the benefits of thermal therapy with energy balancing properties. Thermal therapy, hot and cold, affects circulation and provides a method to reach deep tissue for healing.
What can I expect to experience in a hot stone massage?Hot stone massage is almost self descriptive. The technique combines massage with the application of heated stones over the entire body, including the face, hands and feet. The stones become extensions of the therapist's hands, almost "replacing " them. The working stones are moved in a continuous fashion and turned in the hands of the therapist periodically during massage to give the best heat, then "tucked in" around different locations by the clients body. Due to this fact the massage experience takes on an entirely different feeling than general massage. It invokes a sensation of being sedative as a result of the warmth. The response during a relaxation treatment has been described as reverie or a "dream-like" state, floating in and out of consciousness. This is why I allow 2 hours for this treatment.
What kinds of stones are used?
Basalt stones are generally used by many practitioners for hot therapy. These are aged, volcanic rock smoothed by many years in rivers and oceans.
What are the benefits of hot stone massage?
Since hot stones are used to massage the body, you receive the same benefits as a Swedish massage, deep tissue massage and trigger point work. The added benefit is heat that penetrates the muscle and tendon providing deeper work with less pressure. The smooth texture of the rock and the heat provides dramatic stress reducing results. Many recipients go into a deep meditative state early in the session.
Some benefits include: an increase in circulation and lymph flow, lowered heart rate, therefore lower blood pressure, an increase in the release of endorphins, reduces pain, swelling, assists in alleviating acute and chronic problems. As for the therapist, it decreases the strains and injuries commonly caused to the thumbs and wrists – so it’s good for me too!!
Are there any contraindications for hot stone massage?
Diabetes, Neuropathy, Peripheral Vascular Disease, Uncontrolled Hypertension, Fever, Open Wounds or Skin Lesions, Acute Inflammation, Pregnancy (due to the rise in body temperature), any other condition which makes massage or heat applications inadvisable.
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