Massage Therapy for Parkinson’s : How can it Help?

Parkinson’s can progress at a different rate for each person. It is important to work with a knowledgable health-care team in order to implement a treatment plan that will meet the person’s individual needs.”

 Massage Therapy: How can it Help?

Your massage therapist is trained in a variety of techniques that can help to lessen the severity of your symptoms which allows you to feel more at ease in your body as it goes through the changes associated with Parkinson’s.

I will now discuss 5 of the more common benefits of your massage therapy sessions:

llustration of the Parkinson disease by Sir William Richard Gowers from A Manual of Diseases of the Nervous System in 1886

Decrease in tremors, temporarily – muscles become overworked when tremors are occurring, leaving the person feeling tight and fatigued, achy and sore. Massage therapy will help to lessen this tension and encourage a healthy muscle tone to be established.

Stress (mental, physical or emotional) has been shown to be a significant factor in the severity of the tremors associated with Parkinson’s disease. Since massage therapy helps to slow and relax the nervous system, stress responses are decreased, which helps to lessen the frequency and severity of tremors and other stress related symptoms.

Ease Rigidity – an interesting medical study was published in 2001 entitled ‘Pain in Parkinson’s Disease’ (Waseem, Gwinn-Hardy, Postgraduate medicine, vol 110/no 5/December 2001) The study discusses several common causes of pain for people with Parkinson’s and concludes that rigidity is the most common cause of pain. The study also concluded that massage therapy is a useful treatment in alleviating the pain. Treatment techniques aimed at improving joint mobility, both on the table and as a part of a homecare exercise program are very useful in decreasing rigidity. RMTs work gently in mobilizing joints in order to increase range of motion, improve joint health, decrease pain and ease activities of daily life.

Soothe Depression – Depression is a state of being that is linked to many causes and which results in altered physiological function in many ways. Massage therapy techniques work to optimize body functioning and can greatly assist in the treatment of depression. For example: Massage therapy increases circulation and nutrient supply to tissue cells, and increases lymphatic drainage of toxins from the body. Massage therapy decreases pain by decreasing muscle tension and joint stiffness, as well as by altering biochemistry through influences on the nervous and endocrine systems. All of these results lead to better health and well being physically, mentally and emotionally. Treatments can also incorporate very soothing techniques that aid an overall sense of wellbeing and deep relaxation. RMTs are compassionate health care providers who are committed to facilitating wellness for our patients.

Relieve Sleep and Digestive problems – The autonomic nervous system is the part of the brain that controls unconscious or automatic functions in the body. Massage therapy helps this system to balance and the benefit is an improvement in your quality of sleep and your overall digestive function. In the case of constipation, we can also incorporate abdominal massage into your treatment which will directly stimulate the intestines and assist in achieving regularity. This is also something that I teach my clients to do as homecare for self massage and is very helpful.

Individual symptoms of Parkinson’s disease vary greatly. When beginning your massage therapy program, be sure to disclose your concerns to your RMT so that treatments can best be tailored to meet your specific needs.