By Jack Rafferty

This week I wrote an article highlighting the health benefits of massage therapy. My very first job was at a day spa. While I was hired to fold robes and fill water glasses for nearly naked women, what I enjoyed most about the job was the discount I received on massage sessions. Working in that environment, I was able to witness first hand the powerful affect that massage can have on a person’s mental state.
Stress is a common bond that all people share, including eighth graders. For the year and a half that I worked there I would get an hour-massage every few weeks. To most of my friends and family this seemed excessive, but few of them had experienced the state of relaxation following a massage. As students we come to know the effects of stress so well, that we can begin to forget what it feels like to truly relax. While some students use alcohol or drugs to escape stress, I think what they achieve is absence of thought or feeling, not deep relaxation.

The side effects most often associated with stress are caused by the steroid hormone cortisol.  Cortisol, produced by the adrenal gland, can weaken the activity of the immune system, reduce bone formation and increase blood pressure. Research has found that both alcohol and marijuana increase the levels of cortisol in the body, thereby increasing the effects of stress. Pressure therapy has been proven to reduce the level of cortisol in the body.

In 2009, approximately 48 million adult Americans had a massage at least once According to the American Massage Therapy Association. While the cost of a massage is sometimes hard to justify for most students, I think in a world full of stress, deep relaxation is hard to find and well worth the cost.  Next time you are feeling stressed, instead of getting drunk or stoned get a hot stone massage and experience the serenity I feel in love with so long ago.

http://www.amtamassage.org/

http://www.webmd.com/