In the amount of time it takes to pop a pain pill and experience pain relief you can use a massage technique instead. It is called Effleurage. Simply apply a small amount of lotion to an area and ever so gently stroke that area in a circular motion. You can then vary the stroke by gradually getting deeper into the tissues and stroking in one direction, towards your heart. This sedates the nerve endings and puts the nerve endings to sleep. The result is instant pain relief.
If you injured an area enough to cause swelling, then you want to keep the swelling for approximately a week, a full seven to ten days. Swelling is Nature's way of rushing healing lymph, fluid that delivers antioxidants, protein, vitamins and minerals to feed the affected area. You can gently stroke this area to relieve pain but DO NOT try to get rid of this essential healing fluid.
After ten days one should begin the process of slowly removing this used up fluid that is now full of the toxic waste from the metabolism of it doing its job. If it is a limb then elevate this area above your heart. Alternate the use of heat and cold to gently squeeze out this fluid from the cells. You can go to my website: http://www.VickiAriattiMangum.com for the article on Hydrotherapy. You use heat for 5 minutes and then cold for 30 seconds alternating for approximately 30 minutes each 'session'.
Non swollen areas of less trauma can also greatly benefit from superficial strokes and gentle heat. You can also gently tap on the affected area if there is bone loss. We have cells in our bones called Osteoblasts. Osteoblasts are cells within the bone that is responsible for building more bone tissue. Osteoblasts are activated by tapping on the broken bone or the joint where there is joint erosion due to bone grinding on bone or fractures.
DO NOT tap on a broken bone before it is set in place. If you do then the bone will grow wrong in a short time and will have to be re-broken in order to set it properly. This will cause unnecessary pain and trauma to the affected area.
If you have a fracture or broken bone that cannot be set by a cast but is properly aligned you can gently rub this area and use the tapping method to speed up healing. This is especially helpful on the ribs, hips,nose, toes and fingers. FYI: You can prevent scar tissue from forming after surgery by regular massaging the incision right after surgery as soon as the bandage can be taken off. Be sure your hands are clean and sanitized as you do not want to introduce germs to this vulnerable area. Massage brings needed oxygen and blood to the incision which helps erase away scar tissue before it forms.
Massage therapy is truly a blessing for those with chronic pain and trauma.
