Project Description
Hot Stone Therapy
The application of heated stones warms and relaxes tight muscles, allowing your therapist to more easily work through painful superficial tension into deeper tissues for more effective work and longer lasting pain relief. Greene Massage and Bodywork uses Synergy Massage Stones for hot stone therapy, modern ceramic massage tools that are specially shaped to aid the therapeutic benefits of massage and hold heat longer than other methods.
Hot stone therapy arrived in the west in 1993, having been used in healing arts for thousands of years in many places around the world. Possibly originating 5,000 years ago in India, Ayurvedic practitioners would heat river stones and apply them to the body with herbal oils to cure a variety of ailments and illnesses. Present in ancient Japan and China 2,000 years ago, the application of heated stones were thought to improve the function of certain organs when applied to specific areas of the body. Similar practices were found in the bath houses of Ancient Greece and Rome, used in conjunction with hot immersion baths, even cool marble stones and cold pools were used for their therapeutic benefits. For hundreds of years Hawaiians have also used hot stones for massage and healing, placing heated lava stones on the body to increase blood circulation.
Cryotherapy
Sometimes referred to as ice massage, the application of cold tools can create an analgesic or numbing effect due to vasoconstriction. Reduced blood flow can ease inflammation and help to reduce pain. This type of therapy is especially beneficial for those experiencing pain due to arthritis and migraines.
Perhaps the oldest treatment for injuries, the therapeutic benefits of cold have been known for thousands of years. This type of therapy is mentioned in the works of ancient physicians and scientists such as Hippocrates, Galen, Avicenna; and the Egyptians were using cold therapy as early as 2500 BC in the treatment of inflammation and injuries. In 1978 Dr. Toshima Yamauchi developed “whole body cryotherapy” for pain management of rheumatoid arthritis, and began developing modern cryotherapy chambers. In the 1980s Polish scientists adapted Dr. Yamaguchi’s approach to decrease muscle recovery time and increase performance in athletes.