Parkinson's: Benefits of Massage

Snarky Parky & me

A Journey Into Parkinson's with Nancy Mellon

Coordinated by Corrine Bayraktaroglu

 Yes!

Massage Is Therapy

Image by Peggy und Marco Lachmann-Anke from Pixabay

One-two times a night, when my medicine runs out, I groggily come to. My eyes feel glued shut. I extend a hand to my side table  and walk my fingers around the top of it until I feel my phone. I turn it almost upside down, so it won't be too bright and peek at the time.

Can I take my medicine or do I have to wait? 

Sometimes, I get a bonus of a half hour- every once in a while- I get two miraculous hours of sleeping past when my dose is due!

At night, I do not set a timer. 

 I might not get back to sleep.

Whatever sleep I can get,

 I want it..

In the middle of the night, I am 105, very stiff and slow. It is hard to get my body levered up, out of the bed.  It is dark.  I try to be quiet, but I often drop things and they always seem to crash off the metal lamp. Steven says I don't wake him up, but that always seems to be the moment he decides he needs to go to the loo.

Shhh- don't tell anyone - My husband is really Superman. He solves problems and takes care of us all.  The other day, he went on Amazon and bought a traveling massage table. Not only that, he also bought... wait for it... a heating blanket for it.  Ah, that is good, very good.

He decided that he would give me a massage every night before bedtime. (Finally we are getting to the topic of this post! Did you think I never would?)

Getting a massage sounds so decadent and it is! 

Besides the pure pleasure of getting a massage, I feel my stress level has gone down.  It has also lessened my rigidity during the night. When I get up to take my medicine, it is usually, easier to move.  I also think, I haven't been dealing with as much rigidity on my morning off times, either. Thank you Steven!

(I know, my husband has not had the training done to do a professional massage. But he has an advanced degree in Love. And warm hands! )

I am sure you will gain a lot from going to a person who has been trained in massage therapy. In the articles, I have read about Massage and Parkinson's, they talk about getting a referral for a massage therapist who has worked with other people who have Parkinson's.  You  can get a referral from your doctor or your neurologist or the Parkinson's Foundation. Or better yet, get a referral from friends who also have Parkinson's.  Or you can also ask a therapist if they have worked with Parkinson's patients before. 

(Check your insurance,  some will cover massage for people with Parkinson's.)

Massage for Parkinson's has not had a lot of research done on it.  But there has been some done. These are  a few examples:

 “In one study, a group of adults with Parkinson’s disease who received two massages a week for five weeks experienced improved daily functioning, increased quality of sleep and decreased stress-hormone levels.

“In another study, a woman with PD who could not walk on her own received one weekly massage for five weeks, and showed a decrease in resting tremors after every session, as well as an overall improvement in gait.”

 (Remember, you don't have to have Parkinson's to receive a benefit from massage!

Care partners and friend's and family could all use 

 a good dose of massage too! )

What could be the benefits of massage for you?

• reduced stress, anxiety and depression

• reduced pain

•reduced constipation

•improved flexibility and mobility

•improved circulation and elimination of waste and toxins

•improved quality of sleep

•greater sense of self-awareness and well being

•improved vitality

Cheers,

Nancy & the Snark