by Joy Thompson | Apr 27, 2017 | Blog
When you have a headache, instead of reaching directly for an OTC aid, try the following: 1) Drink a glass or two of water. Dehydration can play a big role in headaches. Coffee, alcohol, or sugary drinks can dehydrate us… 2) Eat a handful of almonds (unless you’re allergic or find that almonds are a trigger-food for a migraine; if so, skip this suggestion.) Almonds can act as a pain reliever because they contain a compound called salicin which is an ingredient in some of the popular over-the-counter medicines. 3) Take a few deep belly-breaths. Breathing by filling up your diaphragm, and completely filling up the lungs can get some extra oxygen circulating in your blood. 4) If you have some pure peppermint essential oil. rub a drop into your temples, forehead, and into hairline. *do not get too close to your eyes, and DO NOT rub your eyes with peppermint-coated fingers!* To purchase pure essential peppermint oil which can be taken internally: www.mydoterra.com/joyfulhands If your essential oil is pure enough to be taken internally, put a drop under your tongue and/or on the roof of your mouth. 5) Pinch your fingertips. there are reflexology points for the head and face on your hands and feet. Using one hand, pinch the webs and fingertips of the opposite hand. 6) Stretch! Gentle and slow neck rotations, shoulder shrugs, and neck isometrics (press palm into forehead and hold. press hand on each side of head and hold)…Hold each stretch for 5 seconds, relax for 5 seconds, and repeat 3 to 5 times. 7) Massage!! Massage can ease the pain of a headache or...
by Joy Thompson | Feb 24, 2015 | Blog
http://gty.im/71141693 I am in awe of the body and what amazing miracles we are. Never more so than when I am honored to massage a pregnant woman. I tease that this is the only way I have figured out how to massage more than one person at a time on my table. Sometimes the baby will shift around and the mom’s belly will change shape or show a foot or elbow through the skin. Other times, everybody will relax and fall asleep. What makes prenatal massage different from circulatory or deep tissue? The focus of pregnancy massage is “balance.” Other modalities’ focus is “change,” as in I am trying to bring about a change in their body. For example, I will try to release a spasmed muscle. Whereas, the pregnant body is going through daily changes: a growing, moving child; varying center of gravity; day by day body changes. So the massage having an intent to balance and calm an everchanging state of being can bring a deep state of relaxation. Although there is a “recipe” I learned in school, I can vary the session to focus on what the Mom-to-be needs. About 8 years ago, a client had extremely severe sciatica with her pregnancy and only wanted low back massage with hip stretching; so that is what I did for 30 minutes every 2 weeks for her during the last few months before the baby arrived. One client had such claustrophobia that she was unable to lay down comfortably; instead, she straddled a chair, propped her body with pillows so she could relax. We had her facing a...
