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Anna's Massage Tips
Working hard or studying too long on your laptop?
Need a boost of energy and mental focus? Place your thumb behind your ear and your index finger in front of it.
Start at the top of your ear and gently rub the border, slowly moving down to the earlobe. Do both sides at the same time, and viola! You will feel more alert and charged to go on.
Anna's Massage Tips
For back comfort... If you have low back pain, particularly mild chronic pain in the sacral or sacro iliac areas, one very simple, but surprisingly effective method to relieve it is to keep your feet—either both at once or one at a time—slightly elevated on a low footrest whenever you are seated for any length of time, particularly if you work at a desk or computer.
You can purchase footrests for this purpose, or simply use a couple of thick books or a firm box. This combination, with a good lumbar support pillow, can make a huge difference in your back comfort.
Get that knot out of your neck... There's no one around to help you get the knot out of your neck. You've been sitting at the computer for entirely too long. What are you to do? Keep a small towel in the office for just this occasion.
Wet the towel and microwave for 1 ½ minutes on high. Reach in very carefully to see if it's hot enough. Wrap the towel around your neck and sit back for a minute. Once comfortably sitting, begin to stretch your neck by lowering your head for 10 seconds in each of these positions: forward, left, and right. Remove the towel, take the palms of both hands and rub in a circular motion on both sides of the neck for 30 seconds.
A Good Head Massage Goes A Long Way
For those of you who spend a lot of time "in your head," a good head massage works a variety of accu-pressure points and increases circulation to your head and brain. It is very relaxing and can take as little or as much time as you wish, but should take at least two to three minutes. Close your eyes to diminish sensory input and start by resting the bases of your palms on your forehead with the fingers positioned on the scalp. Using a firm pressure—NOT sliding your palms or fingers—rotate your hands. This moves your whole scalp. Then with your right hand, using a circular motion of your fingertips, massage the right side of your scalp. Reposition your hands as necessary to cover the entire right side of your scalp front to back and from the midline of your scalp to your ears.
Remember, not to SLIDE your fingers but to use just enough pressure to move the top layer of your scalp. Now switch and work on the left side of your head. Next, using either your index or middle fingers on both hands, place them midline of your scalp and at the edge of your hairline. Working from front to back, using the same circular pressure as before, massage these pressure points, advancing a quarter of an inch at a time. Use as little or as much pressure as feels good to you. Stop when you reach the crown of your head. The finishing touch to this massage is to take small tufts of your hair and gently pull and release it, covering the whole head; then gently scratch your entire scalp. Practicing deep breathing while doing this massage adds greatly to the benefits of this massage technique. Now you're ready to go back to work if you must, or go to sleep if it's bedtime!
Happy Massage Anna
