Cannabis has become a part of mainstream culture, mentioned daily by national media outlets and losing its stigma as more and more states legalize marijuana and more people turn to the benefits of cannabis for pain relief, stress relief and treatment for anxiety disorders such as ptsd, and other medical uses. Cannabis has even shown its merit in the field of massage therapy, giving therapists a new vehicle through which to provide added relief and benefits to their patients. Some of the techniques utilized by professional massage therapists who use marijuana in massage can be practiced by anyone. Here is a description of how marijuana is used in massage by professional therapists, and how you can safely incorporate cannabis into self-massage or partner massage.
Cannabis oil has been show to reduce pain and help release tension in the muscles, making it a lot easier for the massage therapist to really get in there and do their thing to fully release the tension and loosen the muscle. CBDs, which are compounds found in different concentrations in different marijuana strains, have been shown to reduce the time it takes to heal and recover from injuries to the connective tissues. Marijuana's greatest benefit to massage however may be in its ability to reduce anxiety and help you relax so that the massage will be more effective. If you're not used to getting a massage, having a stranger touching all over your back and possibly triggering a lot of pain in the muscles as tension is release can be very uncomfortable, to say the least. The relaxing properties of THC in marijuana ingested pre-massage can help you be less self-conscious so that you can loosen up and get the greatest benefit from the treatment.
Using cannabis oil and other marijuana topicals in massage is becoming trendy in modern culture, but it is nothing new. Marijuana has been used for its therapeutic and medicinal benefits for thousands of years, practiced in ancient Egypt, China, and Mesopotamia, as well. The oldest surviving medical texts from these cultures mention cannabis use as if it's a long-known, well established medical treatment. Marijuana was used by the ancients to treat inflamation, fever, pain, and many other maladies and complaints. One treatment used in ancient Egypt was to rub an ointment containing cannabis oil on affected parts of the body to help relieve soreness and inflamation.
Today, massage therapists who use marijuana and massage hand in hand use marijuana infused creams and oils to enhance the massage treatment.The Lodo Massage Studio in Denver, for instance, offers a massage in which a cannabis-infused pain relieving cream is rubbed into the muscles as part of a deep tissue massage or other massage therapy session. The formula they use is reputed to have a soothing, cooling sensation that provides relief from pain as well as anti-inflammatory benefits. It's called Apothecanna's Pain Crème, and it contains a mixture of THC, CBD, arnica, peppermint, and juniper. Apothecanna has a whole line of different marijuana-infused massage products, each formulated to provide relieving, calming, or stimulating effects. Life Flower Dispensary in Glendale offers Apothecanna products, and they have a dispensary deal where they offer 10% off topicals every Tuesday. Such massage creams and oils won't get you high, but they can certainly help relax the body.
If you're traveling to Denver and interested in a marijuana massage, you can schedule one through many of the marijuana tour companies including Colorado Cannabis Tours and My 420 Tours.
Even if you're not a trained massage therapist, you can still reap the benefits of marijuana massage safely at home. The rule is to not go deep unless you definitely know what you're doing—leave deep tissue massage to the professionals, as you can accidentally do serious injury if you manipulate the muscles incorrectly. But if you keep your touch gentle and your strokes light, moving your hands in slow circles or rubbing them up and down across the muscles, you can gain a lot of relief. You can practice gentle touch massage on yourself or on others, and there are many ways to utilize marijuana to enhance the massage. You can incorporate marijuana infused oils and creams like the professionals do, if you're wary of catching a buzz but would like to enjoy the pain-relieving, muscle-relaxing benefits of marijuana. You might even try your hand at creating your own homemade cannabis tinctures. If you're looking for pain relief and muscle relaxation as well as the blissful buzz, your best bet is to ingest thc-containing marijuana pre-massage. Smoking marijuana or consuming edibles will relax the mind as well as the body, providing both a psychoactive and a physical effect. Be sure to use caution if you've never tried psychoactive marijuana before, and if you're pregnant or you have any physical, mental, or medical conditions, ask a doctor first just to be on the safe side. Especially with edibles, first timers should be careful and moderate with dosage until they get used to the way cannabis uniquely affects their mind and body. Start slowly by bringing just a little cannabis into your massages, and work your way up to using marijuana in higher dosages and concentrations after you're sure you like the effect. If you're uncertain, just stick with the marijuana-infused creams and oils and skip the high.
To learn more about marijuana massage, check out this article from Massage Magazine.
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