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| I've been slowly discovering the different ways I can help heal and improve the way my body functions-- specifically, I have always had problems in my stomach and mid-section area. I internalize most of my stress at the core between my ribs, have many food allergies--which like most who do, find out the hard way and as a female, irregular menstrual cycles. (too much information??) 
Anyway, my massage therapist starting doing some ab massages and I feel it's helping out tremendously. I also feel that doing Bikram yoga has dramatically helped regulate and develop my core. So after years of suffering and trying new things, I finally feel that the combination of regular deep ab massages and Bikram yoga-- think purifying, cleansing, drenching, stretching in heat!! have all been so helpful. But the ab massages really top it off because it's a direct and intense stimulation. a real treat after working out.
Anyone else have had good (or bad) experiences with stomach massages? Knowledgeable or curiosity in it? Is it even safe?
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| There's also a purifying technique in the Hatha Yoga Pradipika for stomachs that involves using the abs to churn the abdominal area. |
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| i'm not familiar with that, but I'll check it out and see which studios in my area have that. thanks!
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| heliotrope - 2006-01-29 9:46 PM
i'm not familiar with that, but I'll check it out and see which studios in my area have that. thanks!
Probably for the best, it looks like a very advanced technique, so it's good to have some instruction. I've seen the teacher at the local studio do it, but she's been at this for more years than I've been alive.  |
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| Hi Lisa,
Boy, did you ask the right question! I think everyone would benefit from weekly abdominal massage. I worked for an acupuncturist (an older Chinese lady) in SF years ago and she got an hour long abdominal every week. In her opinion, having weekly abdominal massage keeps all kinds of awful illnesses away.
In Chinese medicine (where acupuncture comes from) there is a specific type of abdominal massage called Chi Nei Tsang (chee nay zang). I used to get chi nei tsang about once a month (in SF) and I found it can sometimes be a bit uncomfortable but it's really good to massage the organs and their connective tissue. We store lots of emotions in our gut, especially women.
Here's a site that might help you along your healing journey. This particular person, Mantak Chia, is considered one of the modern pioneers in abdominal massage. I'm not suggesting you buy his products or books. At least you can read a little blurb and google some more and find exactly what you're looking for.
http://www.healingdao.com/v67.html
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| wonderful! thanks!
last week I got an ab massage because I was suffering a lot of stomach pain-- a combination of internalizing a lot of worries and probably some things I ate. Anyway, it had been a while since I've gotten an ab massage and during the session, I was amazed...
first, it was painful but the good kind. my massage therapist (and I) felt knots and hard spots moving around. I felt that when she massaged a certain spot, a feeling of electricity was shooting through my entire body and my head was buzzing. yeah crazy. secondly, i felt a sensation that was intense and suprising-- I felt as if hot hot water poured from my stomach down to my spine...internally. it was a quiet, slow feeling of hot liquid traveling down to my spine. i honestly thought water was being poured on me! i wasn't fully cured at the end of the session but i felt good.
the next day during my bikram class, i was so energized. and after it, after sweating buckets, I felt so cleansed. i think the abdomen is so often and easily overlooked when it comes to deep massages. it's probably not for everyone-- it's painful sometimes and well, ticklish. but when you take deep breaths and focus (yet relax) it is amazing!
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| I always like hearing how people describe their healing sessions, whether it's massage, acupuncture, Reiki, yoga...
In San Francisco, or maybe it was in Oakland (somewhere in the Bay Area), there's a Chi Nei Tsang Institute.
Anyway, it sounds like you've found a really good massage therapist who knows what they're doing.
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
  
Location: A Blue State |
Stomach massage doesn't sound too fun, unless it's a really really light touch.
But I wonder, how does anyone like massage? I don't want people putting their
hands all over me. Is this actually pleasant?
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Expert Yogi
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| Nope - belly massage is very nice. Can be intense, but it is very cleansing feeling. Gotta find a good practitioner, though. |
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| I have a similar reaction to massage since it's a stranger touching my body, but I get over it. |
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| Abdominal massage is very intimate, no that's not the right word. The right word is vulnerablity. (Funny, right now I'm thinking of how my dog likes his tummy rubbed  )
At least with the Chinese version (Chi Nei Tsang) someone is basically doing acupressure on your gut. Some areas are definitely more tender than others. It's like reflexology. There's gentler tummy rubs but I think it's still a vulnerable part of one's anatomy. Men will usually get erections, which is normal due to the increase in circulation. I've noticed that this can be a great but intimidating treatment for women with a history of sexual abuse. It maybe a bit on the na-nu na-nu side but the icky emotions attached to sex abuse often end up stagnating between the belly button and pubic bone if they (the emotions) are just stuffed away.
Yoga is also great to move the stagnant energy.
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| After regular stomach massages, I've noticed much improvement. I get indigestion easily but I can't remember the last time I had it! I don't know what happens chemically in the internal organs of this area but I think just as the muscles we have massaged (back, shoulders, legs...) need kneading and squeezing to feel great, so do our tummies... |
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| yogic practices for the stomach area are Nauli, Uddhiyana, and Agni Sara (perhaps more, these come to mind). I've been haphazardly trying these things out for awhile now. it doesn't seem dangerous to me. get a book and try it out. or a video, or a teacher, the main benefit of which will be that you'll probably be able to learn easier and better from a real person. It does take awhile to learn how to control those muscles precisely. It's a great exercise in waking up body consciousness. Stomach massage is excellent, and in addition to all the things that have been mentioned here, the Psoas can be accessed by doing massage in the abdomen. again, you have to find a well trained practitioner to do this, but the psoas is SO KEY! it is the only muscle in the body that connects the upper half with the lower half without touching the pelvis (goes from spine to thigh bone) and in a lot of people it is dormant, not working, locked up, etc. it's probably dysfunctional in most of the "general" population, and lots of the "rest of us" ;) too. it is very deep, behind the intestines, and yes can be intense to have work done there, but the freedom of bodily movement, the waking up numb areas of the body, and other structural benefits far outweigh the initial discomfort, which mainly comes from it being an unfamilar, scary, vulnerable place to have touched. Best,
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| Yes it is perfectly safe for a ab massage the abs have lots to do with the low back also it hurts like the hell but its worth it in the long run take care |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State | Shiva - 2006-02-06 11:42 PM
yogic practices for the stomach area are Nauli, Uddhiyana, and Agni Sara (perhaps more, these come to mind ). I've been haphazardly trying these things out for awhile now. it doesn't seem dangerous to me. get a book and try it out. or a video, or a teacher, the main benefit of which will be that you'll probably be able to learn easier and better from a real person. It does take awhile to learn how to control those muscles precisely. It's a great exercise in waking up body consciousness. Stomach massage is excellent, and in addition to all the things that have been mentioned here, the Psoas can be accessed by doing massage in the abdomen. again, you have to find a well trained practitioner to do this, but the psoas is SO KEY! it is the only muscle in the body that connects the upper half with the lower half without touching the pelvis (goes from spine to thigh bone) and in a lot of people it is dormant, not working, locked up, etc. it's probably dysfunctional in most of the "general" population, and lots of the "rest of us" ;) too. it is very deep, behind the intestines, and yes can be intense to have work done there, but the freedom of bodily movement, the waking up numb areas of the body, and other structural benefits far outweigh the initial discomfort, which mainly comes from it being an unfamilar, scary, vulnerable place to have touched. Best,
Nauli is great. But your comment about the "dormant" psoas muscle --- it is so key to
backbending! I can't get through a practice of backbends without getting to be totally
conscious of that muscle. I feel its presence on the lumbar spine and I feel it through
the pelvic region. You can't do deep backbends without having that muscle totally involved.
And counterpose to backbending is so tied up in relaxing the psoas. .... dear, what do I
mean..I guess I mean that the psoas muscle, which is about as thick as your wrist, is
underemphasized in comparison to more visible muscles.. the biceps isn't much bigger in
most of us.
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
| psoas - my nemesis! My massage and Hellerworker people have worked that poor thing from every which angle and there is still much, much work to do. I have a feeling I have a teeny, tiny adhesion somewhere that we haven't quite cracked. One day the perfect Urdhva Dhanurasana will clear it right up, I am sure of that! |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 2479
Location: A Blue State |
Maybe just try some lunges or a flying leap into Hanumanasana -- something
is bound to give!!  |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 8442
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Member
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| There are many great benefits of stomach massages. Here are some of the best ones:
1. Stomach massage for a shapely figure
2. Can reduce bulging tummy
3. Also good for blood circulation
4. Very easy and convenient |
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Stomach massage
