Rejuvenation Program Part Eight – Massage

The HPDI Rejuvenation Program provides practices, protocols, and recommendations proven over 26 years. It is a complete program to rejuvenate, regenerate, and boost vitality to body, mind, and spirit. It is especially helpful for those who want to restore health. The program emphasizes establishing basic nutrition, foundational supplement formulas, and high-RNA Rejuvenate!™ superfoods and other sources of dietary nucleic acids.

The program rests on six elements: 1) Attitude/Commitment, 2) Detoxification, 3) Preventing Toxicity, 4) Health Building Nutrition, 5) Building Powerful Immunity, and 6) Supporting Protocols. The six foundational elements remain powerful individually, but act synergistically when combined to support optimal health. The results are greatly improved capabilities for your body to heal, regenerate, rejuvenate, and restore its vitality.

In a previous article in our “Rejuvenation Program” series (part seven), we presented our Magnesium Chloride Program (part two of four articles about supporting protocols), which is an important Supporting Protocol in the Master Rejuvenation Program.

SUPPORTING PROTOCOLS FOR REJUVENATION 
(PART THREE)

In this article, we present another supporting protocol in our Master Rejuvenation Program: the Massage Program. This protocol is an important element of the Rejuvenation Program that enhances the movement of blood, lymph, and energy throughout the body.

It has been said that where there is stasis of blood, lymph, and energy there is illness. In this regard massage joins our hydrotherapy protocols that enhance cellular health throughout the body. In addition, massage works to significantly reduce stress and enhance mental functioning.

THE MASSAGE PROGRAM

I personally have been the recipient of more than 1,000 massages in the last 15 years and I don’t ever recall being less than blissful after each massage. In addition, I have given hundreds of massage treatments to my family, friends, and even my massage therapists, and I don’t ever recall any of them being less than blissful after a treatment. In almost all cases, pain has been reduced or eliminated. In some cases, longstanding health issues have been eliminated.

In my home we have three massage tables, a far-infrared massage bed with jade rollers, a body bridge, a whole body vibration machine, over a dozen small vibration devices that can be applied to the body, and numerous electrical stimulation devices that relax muscle tension and stimulate acupuncture points.

For many years we held meetings at our home in which we practiced Body Electronics, which is a method in which points on the body are held (a pressure technique) for long periods of time (usually 1–4 hours). Not only were the muscles surrounding these points softened and pain relieved, but also long-standing physical and painful emotional issues were often eliminated or reduced.

My experience with massage has made it clear how important it is to attaining and maintaining good health. It is no wonder that massage is one of the oldest healing arts. Chinese records dating back 3,000 years document its use. The ancient Hindus, Persians, and Egyptians applied forms of massage for many ailments. The Greek physician Hippocrates recommended the practice of “rubbing and friction” for joints and circulatory problems.

Our definition of massage is broad and encompasses many modalities, including: 1) Traditional Massage: the application of soft-tissue manipulation techniques to the body intended to reduce stress and fatigue while improving circulation, 2) Bodywork: various forms of touch therapies that may use manipulation, movement, and/or re-patterning to effect structural changes to the body, 3) Acupressure: the application of pressure to acupuncture points in order to adjust or correct energy flows in the body and simultaneously release muscle tension, and 4) Somatics: mind/body or whole-body approach as distinguished from physiology-only approaches.

In fact, there are more than 250 types of massage, bodywork, acupressure, somatic therapies, etc. Many practitioners utilize multiple techniques. The application of these techniques may include, but is not limited to, stroking, kneading, tapping, compression, vibration, rocking, friction, traction, and pressure applied to the muscular structure or soft tissues of the human body. This may also include non-forceful passive or active movement and/or application of techniques intended to affect the energetic systems of the body.

The use of oils, lotions, and herbs may also be included to reduce friction on skin and support therapeutic effects of the work. The concurrent use of transdermal magnesium oils and lotions and the use of essential oils are good examples of this (remember that transdermal magnesium can take away pain and relax muscles).

Benefits of massage include:

•    Alleviates low-back pain and improve range of motion
•    Assists with shorter, easier labor for expectant mothers and shorten maternity hospital stays
•    Eases medication dependence
•    Enhances immunity by stimulating lymph flow-the body’s natural defense system
•    Exercises and stretches weak, tight, or atrophied muscles
•    Helps athletes of any level prepare for, and recover from, strenuous workouts
•    Improves the condition of the body’s largest organ-the skin
•    Increases joint flexibility
•    Lessens depression and anxiety
•    Promotes tissue regeneration, reducing scar tissue and stretch marks
•    Pumps oxygen and nutrients into tissues and vital organs, improving circulation
•    Reduces post-surgery adhesions and swelling
•    Reduces spasms and cramping
•    Relaxes and soften injured, tired, and overused muscles
•    Releases endorphins-amino acids that work as the body’s natural painkiller
•    Relieves migraine pain
•    Releases stored emotions
•    Decreases anxiety
•    Enhances sleep quality
•    Improves energy levels
•    Improves concentration
•    Increases circulation
•    Reduces fatigue

Here are additional benefits of massage:

• Medical school students at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey who were massaged before an exam showed significant decreases in anxiety and respiratory rates, as well as a significant increases in white blood cells and natural killer cell activity, suggesting a benefit to the immune system.
• Preliminary results suggested cancer patients had less pain and anxiety after receiving therapeutic massage at the James Cancer Hospital and Research Institute in Columbus, Ohio.
• Women who had experienced the recent death of a child were less depressed after receiving therapeutic massage, according to a study at the University of South Carolina.
• Studies funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have found massage beneficial in improving weight gain in HIV-exposed infants and facilitating recovery in patients who underwent abdominal surgery.
• Researchers at the Touch Research Institute of University of Miami School of Medicine found that massage helps to decrease blood pressure in people with hypertension, alleviates pain in migraine sufferers, and improves alertness and performance in office workers.
• Office workers massaged regularly were more alert, performed better and were less stressed than those who weren’t massaged.
• Massage therapy decreases the effects of anxiety, tension, depression, pain, and itching in burn patients.
• Abdominal surgery patients recover more quickly after massage.
• Premature infants who are massaged gain more weight and fare better than those who do not receive massage.
• Autistic children show improved behavior after massage therapy.

The power of massage to take away pain, soften tight muscles, improve flexibility, alleviate stress, relax the entire body, improve balance, correct structural imbalances, etc. is something that we understand clearly and deeply. We believe everyone should incorporate regular massage into their Rejuvenation program in order to optimize the gains available from the program. That is, massage contributes to the synergy of  the foundational elements in program, including the supporting protocols.

Find a massage therapist with whom you are comfortable and schedule regular sessions. Or just begin to practice massage with your family and friends — you will get better as you do it! We have found that the longer you regularly have massage, the healthier you become. In this regard, it has been said that George Burns and Bob Hope received massages regularly for over 50 years and both lived to be 100 years old.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Rejuvenation Program Part Nine. Supporting Protocols Part Three – The Acupuncture Program

Rejuvenation Program Part Seven. Supporting Protocols Part Two – The Magnesium Chloride Program

Rejuvenation Program Part Six. Supporting Protocols Part One (garlic, hydrotherapy, and sauna therapy programs).

Rejuvenation Program Part Five. Beyond foundational supplements. Seven enhancement supplements that supercharge your health. CoenzymeQ10 and/or Ubiquinol, Myo-Mag, Hepa Plus, Nascent Iodine, Echinacea, Immune-Assist™.

Rejuvenation Program Part Four. The role of foundational supplements (multivitamin, Vitamin C / antioxidant formula, Rejuvenate!™ superfoods) for health.

Rejuvenation Program Part Three. Health building nutrition and the role of dietary nucleic acids (RNA, DNA, nucleosides, and nucleotides).

Rejuvenation Program Part Two. Foundational elements in the HPDI Rejuvenation Program: 1) Attitude/Commitment, 2) Detoxification, 3) Preventing Toxicity, 4) Health Building Nutrition, 5) Building Powerful Immunity, and 6) Supporting Protocols.

Rejuvenation Program Part One. Introducing the HPDI Master Rejuvenation Program and its foundational elements. The importance of Attitude/Commitment.