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Massage at ISIS...

Each massage session at ISIS is not only designed to work with your structure, but to provide the necessary educational experience to enable you to work with your own body every day in the way you sit, stand, walk and sleep.

At I.S.I.S. we have helped to eliminate TMJ symptoms, migraines, back pain, shoulder problems and edema. Our therapists have years of experience with every condition imaginable. We can make a world of difference in your body and your life. It has been shown that 80% of the conditions we suffer from on a daily basis are affected by our muscles and connective tissue. We provide many different forms of Massage Therapy and Bodywork.

Such An Ancient Therapy...

Today, we demand more from our bodies than we ever thought imaginable. We offer our bodies experiences that challenge even the healthiest and strongest of structures. But we are not alone. Since the beginning of recorded history, references to the benefits and necessity for massage to alleviate physical ailments have been recorded in every major culture of the world. Massage Therapy is designed to work with the body and offset daily routines, in many cases eliminating the need for pain medication. In this way, bodywork is not only a treat, it is a life-extending necessity.

The word "massage" is thought to be derived from five sources: from the Greek roots, massein or masso, which means strictly "to touch" or "to handle", but which more commonly means "to squeeze" or "to knead"; from the Arabic root, mass which means "to press softly"; from the Sanskrit root, makeh, which also means "to press softly"; and from the Latin root, massa, which is a direct translation of the Greek, masso. It is also derived from more recent language sources via the French verb, masser, which means "to knead", of which massage is the noun; and the Spanish root, maso, which means "dough".

It was coined by a Frenchman, LePage, in 1818, in his definitive study of the role of massage and exercise in Ayurvedic medicine. It entered the French medical lexicon in the medical encyclopedia of Piorry, but it didn't catch on in France until Estradere revived the word in 1863. Some years later, the Dutchman, Johan Georg Mezger, began to use it to describe the kind of interventions he performed, and it was by his influence and that of his disciples that the word, massage, became the preferential term for these maneuvers in Europe and the United States.

The most well-known massage master may be Per Henrik Ling who coined the term Swedish Massage to describe the gymnastic and muscle manipulation routines that he would use to restore body health at the turn of the last century.

European Bodywork & Massage

You will feel as though the world is your oyster! You will feel as you did when you were 25! You will believe in world peace! You will want to spend more time with your mother! You will want to eat only healthy food! You will love your job! You will love your life! You will love the dog barking at 3:00 in the morning! You will love the guy that cuts across three lanes of traffic on Storrow Drive!

Can massage do all that for you? Well, maybe...

Actually, we seem to only think of massage as a luxury, as something to treat ourselves occasionally. Or it's for the guy with chronic back pain. But the truth is, massage is for all of us, all the time for many reasons.

Well, you might feel all those things, but that would be miraculous. Let's just settle for an amazing experience that will correct postural imbalances, detoxify body tissues and eliminate muscular stress. It therefore can actually correct rounded shoulders, chronic migraines, pain syndromes and scar tissue formation. Now this won't happen in just one session, but progressively, as the body changes, adapts and restores normalized balance. Massage Therapy aids the traditional medical approach to soft tissue problems in a natural way, many times eliminating the need for surgery and medication. Even chiropractic care traditionally treats only bone alignment, neglecting the actual reason bones move out of place: muscular contraction. If a muscle is in spasm, or abnormally contracted, it pulls on the attached bone and that bone will shift out of alignment. Then the rest of the structure must also shift to compensate for this change. Pain has been clinically shown to be the result of muscular contraction and shifting lines of tension, either as a result of nerve compression by bone or nerve entrapment by tense muscle tissue.

Imagine a hose across your driveway. If you park your car tire on top of the hose, then water will not be able to flow through the hose. Without moving the car tire, your garden will die from lack of water. If a muscle is in spasm, it will trap the blood vessels, lymphatic vessels and nerves that pass through the muscle and the tissue down the pathway will be starved for blood, immunity and nerve stimuli. Massage Therapy releases the muscle spasm and restores normal blood flow, immunity and nerve conduction to every tissue of the body.

One of the most common complaints is pain and muscle tension in the head, neck and shoulders. These muscles carry the stress of your lifestyle and work, and they can combine to inhibit proper circulation of the head and normal jaw movement. Also movements that are repeated daily can stress the muscles, nerves and joints of the body. It can especially cause problems by limiting the range of mobility we have in our arms, hands and wrists. Activities such as computer data entry, playing the piano, a tennis game and assembly line work can repeatedly put pressure on the same key nerves, unbalancing structural muscles and changing the way in which joints move. Problems such as Carpal Tunnel Syndrome, Bursitis and Tendinitis are examples of problems that are caused by repetitive stress.

Pain in the lower back, particularly common in many men, follows the same concept. Many times herniated discs are caused by a restriction and twisting of the hip rotator muscles, including psoas major and iliacus. This can have been caused by maintaining the same posture over a lengthy period of time, causing the body to shift to imitate the chronic posture. Chronic strain of the lower back, weak abdominal muscles and pelvic imbalances all are contributing factors to lower back problems. The most common symptom of lower back and hip flexor problems is sciatica, nerve pain which follows the sciatic nerve down the back of the leg. Massage Therapy can eliminate this completely.

Chiropractic care is one of the most commonly sought-after treatments for back pain. Yet, it is the muscles that control the movement and shifting of bones. By simply adjusting the bone alignment without dealing with the accompanying and causative muscle tension, you will be back at the chiropractor every week. Also, nutrition is essential for healthy alignment. If your chiropractic adjustments don't hold, think about checking out your nutritional status with our Naturopathic Evaluations .

Another common problem is fibromyalgia, a term that has been applied to many symptoms of pain and inflammation associated with the soft tissue of the body, such as the muscles, joints and connective tissue. Many holistic therapists feel that toxic storage in joint spaces can cause the body to chronically inflame the area as an attempt to isolate the toxic residue and inactivate it. This can be caused not just by lack of elimination of toxic material, but also by lack of circulation and postural stresses. Fibromyalgia may also be a low-grade bacterial or viral problem that is isolated in soft tissue.

Regular Massage Therapy can do wondrous things for the human body:
· Increase venous circulation by up to 400%.
· It is the primary source of movement for the lymphatic system, the center of immunity.
· Stabilizes the nervous system.
· Increases the range of motion of joints.
· Relaxes muscles and lengthens muscle fibers.
· Prevent subluxations of the spine.
· Eliminate pain.
· Increase athletic performance.

So break the cycle and learn what complete relaxation really feels like!