Nikki Jongedyk – Remedial Massage Therapist
Remedial Massage Therapy can best support gut health by reducing our stress levels.
Direct massage therapy to the cervical spine (your neck), stimulates your vagus nerve, which controls much of the parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) aka: our rest and digest state. If we can get the vagal nerve to calm the body, the GI system will have a better chance at managing the health of your gut. You may in turn find relief from stress related gut issues that are causing discomfort or imbalance.
It’s important to have our own individual self-management strategies for stimulating our PNS and shifting out of our sympathetic fight or flight mode. One of my favourites is using a Shakti Mat. Shakti Mat’s consist of 100’s of fine little points that you lie down on.
These points stimulate your proprioception and your body responds to the pressure by increasing blood flow and heat, and activating your parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest). They are fantastic to use before bed to improve the quality of your sleep. Better sleep also happens to mean better gut health. Shakti Mat’s are available from our clinic or online. If you would like to try it out, we offer a demo Shakti, which you can borrow for one week free of charge. Just shoot me an email or find me in the clinic Monday, Wednesday, Thursday or Saturday.