I am reading Leon Chaitow’s book How to overcome pain and I found an explanation of massage’s role in what he calls “shutting the pain gate” mechanism.
“Touching, rubbing or pressing an area of the body transmits sensations toward the spinal cord and brain along nerve pathways that are thicker than the thin fibres used to transmit pain impulses.”, explains Chaitow. These milder messages travel more quickly and therefore reach the brain sooner than pain messages. They are also produced by very low-threshold nerve endings, which are far more easily activated than pain receptors. “We appear to be able to reduce the intensity of pain messages by modifying signals coming from a painful area with gentle stimulation, such as vibration or rubbing. This is called “shutting the pain gate”.”, continues the author.
According to him, understanding how the pain gate mechanism can partially modify pain helps to explain the effectiveness of therapies such as massage and acupressure.
These therapies also induce the body to release natural painkilling hormones that can further suppress pain signals. “A combination of mechanical signals, self-produced hormones and thoughts and emotion can therefore interact to modify the degree of pain we experience.”, concludes Chaitow.
Related articles:
Does more pressure give you more benefits in massage
Proven benefits of touch or how massage helps people
