Massage of the cervical-collar zone for adults

Massage of the neck and collar area focuses on the muscles in the neck and shoulders. Some of the muscles worked during a neck massage include the sternocleidomastoid, scalenus, and upper trapezius.

Massage of this zone is aimed at relieving tension, reducing headaches and enhancing relaxation. Various massage techniques are used to achieve a range of benefits by increasing muscle temperature, which helps improve tissue elasticity and reduce joint stiffness. Massage therapists use cervical massage to reduce pain, increase range of motion, and reduce muscle tension.

The benefits of massage of the cervical-collar zone for adults

Massage of the neck and collar area can help in various situations. Situations most often corrected with neck massage include:

• sharp pain;
• relaxation of tense muscles.

Acute pain can be the result of an injury, surgery, muscle strain, or overwork of the muscles. When an area of ​​the body is injured, pain receptors in the skin send a signal to the brain, where the message is then relayed to the nerves to cause a feeling of pain. Neck massage is aimed at reducing pain by relieving tension and disrupting the signal sent to the brain.

Muscle tension can be caused by overuse of the muscles, injury, or poor posture and can cause more severe pain. The buildup of tension can lead to increased muscle spasms or trigger points. Trigger points cause an increase in pain in a certain area if it does not compress a nerve. When a trigger point compresses a nerve, referred pain can occur, causing increased shooting pains along the nerve pathways.

Tension is relieved by increasing muscle temperature, which improves tissue elasticity. Increasing tissue elasticity allows muscles to relax and reduce tension. Reducing tension prevents trigger points and reduces acute pain.

Massage of the neck can often disrupt the signal sent by skin receptors to the brain about damage to the body. During neck massage, friction between the skin and fingers occurs, creating a new sensation for skin receptors. When a new sensation is detected, a new signal is sent to the brain that disrupts the old message of damage. The new signal sent to the brain means that the nerves are not receiving messages about the occurrence of a feeling of pain, but instead create a feeling of relaxation. Thus, increasing the feeling of relaxation reduces acute pain.

Neck massage is commonly used to enhance relaxation. Relaxation can occur within a person both physically and mentally. Physical relaxation is associated with the musculoskeletal system, while mental relaxation involves the release of certain hormones. Neck massage can improve relaxation by relieving pain and increasing positive hormones.

Pain can be caused by injury, muscle fatigue, or muscle strain. Neck massage, even at home, reduces pain by promoting increased blood flow. The blood flow is increased as a result of friction between the skin and fingers. This is used both to raise the temperature of the muscles and to supply the muscles with oxygen and nutrients. An increase in muscle temperature allows muscle fibers to relax, relieving muscle tension and discomfort. Increasing the supply of oxygen and nutrients allows for faster healing and helps maintain muscle health and strength. The removal of tightness and tension, as well as the acceleration of healing, helps to relieve pain, enhance the effect of physical relaxation.

Neck massage promotes the release of positive hormones such as serotonin, dopamine and endorphins. Positive hormones are responsible for giving a person a sense of well-being, reducing stress and increasing relaxation. The lack of positive hormones means that stress and anxiety levels can often rise, leading to insufficient mental relaxation. Increased levels of positive hormones reduce or prevent increased stress and anxiety, thereby increasing mental relaxation.

Massage of the cervical-collar zone concentrates on the sternocleidomastoid, scalene and upper trapezius muscles that make up the neck and shoulders. It is an effective remedy for relieving muscle tension. Muscle tightness is common to many people and is most often caused by poor posture, injury, or overuse of the muscles.

Neck massage aims to reduce muscle tension by reducing tissue inelasticity. Neck massage promotes increased blood flow through friction. As blood flow increases, muscle temperature rises. An increase in muscle temperature weakens the muscle fibers, allowing them to relax. Relaxed muscle fibers improve tissue elasticity and allow muscles to stretch to their full length. When muscles can stretch to their full length without restriction or pain, muscle tension is reduced.

Harm of massage of the cervical-collar zone for adults

If the sessions are conducted by a professional who takes into account contraindications, there will be no harm. But if massages are carried out without taking into account some problems, you can get the opposite result – increased pain, exacerbation of health problems.

Contraindications for massage of the cervical-collar zone for adults

Carrying out a course of massage in the area of ​​the cervical-collar zone may be contraindicated:

• in the presence of skin allergies (including creams, oils used during the session);
• with rashes and pustules in the treatment area;
• against the background of serious blood diseases and severe fragility of blood vessels;
• at high temperature, including against the background of a cold;
• if there is vomiting or nausea;
• against the background of severe diseases of the heart and kidneys (if the massage is not prescribed by a doctor);
• with fungal skin lesions;
• against the background of an active form of tuberculosis infection;
• with a hernia of the cervical or thoracic spine;
• if there are abrasions, mechanical damage to the skin in the treatment area.

How to massage the neck and collar area for adults at home

During neck massage, a wide range of techniques can be used, in particular, the following methods:

• acupressure;
• mobilization;
• skin rolling.

Acupressure (point impact) is often used during neck massage. Acupressure involves pressure on specific areas of the neck using the index and thumb fingers. It is commonly used to relieve muscle tightness and increase blood flow. When performing acupressure, an ischemic reaction occurs due to the restriction of blood flow when pressure is applied. The applied pressure induces the muscle fibers to relax, allowing the muscle spasms to soften and relax. It helps to reduce pain in the neck area. When the pressure is released, blood flow to the area increases, providing more oxygen and nutrients to the muscles, which promotes faster healing.

Mobilization includes pressure on the spinous and transverse processes located on the vertebrae of the cervical spine. As the pressure slowly builds up and releases at the same time as the rest of the pressure, each joint between the vertebrae becomes looser and more “lubricated”, allowing for increased mobility. Mobilization is helpful in reducing joint stiffness. Decreasing joint stiffness also helps reduce the tension that comes from lack of movement in the muscles surrounding the spine. Reducing joint stiffness and muscle tension helps increase flexibility and reduce pain.

skin rolling it is also regularly used in neck massage to reduce the restrictions created by fascia, the dense layer of connective tissue under the surface of the skin, and to increase blood flow. The fascia often becomes stiff due to muscle spasm, injury, surgery, or pain, which can further reduce mobility and flexibility. The increase in blood flow caused by skin rolling is used to raise the temperature of the fascia, allowing it to relax and stretch. Thus, the weakened fascia resulting from the rolling of the skin allows for increased movement at the expense of reduced restrictions. There are many benefits of neck massage:

• voltage reduction;
• reduction of stress;
• improved sensation, elimination of numbness, tingling or pain.

Reducing tension is a benefit that is often achieved through self-massage of the neck. Tension is caused by muscle fibers that remain in a state of contraction and cannot relax, resulting in increased muscle fatigue and pain. Neck massage aims to reduce tension by promoting muscle relaxation. As the muscle fibers relax, firmer massage movements can be used to penetrate deeper into the muscle fibers, increasing the relaxation of the deeper tissue layers. Deeper penetration into muscle tissues additionally increases tissue elasticity and relieves tension. Releasing tension increases range of motion and reduces pain.

Neck massage is also commonly used to reduce stress. A person can experience both physical and mental stress. Neck massage helps reduce stress by stimulating muscle relaxation and lowering cortisol levels. When the muscles are overused, it can cause a lot of tension in the muscles, causing muscle fatigue and weakness. Fatigue and weakened muscles increase the likelihood of injury and increase pain. Neck massage relieves muscle tension by increasing blood flow. The increase in blood flow occurs due to the expansion of blood vessels. When vasodilation occurs, blood can flow through the vessels, increasing the availability of oxygen and nutrients to the muscles. Oxygen and nutrients are needed to repair damaged muscles and keep muscles healthy. Increasing the availability of oxygen and nutrients speeds up healing and reduces muscle fatigue and weakness. Reducing fatigue and weakness in the muscles reduces physical stress.

Cortisol is a negative hormone that is released in response to factors such as pain. It increases the symptoms of stress, anxiety and depression. As pain increases, so does cortisol levels, further increasing stress levels. Neck massage stimulates the release of positive hormones that spread throughout the body and lowers cortisol levels. When more positive hormones are released, feelings of relaxation increase and symptoms of stress decrease. Reducing cortisol levels helps reduce mental stress.

Neck massage can help improve sensation by relieving numbness, tingling, or pain. These sensations may be the result of injury or pressure on the nerve. Neck massage can improve sensation by relieving pressure on the nerves.

Nerves are what gives us all our senses. Nerves can cause both positive sensations, such as relaxation, and negative ones, including pain. When the nerves are compressed, it causes irritation. In response to the compression, the nerve endings will create negative sensations to make the body aware that something is wrong. As this reaction, the nerves can cause numbness, shooting pain, tingling. Neck massage relieves nerve compression, reducing joint stiffness and relieving tension.

Popular questions and answers

We were answered by a professional massage therapist Alexander Kholmogorov.