What they all have in common is touch, a respectful engagement with the body.

Good touch can do many things:

• it can bring about relaxation
• it can beneficially affect your physiology: your heart rate, blood flow, respiratory pattern, blood pressure, hormone levels--even the chemicals in your brain.
• it can relieve bodily contractions and improve posture and flexibility
• it can release lactic acid and other toxins from the tissues so that they can be released from your system
• within an energy model, it can rebalance your energies, giving you the feeling of having returned home to yourself
• it can give you a powerful experience of being received, listened to, connected with--and reconnect you with many other psychological and emotional responses
• it can improve bodily awareness, so improving balance and coordination
• it can have positive effects on an unborn baby if the mother receives massage during pregnancy: such children are generally happier and more easy-going once born.

Particularly relevant to biodynamic massage is recent research into oxytocin, the so-called "hormone of love" which is released into the blood during massage. For more information, try reading this blog!

In short, massage is good for you!

People often consider regular bodywork to be merely a luxury ... until they try it and come to realise its benefits.