History of Therapeutic Massage

Massage therapy is considered to be one of the oldest, if not the oldest, treatments for relieving the body of its infirmities.

A Chinese book, dating back to 2700 B.C., suggests the use of massage and breathing exercises as the most effective treatment for paralysis, chills, and fever. Paintings found in ancient Egyptian tombs document the use of massage, reflexology, and aromatic oils. Even the Bible mentions the anointing of the body with oil. The rubbing of the oil into the skin is thought by many to have been a form of massage therapy.

Almost every country of the world has developed its own brand of massage therapy. Through the work of a 16th-century, French doctor and fencer, Ambroise Pare, the Western world began enjoying a revival of massage. Swedish massage, the form most familiar form of massage in this part of the world, was developed in the 19th century by a doctor named Per Henrik Ling. He borrowed the ancient techniques, and combined them into a system of therapy which was based upon his understanding of gymnastics and physiology. By the late 19th century, massages were routinely available at YMCAs and YWCAs.

In the '60s and '70s, massage as a healing art fell out of favour with the emergence of "massage parlors," and with the growing impression that massage was for athletes or the wealthy. However, massage therapy has undergone an explosion of growth over the last two decades. Now it is commonly accepted throughout the medical world as an effective and true medical art, and is successfully used in hospitals, pain clinics, rehabilitation facilities, and drug treatment clinics for people of all ages with a variety of medical conditions.