Massage is the manipulation of the body’s soft tissues. Massage techniques are commonly applied using hands on techniques with hands, fingers, elbows, knees, forearms, feet, or a massage equipment. The word comes from the French massage “friction of kneading,” which, in turn, comes from the Arabic word مَسَّ massa meaning “to touch, feel.” 

Massage has been known to have many benefits for the human body. The action of effleurage (circular continuous gliding over skin), petrissage (kneading of the soft tissues) and tapotement (gentle striking of soft tissues) not only relaxes tense muscles, it improves blood circulation which then increases relaxation and reduces stress levels. Of its many benefits, it has been shown to boost our immune system by flushing toxins through our lymphatic system, thus getting rid of unwanted waste. This keeps our body healthy and free of excess toxins that can be detrimental to our health.

Can you actually get wrist pain from using your devices (handphone, tablet) too much? The simple answer is, YES!

A study on this issue revealed that it is in fact, common among mobile phone users. Besides, they also found that time spent on mobile phones correlates with higher frequency of wrist pain and disabilities.

This is alarming, as the world we live in right now can no longer function without mobile phones. We rely on them for everything – payment, work, getting grab rides, and entertainment, to name a few.

So how do we know that too much is too much? Does our daily posture affect wrist pain too? And what can we do to reduce our wrist pain?

We all know the benefits of exercise such as improved physical and mental wellbeing, improved performance, improved energy levels, etc. However, we also know that after exercise, we will experience discomfort in our muscles due to the stress that exercise place on our bodies. This discomfort is normal after exercise and it is called delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS).

DOMS is often confused with actual pain from injury. Pain is an unhealthy and abnormal response which signals that there is something wrong with our body and we need to do something about it. In the lower back, it is even more confusing because the symptoms may be very similar. Therefore, it is important to understand the difference between pain and DOMS. Here are some ways you can differentiate them.