Pleasant Grove Therapist Spotlight - Malcolm Cross

Malcolm has been at the Pleasant Grove location since opening and has done 3,065 hours of massage!  He is also one of our lead therapists!

His favorite types of massage to do are trigger point as well as deep tissue.  His technique and pressure is smooth and deep, creating a relaxing experience as well as getting into the deeper layers of muscle hold ups.

He has always been a big supporter of holistic healing and later decided that massage therapy would help lead him to a career path where he
could provide that for others.

His favorite quote is, "We are all one or none."  His interests outside of doing massage are human rights activism, spreading world peace, hiking, traveling, and anything else that is fun and adventurous!

He says the greatest part about being a massage therapist is being able to help people with their muscular pain issues through natural means. 

Send Pain Packing!

As if your day weren’t full enough, here it comes — the unwelcome intrusion of a headache. It might be the vise grip of a tension headache, the pressure and ache of sinus pain, or the throbbing pain and nausea of a migraine. But you want it gone.

Before you simply pop a pill, “Take a step back and ask, ‘Why am I getting this headache?’ ” says Tara C. Sharma, M.D., board member of the American Association of Integrative Medicine.

Create friendly head space
Headaches can be a wake-up call from your body, inviting you to pay more attention to taking care of yourself. “Making yourself a priority isn’t selfish,” Dr. Sharma says. “It’s an investment in your well-being.”

Arrange the rhythms of your day to make room for regular meals and adequate rest since hunger and tiredness trigger headaches. And keep your mind and body on speaking terms through enjoyable exercise and relaxing rituals. Practice yoga, take an evening bath or, like Dr. Sharma, get a weekly massage.

Even a single massage may boost your body’s immune response, suggests a 2010 study in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine. Fewer colds can mean fewer sinus infections and headaches.

Ease the Ache 
When a headache does come calling, how do you chase it away? Since overuse of medication can trigger rebound headaches, consider these tips:

1. Try a little do-it-yourself acupressure. Press your thumb into the web between your opposite thumb and index finger. Hold for 30 to 40 seconds to relieve headache pain. Repeat on the other side.

2. Steam away sinus pain and pressure. Put a few drops of eucalyptus and tea tree oil in a bowl of boiling water and breathe in the steam to relieve congestion.

3. Breathe. Slow, deep breaths short-circuit the fight-or-flight stress response and activate the calming effects of the parasympathetic nervous system, Dr. Sharma explains.

“The jungle out there is not going to change,” Dr. Sharma says. “It’s how you respond to stress that makes a difference.”

Stand Up to Back Pain

Chronic back pain is the second most common cause of disability and a top reason for missing work. We all know the soreness associated with an overly exuberant exercise session. But did you know that most Americans experience pain as the result of improper posture while sitting and standing? It’s true, we can cause back pain by just sitting. Being overweight, poor posture, and repetitive or overuse movements all can put strain on the low back, as can sleeping on a bad mattress and using a workstation that isn’t set up ergonomically.

So literally, it’s time to stand up to back pain. Changing your posture and position change help ease lower back pain. If you have a desk job, plan in short breaks every half-hour or so to stand, stretch and walk around for a few minutes.

Therapeutic massage gets to the root of the pain by relaxing those tight muscles and addressing trigger points to put a stop to the pain cycle. Massage also increases blood flow to the affected muscles, which brings in healing oxygen and nutrients, and helps remove the waste products of cellular metabolism. All of this activity reduces swelling and stiffness and increases flexibility to help eliminate pain. Massage therapy also releases endorphins and boosts your levels of serotonin and dopamine, all hormones your body produces to help you feel good, promote healing and pain management, and calm the nerves sending those cyclical pain signals.

Q & Ahhh: March 3, 2010

Introducing the Q & Ahhh column!  Each month, we'll answer one of our reader's questions.  Here's the first:


Q: How does receiving massage help reduce stress?

A: We all know that certain types of constant stress in our lives are not healthy. But did you know that recent evidence indicates the physical changes associated with stress may contribute to the leading causes of death – heart disease and cancer. In addition, stress can create and/or exacerbate many physical and emotional conditions such as chronic fatigue, digestive upset, headaches, back pain, high blood pressure and risk of stroke.

A recent study conducted by Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles recruited 53 healthy adults and assigned them to receive deep tissue, Swedish and light touch massage. Blood samples were taken immediately before the massage and up to an hour afterward. The researchers found that a single session of massage caused biological changes.

Volunteers showed significant decreases in levels of the stress hormone cortisol. They also had increases in white blood cells that are part of the immune system.  Volunteers experienced greater increases in a hormone associated with contentment and bigger decreases in adrenal hormone, which stimulates the adrenal glands to release cortisol. While cortisol is an important and helpful part of the body’s response to stress, higher and prolonged levels of cortisol in the bloodstream, such as those associated with chronic stress, have been shown to have negative effects. What this study shows is that receiving massage actually activates the body on an internal level to respond and correct the physiological imbalance caused by our stressful lives.

- C.G. Funk, Licensed Massage Therapist and Vice President of Industry
Relations and Product Development for Massage Envy