Hello East Wind followers. Today I am going to be going over how our posture may affect our blood pressure and how massage can be beneficial in correcting one’s posture. Let me begin by going over a little bit of anatomy so we are all on the same page with our thoughts. First, when we are talking about blood pressure we are referring to “the pressure of the blood in the circulatory system, often measured for diagnosis since it is closely related to the force and rate of the heartbeat and the diameter and elasticity of the arterial walls.” per google dictionary. Secondly, I will be going over capillary hydro-static pressure which is the force that drives fluid out of capillaries and into the tissues.
The hydro-static pressure in our arteries is very important to the overall health of our bodies. When we are in homeostasis this pressure is maintained at an optimal level so all of the organs and tissues in the body get the nutrients they need from the blood. Now when the musculoskeletal system gets out of alignment do to tense muscle the hydro-static pressure of the blood vessels in that particular area increases. The force of the tense muscle push in on the blood vessels creating back-flow of blood (think of a garden hose that is being stepped on). Some blood still gets through but the back-flow is exchanging blood more often in tense muscle area instead of surrounding areas. Massaging areas of tense muscle helps them to relax and improves the flow of blood to all of the surrounding tissues while pushing stagnate blood back into circulation.
When our posture becomes out of alignment all of the tissues and vessels in the misaligned area are effected in multiple ways. One way is compression of the tissues in the area creating more pressure on the blood vessels as stated in the previous paragraph. The other way is that the blood vessels are now being stretched and bent on the side of the hypoactive (weaker) muscles, and scrunched on the side with the hyperactive (stronger) muscles creating higher hydro-static pressure (think of a garden hose that is now being bent in half). As with the previous situation, this one can also be improved with massage by helping the hyperactive muscle relax letting the skeletal system go back to a neutral position allowing the blood vessels to straighten and relax back out so the blood can travel through the entire blood vessel reaching all of the innervated tissues. And that is how massage can help maintain steady blood pressure.
The massage team here at East Wind Acupuncture will be happy to be part of your journey to homeostasis so call today to set up an appointment with one of our amazing therapists.
Sean