“In the Self-Healing method, massage is used as a very important adjunct to movement therapy. Self-Healing bodywork is also a healing tool in its own right. The techniques we use are designed to:

 

• relax muscle spasms, so that the softened muscle fibers become more capable of free movement;

 

• ease the sense of constraint and tension in the body, which may be just as limiting to movement as actual tight muscles;

 

• increase circulation, by relaxing muscles so that blood can flow into areas that have hitherto been deprived of their full blood supply, and by promoting regulation of blood formation;

 

• reactivate nerves;

 

• strengthen weak muscles by improving circulation and nerve response;

 

• promote deeper respiration - an automatic result of relaxation;

 

• activate the parasympathetic, or relaxing, mechanism of the nervous system through touch and relaxation and by improving respiration;

 

• lubricate and mobilize joints and increase their range of motion;

 

• enhance digestion;

 

• balance fluid concentrations throughout the body;

 

• balance and regulate body temperatures - if your hands are cold, massage will warm them; if your knees are hot, massage will cool them;

 

• release emotions trapped in the form of body tension;

 

• provide stimulation to the sensory nerves to aid in motor action - when you feel a part of your body, you can move it more easily; 

 

• regenerate deteriorating bones;

 

• regenerate dystrophic muscles.”

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(The Handbook of Self-Healing, by Meir Schneider)