Tracey Crowley
Massage Therapist

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What Is Massage?
Massage is the organized form of touch performed by the hands to produce specific effects on the cardiovascular and muscular systems of the body. It is a natural therapy that supports relaxation, circulation, and healing.

🌸 Holistic Swedish Massage

Holistic Swedish massage is the classic style of massage, forming the foundation for many other techniques, including sports massage and deep tissue therapy.

📜 A Brief History

•     1800s Origins: Swedish body massage emerged in Europe around 1800. Per Henrik Ling (1786–1839), a Swedish physiologist and gymnastics instructor, travelled to China where he studied traditional massage techniques. Combining this knowledge with his understanding of physiology, he developed what we now know as Swedish body massage—the most widely practiced form today.
•     Royal Recognition: In 1813, the Swedish government funded Ling to establish the Royal Institute of Gymnastics in Stockholm, where he taught his system to others.
•     Global Spread: By 1860, Swedish massage had gained popularity in Britain, Europe, and America.
•     Professional Standards: In 1894, the Society of Trained Masseuses was formed to raise standards and promote massage therapy as a respected profession. That same year, Sir William Bennett opened a massage department at St George’s Hospital in London, cementing massage as an accepted medical treatment.
•     20th Century Growth: Massage was used to treat soldiers during both World Wars. Since the 1960s, with the rise of the human growth movement—which emphasized that people didn’t need to be ill to benefit from massage—demand has steadily increased.

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