Relieve stress and anxiety and find your inner peace

Anxiety can be an overwhelming and isolating experience, but there is hope. By understanding the mechanisms behind anxiety and exploring new approaches like Pranamat massage, you can take control of your mental health and promote a sense of calm and inner peace. In this article, we invite you to explore the potential of Pranamat and discover how it can be a transformative tool in your journey to manage anxiety.

What is anxiety?

Anxiety is a feeling of unease, worry or fear that can range from mild to severe. All of us experience anxiety in at least a causal form, or get occasional anxiety. For example we might feel anything from jitters to intense fear before a job interview, or get waves of anxiety while waiting for a loved one to emerge from a surgery. It’s a normal part of human experience, and doesn't always denote an anxiety disorder or mental health problem.

Anxiety disorders: when fear stops being useful

Anxiety is nature’s way of protecting us from genuine threats. We get physical symptoms; our cortisol levels increase, rapid heartbeat we become highly alert, our veins course with adrenaline in order that we can react with speed and strength if under attack. But modern life is made up less of saber-tooth tigers, and more of public speaking. And this extreme biochemical reaction sometimes does more harm than good, it becomes known as generalized anxiety disorder.

Physical symptoms of anxiety: a vicious cycle

When in a moderately anxious state, concentrating on simple tasks can become overwhelming. Holding a conversation, buying groceries, carrying out career-related tasks that we could usually do in our sleep become stressful and our minds cannot focus on the task at hand. This is because the brain is in this state of “emergency” or survival - like a siren going off that drowns out the low rumble of daily activities. This inability to function at the requisite level can (and does) lead to stress as deadlines approach, causing further anxiety and the vicious circle continues. Evidence based stress management techniques can help reduce anxiety.

Anti anxiety medications

Anti anxiety medications serve an important role to treat anxiety disorders, but are unfortunately associated with undesirable side-effects, addiction. Talk therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) or exposure therapy with a trained mental health professional can also help alleviate chronic anxiety and specific phobias.

Who is at risk for anxiety disorders?

Adverse life events, genetic and environmental factors, physical health problems and mental health conditions are all considered risk factors for anxiety or panic attack.

Symptoms of anxiety disorders

People with anxiety disorders feel extreme fear, social anxiety, panic attacks. There is also a positive anxiety and depression association or correlation. Symptoms of anxiety disorders can vary. For example, social anxiety disorder (previously called social phobia) means anxiety symptoms worse as the date of a social event approaches. The physical symptoms may include feeling sick, sweating, trembling or heart palpitations. In order to avoid this intense fear, people with social anxiety disorders are sometimes forced to limit their world; avoiding doing presentations at work, missing important celebrations with family and sometimes becoming imprisoned by their anxiety disorder.

Hope in anxiety disorders: massage at home

We’ve learnt that this problem caused in the body can be resolved by the body. That may sound like new-age mumbo-jumbo, but it’s 100% evidence based and clinically sound. Let me explain why.

How can Pranamat help with the symptoms of anxiety?

When our caveman ancestors were faced with a threat, alongside the fear response, came the endorphin response. Endorphins are released when we anticipate pain. They are opioid-type painkillers that occur naturally in the brain and also have an intensely calming effect.

Bio-hacking all types of anxiety disorders

The Pranamat Massage Set triggers the release of this powerful wave of physical and emotional relief. When you lay down, the patented lotus spikes press against your skin, simulating a widespread pain signal, without actually hurting. The brain interprets this “pain information” and releases a potent dose of endorphins. This happens within 2-5 minutes of starting your massage. You’ll know it’s happening when you stop feeling the mild discomfort and get a sudden, intense, blissful feeling of comfort, peace, timelessness and floating on air. 

Proven relief from anxiety, at your fingertips

There are various ways in which Pranamat massage is known to benefit anxiety symptoms. In a 2014 study, a twenty minute massage each day was found to be 90% effective against anxiety and stress. That means that 90% of study participants reported significant relief from anxiety when used daily over a 30-day period.

Types of anxiety disorders

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD)

Generalized anxiety disorder is one of the most common anxiety disorders. Generalized anxiety disorder symptoms can include difficulty concentrating, “irrational” fear and worrying about any number of otherwise disconnected issues. Many people with anxiety disorders report feeling anxious and fearful every day, and can swap out one worry for another, often not being able to remember feeling at ease or relaxed.

Separation anxiety disorder

Separation anxiety disorder is generally considered to be common in early childhood, between the ages of six months and three years old. Separation anxiety is a normal part of child development and a sign of the strong bond to their primary carers. What's not talked about so much is the intense anxiety that you feel as a parent, the first time you leave your toddler at daycare, seeing them distressed and ignoring your instincts to hold on to them in order to reduce anxiety. It's not easy. But it will help them to manage stress, form friendships and reduce social anxiety later in life. Knowing this can help ease parental or carer separation anxiety.

Panic attacks

If you've experienced the intense fear of a panic attack even once in your life, you never forget it. General risk factors for panic disorder can occur during stressful life events such as divorce, bereavement, job loss, physical illness or a specific phobia. It is excessive fear in the face of no actual danger. Panic attacks are terrifying and isolating, as you can believe that you are dying, and in addition feel that there is something "wrong with you". Support groups can help relieve symptoms, as well as remove the stigma of living with mental illnesses. The persistent fear that an attack might happen can be combatted by taking proactive steps in stress management, addressing any sleep problems, noticing when your symptoms occur and raising your self consciousness with mindful practices such as yoga, mediation and massage. While you can't cure anxiety disorders overnight, they are often causal and fleeting. It will pass. And you have the power to take control of your mental health and promote an inner life that feels safe and calm.

Social anxiety disorder

Many people suffer from social anxiety, a specific phobia of being in groups of people, which can be isolating. This is often coupled with a kind of “anxiety shame” since it feels hard to explain to a friend, loved one or colleague that we’re feeling too anxious to attend their gathering, or were forced to leave early due to rising anxiety. This compounds the loneliness of the condition, since we’re unable to share our inner world with the people closest to us, and we feel guilt that we somehow “let them down”.

Traumatic events and post traumatic stress disorder

Anxiety can be specifically triggered, such as when living with PTSD. It comes out of nowhere and takes you to a place of fear - simply being reminded of the traumatic event by a smell, a song, a make of car, an accent, a TV show, the mention of a city… can all cause re-living of the trauma, difficulty concentrating, anxiety and fear. For this type of anxiety, there are effective therapies that address the root cause - the misplacement of the memory into the EMERGENCY section of our mental library. But for managing the day-to-day symptoms, there is Pranamat. This type of massage can be combined with exercise, meditation for anxiety, or other natural remedies for anxiety.

How to get rid of anxiety with massage?

All you have to do is lay down on your Pranamat massage set for twenty minutes a day to get all proven benefits. The key is to get into a new ritual for your mental health. 

The most popular way is to have a bedtime massage. When the day is done and you’ve had your bath or shower, simply place your Pranamat Massage Set into your bed and lay down on it. It becomes as natural as brushing your teeth and you’ll find yourself looking forward to it each evening. This full body massage not only significantly improves anxiety symptoms, but also alleviates muscle tension, pain, headaches and stress and helps induce truly restorative sleep.

For anxiety disorder symptoms at any time of the day or night, simply take twenty minutes for a massage. It starts to work even faster than any oral anxiety medication, without any nasty side effects. And, just like anxiety medication, sometimes just knowing it’s there is enough to stem a rising anxiety attack. 

Anxiety can give us the feeling that we just “don’t know what to do with ourselves”. Having the solid course of action: “get on my Pranamat!” can be life-changing. And I’m talking from personal experience, from having spent four years chatting with Pranamat devotees and having read the clinical study cover to cover. I was also skeptical at first. But I was amazed when I learnt HOW it works and felt the difference for myself.