My Trapezius is throbbing!

For the last few weeks I have had the worlds stiffest shoulders and a bit of backache in my lower back, they've ached whenever I have had to lift and move a box at work and even standing to sort the washing out and do some ironing at home has been fairly painful. So after having a nice hot bath, which didn't help with the pain, I decided to look online, then having typed in the problem in the hope of finding a solution, I found the muscles that ached are known as the Trapezius muscles and there are lots of demonstrations as to how to can massage your own shoulders, or I can just enlist the help of the hubby and his hands to massage my shoulder muscles. 

This diagram is used to show where the Trapezius Muscle is

Shockingly I had no Lush massage bars to hand, so I had to go looking through my wardrobe where I store a lot of my products and I came across Elemis Spa de-stress massage oil which states the following: 

"The pure touch of this deeply relaxing synergy soothes the mind, melts tension and harmonises the body" 

Well I know work is pretty stressful right now and we have a lot of projects on the go and I am useless at delegating to someone else to oversee something because I panic if I am not on top of things and know what is going on right down to the smallest piece detail and the long hours are clearly going to be taking their toll. We have also had a mass clear out in the office which has meant spending a few hours moving boxes around, carrying boxes up flights of stairs and back down again, so it is little wonder my shoulders and back hurt. 

I am a fan of Elemis Spa products, their quiet time room mist worked a treat when I needed to use that and I am hoping that this will do just the job. How I acquired it I have no idea but it is a 100ml bottle which online would cost you between £25 and £35. The bottle is a lovely deep blue colour; almost a two tone blue in the light and on the front there is silver lettering to let you know what the product is, who makes it and what it is going to do for you. The lid is silver in colour and really stands out due to its pointed shape. 

Once it comes to using the product, ensure the person going to massage you has warm hands, there is nothing worse than someone with cold hands attempting to massage you and also ensure they rub the massage oil between their palms, as though using soap, to release any essential oils that are included, allowing them to work as soon as they hit the skin. So as soon as the lid has been removed, pour a few drops into the palm of your hand (or the person massaging you) it looks similar to Extra Virgin Olive Oil and has a similar texture to it. As the process of massaging begins, which according to Elemis you should "massage using long sweeping movements" you can feel the oil on your skin and as it is worked into your shoulders, the aroma comes alive. This massage oil is packed full of essential oils and smells wonderful, as the oil is massaged into your skin you do feel relaxed and it's a really lovely feeling too. The oil absorbs itself into your skin with relative ease and once your massage comes to an end, there is no greasy feel to the skin, no need to panic that sheets or clothing will become stained, though it is always advisable to have a towel close by just incase there is any excess left on hands. 

One of the most important features of this massage oil is the ability to relax and de-stress you, hence the name it was given. However to do that it also needs to include some key ingredients. So starting with one of my favourites:

• Lavender Oil, which is really soothing for and on the skin and it is also soothing and calming on the nerves, helps to relieve stress and tension, helps with depression and irritability and in general it is effective for headaches, migraines and for those people who suffer from insomnia. 
• Chamomile which in this product helps to relieve back pain and muscle pain in general. 
• Sweet Almond Oil which is another of my favourite ingredients and on the skin it is nourishing, calming and soothing but similarly to the first two ingredients it helps to relieve muscular aches.
• Rosewood Oil helps to de-stress your mind and alleviate nervous tension. Melissa comes next and not something I am familiar with, but I have found it is commonly known as Lemon Balm Oil and it is used because it helps bring about a sense of calmness to the mind, some people have said it has an almost sedatory effect on them when used in a massage oil because it is that soothing and calming. 
• The final ingredient I am going to mention is Marjoram, which again not an ingredient I have come across a lot but it is particularly useful in a product like this because it is known to be a good muscle relaxant but also has what is referred to as pain killing properties making it useful for problems such as rheumatic pains, muscle spasms, swollen joints and painful muscles. 

There are quite a few other ingredients listed and mentioned for this product on the back of the bottle and on the packaging. 

I usually rely on a hot bath to try and cure aches and pains like this, but when even that doesn't work; I know I need to try something else. After the massage and even during the massage process I was surprised at how relaxed I became and how noticeable the difference was in my shoulders where the pain had originally started. Not only could I move my shoulders without wincing with a slight discomfort, I could also shrug them without it hurting and they were no longer sore to the touch, unlike with the first few massage movements, it was very painful, but that soon eased and I was almost ready to fall asleep. A few hours after the massage my shoulders were still pain free and I could still move without wincing. 

So I am pretty impressed with this massage de-stressing oil because it does what it tells you it will do, it smells really lovely, it relaxes you, it de-stresses, it relieves muscle aches and pains and it leaves your skin feeling soft and smooth after using along with a nice lingering floral scent.

You can find out more on Elemis and all their products HERE

Introducing the Shakti Mat

Back ache, well I hate it and get it quite regularly and have over the years been given many explanations as to what it could be or what might be causing it, everything from my posture to how I sleep, to how I sit or the fact it might well be hereditary. Whatever the cause it can sometimes be so painful that sitting down or laying down prove to be too painful for more than a few minutes, hot water bottles and baths are often a quick cure but the pain soon returns. Thankfully this isn't a problem I have to face everyday.

So, over the years, I have tried visiting a chiropractor, acupuncture, going to the gym to exercise, Pilates, swimming, Yoga and all known kinds of pain relief, rubs, hot stones and so on.  Then a friend of mine suggested that I try a Shakti Mat, like me she too suffers from back ache and using a Shakti mat had been suggested to her some months ago during a yoga class and she duly bought one and now swears it is the only relief worth thinking about. So if it worked for her, it might work for me and I too duly bought one. 

I am not someone who is into all of this healthy lifestyle come alternative medicinal cures admittedly and if I am honest I found yoga too boring and Pilates more boring than boring could possibly be, so I had never heard of a Shakti Mat never mind pronouncing it, though I was later informed it is pronounced Shack-tee and did read up about them before purchasing, be warned however that if you type Shakti Mat into Google you will get over 195,000 pages of information of which 90% of it isn't of any use, so I used the official website to gather my information and it is here that you can read about the history of Shakti and its invention. 

So what is a Shakti Mat? Some say it is a modern invention of the Indian bed of nails and to other it is known as an Acupressure Mat. The Shakti Mat is said to promote the release of large quantities of endorphins, the well-being hormone, as well as a range of other calming hormones, increases blood circulation and the uptake of oxygen thus has a very rejuvenating and relaxing effect. Added to that, according to research done in Russian hospitals A Shakti Mat promotes a decrease in pain, resolves stress, strengthens the immune system, increases the metabolism and decreases inflammation. For me the most important aspect of this Mat was that it decreases pain and inflammation, anything else was and is an added bonus. 

To look at a Shakti Mat is quite striking, they are usually available in an array of colours and when I purchased mine the option was purple, green, black or a bright orange and I opted for purple. One side of this mat is a deep black colour and has a detachable rubber foam mattress which is about 3cm thick. The mat itself in size it measures at roughly 44cm long and between 5-10 cm wide. On the other side of the mat the first thing you notice is some button shapes with spikes sticking out which do feel quite sharp on the tips of your fingers, hence why some people refer to it as the modern invention of the bed of nails, however it is these spikes which stimulate blood flow and endorphin release as well as treating your body with acupressure. On this mat there are 210 of these white buttons on each of them is approximately 42 spikes giving 8820 points of acupressure. If you place the palm of your hand over one and press down, it does hurt, so part of using this Mat is learning about how to use it and making sure you use it right and thankfully my own Mat came with an instruction guide which gave the briefest of details in how to use the Mat, but I actually found a few Youtube videos much more helpful. 

So to use your Shakti Mat you can either lay it on the floor or on your bed and then you need a rolled up towel so that it looks like a Swiss roll and this is placed under your Shakti Mat to support your neck as you lie down. Next poses the question as to what is suitable to wear? I usually wear my gym leggings and top, which are not thick material but I refuse to lay it on completely naked, which of course you can choose to do. Then as you slowly and trust me, I mean very slowly rest your skin so that it comes into contact with the points you need to relax and breathe as you lower yourself down. 

The best piece of advice I was given when I first started to use my Shakti Mat was to lay a thin piece of cloth between myself and the Mat, in my case it was a sheet and this made a little bit of difference, part of the learning curve with these mats is learning how to use them properly so they become effective and for the first few times of using them, they are deeply uncomfortable and slightly painful and can be likened to a warm pricking feel, but you do have to persevere with it and keep trying to ensure that it begins to work for you. Then once you have got yourself used to the mat it is said that you should initially aim to use it for 10-15minutes, whilst laying on your Mat you are asked to relax and breathe and let the acupressure points work their magic and then as you grow in confidence with your Mat up the amount of time you spend on it to half an hour to an hour at a time although you can fall asleep it on without it causing any harm, so if you do happen to drift off into a slumber, which I have done a few times, then there is nothing to worry about. The main thing is that you use the mat whenever you have time, preferably every day. 

After a few sessions of lying on your mat you should be able to feel less stressed and refreshed and you can use these mats in your place of work if you feel comfortable in doing so, as long as you can find somewhere suitable and quiet to re-energize your batteries. 

The Shakti mat can be used on most body parts and not just your back. You can use it on your knees, legs, thighs, stomach (although extra care is needed), feet, Jaw and even your neck. Used correctly the Shakti Mat can ease and relieve you of most pains. As well as my back, I also like to sit down on the soft and use the walking motion with my feet on the Mat to ease sore and tired feet if I cant be bothered with the foot spa and I have also used it for my neck when I have pulled a muscle, although like the stomach extra care does need to be taken on any body part because the spikes are sharp. 

Taking all of this onboard the main question is how does the Shakti mat promote relaxation and relieve pain? Those 8820 spikes that I mentioned earlier in this review are the key to that. The spikes stimulate the nerves in the body and sends impulses to those points within your brain and promotes the release of endorphins which are natural chemicals produced by the body to reduce pain and stress. 

The one thing I like about this product is that it is easy to look after and maintain. It came with an accompanying bag which I store my mat in and it is really easy to roll back up, much like a sleeping bag and store it. Then to wash it you need to wash it by hand and with warm water, it cannot go into a washing machine or a tumble dryer because it could damage the spikes, however you can hang it out to dry on your washing line with all of your other items. 

So now you have read all about the Shakti Mat you want to know whether or not it works. Actually I was skeptical when I first started to use it because like a hot bath, the pain soon vanished after using it for 15 to 20 minutes at a time and then a few days later the pain would come back and I have preserved with the Mat and continued to use it and I have increased my usage of it and use it everyday when and where possible to do so and yes my back pain is now much more manageable and I am not taking any pain relief such as Ibuprofen or Aspirin at all and I haven't felt the need to seek any more help from my doctor, so for me this is a form of pain relief, it isn't a cure and the pain doesn't vanish completely but it does make life much easier and much more comfortable and if I have to spend 15-20 and sometimes 40 minutes at a time laying still on my Mat, then do that I shall. 

I paid £25 for my Shakti Mat which came with a storage cover and you can purchase them online from retailers such as Amazon and the price can range from £19.99 right up to over £40, so if this is something you are thinking of trying then I would shop around and pay for something you are comfortable with. For me, well I love my little Mat and I am glad it does work and I don't think I will be giving it up anytime soon.