Massage more than meets the eye

Press, 6 April 1989, Page 25

Massage more than meets the eye

Massage, points out Eduard Guzy, is the oldest known method of relieving stress. If something hurts, your first reaction is to rub it.

Eduard Guzy is the masseur for the Riccarton Health and Relaxation Centre, which opened this week. With a diploma from the BAZ Institute in Vienna, Austria, where he was self-employed, he came to New. Zealand five months ago. His first job here was massage for competitors in the Coast to Coast.

He is qualified in three types of massage which he combines according to individual needs.

The type of massage most people are familiar with is classical massage. As everyone knows, this reduces tension in the muscles. What is less well known is that classical massage, done profession-

ally, also increases blood circulation, lowers blood pressure, aids the lymphatic system and helps to get rid of body waste products.

The second form is foot reflexology. This is based on the theory that each part of the body has a corresponding area in the feet. By treating these areas, problems which occur in inaccessible parts of the body can be treated. The third form of massage is the Marnitz technique, a deep tissue massage which prepares the muscles and tendons for intensive treatment. This is an excellent therapy for back, neck and shoulder problems. Massage in general is a much-ignored way of treating stress because it deals with muscular rather than mental relaxation.

According to Richard Wheeler, a clinical psychologist who conducts seminars for the Riccarton Health and Relaxation Centre, his profession is now seeing the importance of massage. “Massage intervenes at an area beyond the intellect. That’s very important. We need to relax bodily as well as mentally.”

Eduard Guzy is worried about the “massage parlour” stigma which seems to have attached itself to the true discipline.

“There is nothing wrong with serious massage. It is quite intimate, but there is nothing to be embarrassed about.”

Massage, he says, is no longer a fringe treatment. It is a highly effective scientific discipline with a sound psychological basis.