Ep. 115: Massage for Fertility & Women's Health, with client Jaclyn Brown, LMT

Can massage help women on their fertility journeys? This is something many have wondered -- sure, massage is great, but are there any studies showing their impact? And what can we expect from massage itself? Woven client, Jaclyn Brown, is joining us to share her knowledge as a Licensed Massage Therapist. With her background in Biology, she shares why the skin is such an important part of the body and our overall health, and how massage may play a role in contributing to that health. If you've ever been curious about the effect on massage on fertility or women's health, check out this episode!

NOTE: This episode is appropriate for all audiences.

SHOW NOTES:
Jaclyn Brown at Respite Massage BHM
jaclyn@respitemassagebhm.com
Promotion: Woven Well listeners can enjoy $10 off of any 60 minute massage.  Gift certificates are available if you live outside the Birmingham area, but would like to treat a local friend to a massage. Offer expires June 15, 2024. 

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Transcript

Caitlin: 0:06

Welcome to the Woven Well Podcast. I'm your host, Caitlin Estes. I'm a certified fertility care practitioner with a master of divinity degree. Each episode will cover a topic that helps educate and empower you and your fertility while honoring the deep connection your fertility has with your faith. Let's get started. Welcome back to the Woven Well Podcast. Today we're talking with a client who also has her own set of specialties. Jaclyn Brown's spent over a decade working in molecular biology laboratories before she switched to a career in massage therapy. She's the owner of Respite Therapeutic Massage in Homewood, Alabama. Jaclyn is one of the few massage therapists in the country that participates in the VA community care network to provide massage for veterans, which I think is fantastic. In addition to traditional massage techniques, she's also trained in neuromuscular therapy, which is a massage technique that focuses on chronic pain management, which is extremely important. Jaclyn has been using Creighton for over four years. She lives in Birmingham with her husband and enjoys running and cross stitching. Jaclyn, welcome to the show.

Jaclyn Brown: 1:20

Oh , thank you so much. I'm so happy to be here.

Caitlin: 1:22

I'm happy to have you here and I know that listeners are going to be really curious what we're going to talk about in today's episode. How does Massage help us? So we talk frequently on the Woven Well podcast about creating a team of providers who can help women on their fertility journey. So we have interviewed pelvic floor therapists, registered dietitians, OBGYNs, surgeons, you name it. Why is a massage therapist a beneficial team member to have?

Jaclyn Brown: 1:54

So your cycle reveals important information about your health and your team of providers can help you reach your health goals. Now, massage has two main benefits for women on their fertility journey, and that's helping manage stress and pain. Stress has many, many, many sources and it has many effects on your health. It can affect your sleep, it can weaken your immune system, and it can cause an irregular cycle. Now some stress is good, but too much stress can compromise the body's ability to recover and repair. Massage can lower the level of stress-related hormones and help bring your body back into balance. And then there's pain. Now massage can lower levels of prostaglandin, which is the hormone responsible for painful periods. Massage strokes and kneading techniques can initiate a relaxation response and this might help with the increased muscle tension and spasm that occurs with pain. In addition, endorphins are released during massage and they can serve as a natural pain reliever.

Caitlin: 3:02

I think that is amazing. Like when you think about the fact that massage can make such a difference on pain and stress and how that benefits your overall body and overall health, it's really amazing that it's not recommended more by medical professionals and maybe even covered more by insurance because it really can make such a difference like you're talking about. So why is it that massage can do these things? Why is it that it's so helpful?

Jaclyn Brown: 3:33

Well, massage has been around for thousands of years, but we only have about three decades of peer-reviewed research. And that makes sense because studies on massage can be kind of difficult to conduct. It's hard to develop a placebo massage for a control group, for example. But there is research and it is growing. There are studies that look at how massage influences, hormone levels, pain, sleep, and even gene expression. Now someone has studied the body at the molecular level. I find these topics fascinating. Here's some key takeaways. During development, the embryo forms three germ layers. There's the endoderm which develops into the digestive track , the mesoderm, which forms into muscle, bone and connective tissue, and the ectoderm, which develops into the nervous system and skin. So very, very early on in development there's this connection between your skin and your brain. Now many people refer to the digestive track as the second brain. Well, in some ways, your skin serves as a third brain through direct manipulation of skin and the nerves and soft tissue massage can have an indirect effect on the whole body.

Caitlin: 4:48

That is crazy and beautiful. I love that you brought it down to the molecular level. Like you said, you're using that previous experience, but also to me, you're looking at it from that perspective. When I think about the human experience, I talk a lot about how it's mind, body, and spirit. You know, we're all connected. We are very complex human beings and that just describes it to me as well, that even as we're being formed in our mothers' wombs, we are all ready . So interconnected every aspect of us. And so of course how one area of the body is treated is going to affect other areas. It's going to affect how we feel; it's going to affect our brain, but we don't often talk about that or think about that. I do think that we live in a time right now where we try to divide mind, body , spirit, and even within the body we become specialists in these individual little areas, instead of thinking about the whole body and how it's a system and all works together. And so even the fact that massage has that sort of approach and says that the skin is sort of like a third brain and so it's going to affect how you're feeling, how you're thinking, how you're processing life, I think is really, really beautiful. So if a listener wants to pursue massage and as a part of their fertility journey, as part of their health journey, how can she make the most of her massage appointment? Like, what tips do you have for women who want massages as a part of their overall cycle wellness?

Jaclyn Brown: 6:32

Well first of all, consider what kind of massage you're interested in. The two most common are Swedish and deep tissue. The Swedish massage focuses on relaxation while the deep tissue massage focuses on pain management. Now, many therapists can do a blend of both techniques based on your needs. And I'm a big fan that Swedish doesn't necessarily mean easy. You can apply a real deep gentle pressure with Swedish and it can be as intense sometimes as a deep tissue, which you would more imagine for athletes. Also, ask your therapist about an abdominal massage. Not enough people know about the benefits of massaging the abdomen. A lot of women tighten their core muscles because of pelvic pain. You get that period pain and you start to fold up and you tighten your abdominal muscles. This can result in not only tight abdominal muscles, but weak opposing back muscles. And this can eventually cause lower back pain. Now massage can help correct the imbalance. And very critically, massage should never be painful. You might have tender or sensitive areas, but communicate with your therapist if the pain is too much. Most of the time a massage therapist is paying attention, but sometimes they can't read all your signals. So let them know if something is too painful, and your pain tolerance may change throughout your cycle and that's totally okay. You may be more sensitive during ovulation or you might have a higher pain tolerance at that time. Now, how often should you get a massage? Well always work within your budget and your schedule. Now some people like myself, I get a monthly massage. Others may choose a different amount based on their lifestyle. I would suggest try to schedule two massages maybe two months apart and see how you feel, see if that makes a difference and then go from there. And then how can you budget for a massage? Like you said, insurance is a little slow to pick up the importance of massage, although it is great that the VA system is starting to appreciate it. Well, if you're interested in saving money, consider going to a massage school for a student massage. They're happy to learn and you should be happy to help out too or find a practice that accepts health spending accounts or flex spending accounts and that could help make it more manageable as well.

Caitlin: 9:06

Those are great tips both for people who have received massages before, they're not new to this, and then those who are considering going to a massage therapist for the very first time. And that can be scary or intimidating for a lot of women. So making sure that they feel safe and they feel like they're in a safe environment and they feel comfortable is something that's really important with that. And I would just add , getting to know your massage therapist beforehand can be really beneficial. So maybe listening to a podcast episode like this or going to someone's website and reading their words and how they approach things or even having a phone call ahead of time just to kind of talk with that person and feel a little bit more comfortable can make such a difference in feeling safe and knowing what to expect beforehand. I'm also super interested in what you said about abdominal massage, and I'm like, Hmm , maybe that should be its own podcast episode. But , your whole point about how when you have pelvic pain or you have period pain and maybe you're having cramps and so you adjust how you sit or stand or function throughout the day, eventually that can be lower back pain. Gosh, that's so important to know . We talk a lot here about things like endometriosis and how period pain is really not acceptable--that there's a cause for it. There's something going on behind the scenes that we want to get to the root cause of. So we don't want any woman to be living with period pain. But having that perspective that that pain not only affects you fertility wise , but also just your whole body health and how you may be adjusting or carrying yourself a little bit differently to ease that pain or to carry it a little bit differently is really important to know. And I bet there are a lot of people who didn't know that beforehand. And then final little thought here about what you said about insurance. Such a good point. You can't always get it covered by insurance, but HSA FSA plans often will cover it, which is really important. And I've also talked with a couple of people over time who say that massages made such a difference for them that they just budgeted in as if it is a part of their insurance plan or a part of something else that they would normally do that they don't really have a choice about, because they see such a benefit from it. And so , finding someone that's in your price range and then just prioritizing that may be an option for some as well. But it's not like it's an every week thing. I mean, that's great if somebody wants to do a massage every week, but it's not something that you have to do that frequently. It can be once a month or once every two months, which is so good and a realistic option for more people. So if someone wants to work with you, potentially maybe, you know, they live in the Alabama area, maybe even close to Homewood, you know , Birmingham surrounding areas, how could they get connected with you if they want you to be their massage therapist?

Jaclyn Brown: 12:21

Sure. Check out the show notes for my email and website. On the website, you can self schedule your massage. There's also my blog where I discuss the science and history of massage. So if you liked this, there's a lot more that you can read. My most recent article was about massage and cycle health and then , there's going to be more services later this year. I'm also hoping to host infant massage classes soon, where new parents can learn how to massage their infants. And we have a special offer for anyone listening to the podcast as well. Woven Well, listeners can enjoy $10 off of any 60 minute massage. And if you're outside the Birmingham area but you have a friend locally that you'd like to treat, you can get a gift certificate and send it to them. And then they can choose which massage.

Caitlin: 13:16

What a nice idea, what a great way to be a friend. Send them a certificate for a massage. I mean, that's a sure fire way to go from friend to best friend really quickly. Oh man, that's great. And thank you so much for offering that special discount to WovenWwell listeners. That is awesome. Listeners, I hope that you take her up on that and let me know how the massage is. I'm sure it's going to be fantastic. Well, Jaclyn, thank you so much for being on the show today and sharing a bit about massage and why it really is helpful for women on their own fertility journeys.

Jaclyn Brown: 13:54

Well , glad to, Caitlin, and thank you for everything you do as well to help educate and empower.

Caitlin: 13:59

Well, I appreciate it. It is my absolute joy to do it. This was a fun episode. I was so excited to get to be able to talk with Jaclyn and hear all that she puts into her work. I love that she cares about the science behind massage and not just that it makes you feel good. I mean, that's important, but also understanding that bigger, deeper level really makes an impact too . So it's just so cool too, right? So for listeners in Birmingham, the area, don't forget about her special offer and of course we'll make sure to have those details in the show notes as a reminder for you as well. But if you're interested in learning more about your cycle and how to understand it on a deeper level, then I'd love to invite you to join our upcoming introductory session. It's an online presentation where you get to learn all about reproductive anatomy and physiology and how the Creighton system of cycle charting can give you incredible insight into your cycle health, hormone balance, reproductive stages, lots of stuff. So we'll make sure to have the link in our show notes for that as well. And make sure to let us know that you found us through the podcast. Same thing goes for working with Jaclyn. If you start working with her, make sure to share that you found her through the Woven Well podcast. As always, thanks for listening as we continue to explore together what it means to be woven well .