Relax your partner with a soothing head massage

Does your partner complain of a sore, stiff neck or shoulders, or do they suffer from stress headaches?
If so, then why not relax them with a gentle head massage? This tip shows you some common techniques and ideas.

Relaxing Indian Head Massages

Where does the idea come from?

Ayurvedic practitioners perfected the art of head massage over 5,000 years ago. You may not have heard of Ayurvedic techniques before. Ayurveda is a traditional Indian system of medicine that bases treatment on natural methods and is essentially holistic practices. It is the oldest system of medicine known in the world, and pre-dates the Chinese holistic methods (although these are more widely known).
The Indian head massage involves working on the upper back, neck, scalp and face. It relieves muscle tension and also has the bonus effect of promoting hair growth (and it also stimulates your oil glands on your head, which conditions your hair).

What do I need?

To perform a complete Indian Head Massage you would usually need essential oils. Sesame oil is commonly used, as it promotes healthy hair and has relaxing properties. It is advisable to use some type of massage oil on the neck/shoulders to allow you to easily work the muscles.
You can do the head massage itself without any oil, if you don’t like oil in your hair.

Setting up

Place a comfortable chair in a room away from as much noise as possible. Dim the lights/close the curtains, and sit your partner down in the chair. Ensure that they are comfortable and can sit up straight in the chair. You don’t want them to be slouching forward as they will be putting extra load on the muscles you’re trying to work with.

Starting the massage

Start by adding a little oil to your hands. Work this gently into your partners scalp in a massaging motion, using your fingers and thumbs.
Start at the back and sides of the scalp, and work slowly upwards towards the middle. The motion you’re trying to make is a gentle squeezing motion – like if you were trying to squeeze a stress ball with your fingers.
Work your fingers and thumbs back around the whole head. Use slightly more pressure with your fingers, and aim to get a little friction going between your fingers and your partner’s head. The warming effect adds to the massage experience.

Next, use the fingers of your hands like a comb and run them from the front of the head to the back. Repeat this two or three times, with increasing pressure each time. Do not apply more pressure than your partner is happy with.
Then, work your hands in the opposite direction, from back to front.

Now, place your hands on your partner’s head and ball them up into fists. Part your fingers slightly and clench a section of hair between your fingers. Gently tilt your hand back and forth, applying gently pressure with your knuckles to the scalp.
Then move them from side to side, slightly more vigorously, and then move them to a different spot and repeat.

Once you’re happy with the above it’s time to work on your partner’s neck.
Add some more oil to your hands.
Using your thumbs, move them quickly and firmly up and down the muscles running up the neck (from under the ear to the shoulder blades).
Then cup your hand around one side of the neck, with your palm towards your partners face, and gently close your palm. Make sure you’re pulling the muscle towards your palm with your fingers.
Repeat this for a minute or two, and then repeat on the other side of the head.
Finally, use your thumbs to massage the muscles down the neck towards the shoulder blades. Use a firm pressure on your thumbs, like you’re trying to push the muscle back down into the shoulder.

Finally, it’s a case of working on your partner’s shoulders.
Using more oil, gently massage the shoulders and shoulder blades. You’ll often find that if your partner has a stiff neck, they have a stiff shoulder area too.
Use a firm grip and pinch the muscle on the shoulder together. Work this pinching motion down the shoulder blade and down the forearm, ensuring you squeeze muscle tissue all the way down the arm. Work your way back up again and then repeat a few times, and repeat on the other arm.

Finishing up

Quite often you will find that the head massage leaves you with greasy feeling hair, especially when oils have been used. Try and keep the oils in your hair for an hour or two after the massage. This will help keep you relaxed and should help the quality of your hair in good condition.
After a couple of hours then take a shower/bath and clear down the oils/creams from your skin.

Hopefully this has given you some ideas of how to give your partner a head massage.
If you’re interested in learning more, have a look at these books from Amazon: