Thai massage, which originated in India, has been around for over 2,500 years. Originally regarded as a healing art, traditional Thai massage includes influences from both Ayurvedic and traditional Chinese medicine.Unlike typical Western-type massages, it doesn't involve lying on a massage bed while a massage therapist applies oil to your body and kneads your muscles and pressure points. Instead, you lie fully clothes on a mat on the ground while a practitioner uses stretching, pulling, and rocking techniques to relieve tension, promote relaxation, and improve flexibility and circulation. Sometimes referred to as assisted yoga, Thai massage is focused on improving the flow of energy throughout your body.

If you have migraine or experience tension headaches, traditional Thai massage may help ease your symptoms. In several small studies involving patients with chronic headaches, researchers found that Thai massage reduced the intensity of both migraine and tension headache. If you're interested in trying non-pharmaceutical remedies for headache relief, it's worth nothing that researchers concluded that benefit of Thai massage could last anywhere from several days to 15 weeks.

In a traditional Thai massage, practitioners use their hands, thumbs, elbows, forearms, and sometimes even their feet to reduce tension in your muscles.Thai massage is based on the ideas that energy moves through the body along predictable lines or pathways known as sens. To increase the flow of energy along the sens, the practitioner will move your body into yoga-like positions in addiction to pulling and rocking your body in various ways. The combination of stretching, movement, and pressure is that distinguishes Thai massage from other types of massage. Thai massage may be good option for you if you want a more active type of massage, where you move and participate instead of lying down throughout your massage.