The Daily Spine
Tips for Living Well With Back Pain
Many people turn to massage therapy for releasing tight neck or back muscles. And if my personal experience is any gauge, it can feel great! The only thing is, massage can also get expensive.
What to do?
How about making a one-time investment in a massage chair or massaging cushion? Below are a couple of ideas to get you started.
HoMedics Massage Cushion with Heat
HoMedics makes a number of massaging cushions. Their SBM-200H Therapist Select Shiatsu Massaging Cushion with Heat offers 3 different shiatsu programs, programmable for 2 different regions as well as for the whole back. A quick check of ratings for this product shows it's fairly popular. And, (as of January 2012) one of the vendors is offering 39% off (check the following link to see).
Compare Prices for the Homedic Shiatsu Massaging Cushion with Heat.
iJoy Massage Chairs
If you really want to splurge, you could buy a massage chair. This way the whole family can enjoy back massages. iJoy is a brand that gets good reviews on sites such as Epinions and others.
The iJoy claims their chairs combine style (if you like the design of their chairs) with back wellness. They also claim that their technology “closely replicates therapeutic techniques used by chiropractors and massage professionals.” They say this is because the rollers follow the contour of your spine in various ways to mimic common techniques such as kneading, tapotement and more. I have not tried the iJoy massage chair myself, but one thing I do like about them is that they are affordably priced, as massage chairs go.
Compare Prices for various iJoy Massage Chairs.
Before You Buy a Massage Cushion Or Massage Chair
Please remember that if you have back or neck condition, it’s important to run the idea of getting a massage chair by your doctor or physical therapist first.
And a word to the wise: In my opinion, if you purchase the right model, you most likely can expect a good experience when you use the product, although nothing really replaces the human touch when it comes to a neck or back massage.
