Why shouldn't I have a massage right after drinking?

The key is moderation. Alcohol has a significant impact on your body. When you're intoxicated or under the influence, the two don't mix well in a healthy manner.

Let's look at the fundamentals of how alcohol and massage impact your body in a little more detail.

How massage affects the body

• Massage decreases edema by increasing circulation and moving the lymph fluid throughout the body, making it easier to lose extra fluids. (This is why following a massage, your therapist will urge you to drink lots of water.)

• Massage has been shown to lower blood pressure and stress hormones, such as cortisol, while increasing pleasurable chemicals like dopamine and serotonin in the body. It brings you to the deep state of relaxation.

• Massage relaxes the muscles and eliminates waste products from them into the circulation, which may make alcohol consumption even more dangerous. Let me elaborate a bit more on this point, when alcohol meets toxins,  this means that those toxins will be redistributed instead of eliminated, and you don't want them to go into your cells, as alcohol has a vasodilator.

How alcohol affects the body

• Alcohol is well-known for its dehydrating properties, as anyone who has ever had a hangover headache can attest.

• Alcohol causes your blood vessels to dilate, allowing the alcohol to travel through your body and raising your blood alcohol concentration.

• It is a fact that alcohol has an effect on cognitive thinking. Alcohol consumption can affect reflexes, motor control, and coordination.

• Binge drinking can deplete your body's immunological system, making you more susceptible to illnesses. A single binge-drinking episode can limit your body's ability to ward off infections for up to 24 hours.

What is the effect of massage on alcohol?

• The relaxation-inducing qualities of alcohol and massage are mutually opposed. Alcohol and massage both provide comfort. However, the deep restfulness of massage, in conjunction with the numbing effect of alcohol, makes it hard to be in touch with your body during your massage. This makes it more difficult for both you and your therapist to determine what pressure is appropriate. You do want to feel the massage, don't you?

• Drunkenness that has been amplified. Alcohol goes through your blood. Circulation is increased by massage, which means alcohol enters your circulation faster and stays there for longer. Because of this amplified impact, some massage therapists have witnessed tipsy clients get more inebriated during a massage.

• Intensified hangovers. Massage and alcohol have a dehydrating effect. This doesn't just make you thirstier; it can also aggravate hangover symptoms. However, if you have a hangover and then get a massage, the massage might assist you in overcoming it.

• The body's immune system is strengthened by massage, but drinking too much can weaken the body's immune system, implying that you lose this important health advantage of massage, effectively canceling out the beneficial impact.

Best massage practices with alcohol

Massage therapists who are certified will typically refuse to work on a visibly intoxicated person. While they may deal with customers who have had a glass of wine but aren't drunk, massage professionals urge that you wait at least four hours after drinking before getting one.

Long story short, [too much] alcohol and massage don't mix well. Feel free to have a glass of wine or a mimosa before your massage, but keep the Oktoberfest-style beer binge as an after-massage treat if you’re hoping to get the best from both worlds.

Are you looking for a massage while you travel in Xiaoliuqiu? Book us now for an in-room Thai massage session.