In today's fast-paced and often overwhelming world, mental health issues are becoming increasingly prevalent. In England alone, twenty-five percent of people in England experience a mental health condition each year, with young adults being particularly affected. A staggering sixty six percent of 18 to 24 year olds have reported suffering from severe stress (Wardle, 2024). While most individuals rely on pharmacological treatments for managing poor mental health, the scale of this crisis prompts an important question: How can alternative holistic therapies benefit those struggling with poor mental health? In light of 'Mental Health Awareness Week', this blog post will explore recent research to address this crucial question. As the global prevalence of poor mental health continues to rise, recognising the potential benefits of reflexology, aromatherapy and massage is more important than ever.
Mental Health and complementary therapies
As defined by the World Health Organisation (WHO), complementary holistic therapies, such as reflexology, aromatherapy, and massage, are practices that fall outside a country's own conventional medicine. These therapies emphasise a whole-body approach to wellness, aiming to alleviate the symptoms of mental health conditions through natural and non-invasive means. Whilst the use of complementary therapies for health promotion is by no means a new phenomena, its prevalence has increased significantly in the past two decades. As it currently stands, just under five percent of those struggling with poor mental health in the US have resorted to using such therapies (Seet et al.,2020).
Research support
To explore and test these claims, a surge of scientific research has emerged over the past decade.
In 2020, Bahrami et al. (2020) examined the association between reflexology, aromatherapy, and the reduction of anxiety and depression amongst 135 older women. Through rigorous testing, they discovered that participants, especially those in the reflexology group, experienced significantly improved psychological health.
This finding was further supported by Uğuryol (2021), who investigated. the impact of reflexology on the anxiety levels of nursing students. After completing six reflexology sessions, the researchers observed a significant reduction in the students' self reported anxiety levels compared to their previous scores. Reflecting on these findings, it was suggested that student populations could benefit significantly from using holisitic therapies as coping techniques amidst the higher levels of stress they face.
Complementary therapies have also shown particular benefits for individuals suffering from both physcial and mental health conditions (See here for more information). Through their review of existing literature in the field, Tian et al. (2023) found that reflexology was seen to be particularly beneficial for the reduction of anxiety levels amongst cancer patients and those undergoing cardiovascular procedures.
Why is this important?
What do these findings reveal about the potential for mental health treatments? While talking therapies and psychiatric medications typically dominate discussions on mental health treatments, complementary therapies offer a promising alternative for alleviating the symptoms of poor mental health. Although more robust and large-scale scientific research is needed to validate these claims, the evidence presented in this blog overwhelmingly indicates that such treatments can alleviate symptoms associated with common mental health conditions.
If you or a loved one are struggling with your mental health, or simply want to prevent increased anxiety, why not give complementary therapies a go? In these increasingly stressful times, prioritising your wellbeing is more important than ever.
Book in today at Tracey MacRae Wellbeing Therapies to feel the benefits to your mental health.
References and further reading
Bahrami, T., Rejeh, N., Heravi-Karimooi, M., & Davood Tadrisi, S. (2020). Reflexology versus Aromatherapy Massage for Relieving Anxiety and Depression in Hospitalized Older Women: A Randomized Clinical Trial. International Journal of Caring Sciences, 13, 1–610.
Uğuryol, M. (2021). Effect Of Reflexology Practice On Anxiety. Journal of Psychiatric Nursing. https://doi.org/10.14744/phd.2021.05579
Tian, E. J., Veziari, Y., Leach, M. J., & Kumar, S. (2023). The effectiveness of reflexology on mental health in cancer patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised controlled trials. Complementary therapies in clinical practice, 50, 101708.
Seet, V., Abdin, E., Vaingankar, J. A., Shahwan, S., Chang, S., Lee, B., Siow Ann Chong, & Subramaniam, M. (2020). The use of complementary and alternative medicine in a multi-ethnic Asian population: results from the 2016 Singapore Mental Health Study. BMC Complementary Medicine and Therapies, 20(1). https://doi.org/10.1186/s12906-020-2843-7
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