Muscle tension and poor sleep tend to reinforce each other — tight muscles make it harder to get comfortable at night, and poor sleep leaves the body less able to recover from daily tension. Massage interrupts this cycle by encouraging the nervous system to shift out of an alert state, which is part of why many people fall asleep during a session.
While massage isn’t a substitute for addressing the root causes of sleep issues, a treatment in the evening can be a useful reset, particularly during especially stressful weeks.