Children with ADHD have similar problems staying on task in the classroom. In a recent study, adolescents with ADHD were provided massage therapy or relaxation therapy for 10 consecutive school days (Field, Quintino, & Hernandez-Reif, 1998). The massage therapy group, compared with the relaxation therapy group, showed less fidgeting behavior following the sessions. In addition, after the two-week period, their scores on the Conners Scale (Conners, 1985) completed by their teachers (who were unaware of the group assignments) suggested that the children spent more time on-task and were less hyperactive in the classroom. Enhancing Alertness In a job stress study medical school faculty and staff received 15-minute chair massages during their lunch breaks (Field, Ironson, et al., 1996). These sessions involved deep pressure in the head, neck, shoulders, and back regions. Surprisingly, instead of becoming sleepier after their midday massage, the participants reported experiencing heightened alertness, much like a runner's high. EEG recordings before, during, and after the massage sessions confirmed the participants' impressions. As compared with a group of relaxation therapy participants, their levels of alpha wave activity significantly decreased during massage (in contrast to alpha levels typically increasing during sleep), suggesting a pattern of heightened alertness. A math computation task was added to determine whether this EEG pattern of heightened alertness translated into performance. Following the massage sessions, the computation time was significantly reduced, and computation accuracy increased. Alleviating Stress, Depression, and Anxiety Post-traumatic Stress Disorder Post-traumatic stress disorder is characterized by depression and behavior problems in children. Many children showed post-traumatic stress symptoms following Hurricane Andrew, and several of the children's disciplinary problems in the classroom were exacerbated by the hurricane (Field, Seligman et al., 1996). After a month of massage therapy (two times per week) their symptoms and their depression decreased in contrast to a control December 1998 • American Psychologist 1275 group (who watched a relaxing video). Anxiety also decreased, and self-image improved as reflected in their self-drawings. A girl's self-drawing, for example, on the first day was very small, had dark colors, and no facial features. By the last day, she drew a birthday party with balloons, sunshine and birds, and friends attending the party. Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Patients In a study on hospitalized depressed children and adolescents (Field et al., 1992), those who received back massages for a week versus those who viewed relaxing videotapes (control group) were less depressed and anxious and had lower stress hormone levels (lower saliva cortisol levels as well as lower urinary cortisol and norepinephrine levels), and time-lapse videotapes of their sleepwake behavior revealed more organized sleep patterns. In addition, the nurses on the unit rated the massaged adolescents as being less anxious and more cooperative by the last day of the study. In a similar pilot study on adult patients with anxiety, massaged patients showed a decrease in stress response patterns including decreased heart rate, electromyography (EMG), and skin resistance (McKechnie, Wilson, Watson, & Scott, 1983). In a related study, 32 depressed adolescent mothers received ten 30-minute sessions of massage therapy or relaxation therapy across a five-week period (Field, Grizzle, Scafidi, & Schanberg, 1996). Although both groups reported lower anxiety following their first and last therapy sessions, only the massage therapy group showed behavioral and stress hormone changes, including decreases in anxious behavior, pulse, and salivary cortisol levels. A decrease in urine cortisol and norepinephrine levels suggested lower stress following the five-week period for the massage therapy group. Eating Disorders in Adolescent Women Another group of people who experience severe depression are adolescents with eating disorders including bulimia (overeating and vomiting) and anorexia. Adolescents with bulimia who received one month of twice weekly massages plus their standard daily group therapy treatment (versus adolescents with bulimia who only received the standard group therapy) had (a) fewer symptoms of depression, (b) lower anxiety levels, and (c) lower stress hormone levels (urinary cortisol levels; Field et al., in press). Their eating habits also improved, and their body image was less distorted. In a similar study on adolescents with anorexia at the same hospital the massaged women (versus the standard group therapy control women) reported lower anxiety levels and had lower stress hormone levels (cortisol levels; Hart, Field, Hernandez-Reif, Shaw, & Schanberg, 1997). Over the onemonth treatment period they also reported less body dissatisfaction on the Eating Disorder Inventory (Garner, Olmsted, & Polivy, 1983) and had increased dopamine levels. Chronic Fatigue Depression is also a problem for adults with chronic fatigue syndrome. In a recent study with this population, participants were randomly assigned to a massage therapy or a SHAM TENS (transcutaneous electrical stimulation) control group (Field, Sunshine, et al., 1997). Immediately after the sessions on the first and last