To find inner peace: soft massage as an established and integrated part of palliative care.

The aim of this study was to demonstrate how people with incurable cancer experienced soft massage in a palliative care setting in which massage was used as an established and integrated part of the nursing care. To reach a deep understanding of the experiences of receiving soft massage a qualitative method with a phenomenological approach was chosen. The study was based on interviews with eight patients in an advanced home care setting who had all received soft massage as part of their daily care. Soft massage was experienced by the informants as a way to find inner peace. During the massage the patients felt dignified, while memories from past massage sessions were about becoming free. These experiences of dignity and freedom brought hopes for the future. The conclusion is that soft massage ought to be offered in the ordinary palliative care. More research is needed to understand what is needed to integrate and establish methods such as soft massage in the palliative care.