Why you might burp or fart during a massage—and what it really means

You’re two minutes into your deep tissue massage. The room is quiet. Your shoulders start to melt. Then… a burp escapes. It’s not just you. And it’s not random.

Burping, farting, stomach gurgles—these are all signs that your body is doing exactly what it’s supposed to do when it’s safe: reset its internal systems. Massage flips a switch in your nervous system, shifting you out of survival mode and into something deeper. And that switch comes with side effects. Let’s unpack why gas gets released during massage—and what that says about how your system is functioning.

Most people walk into a massage carrying more than tight muscles. They bring shallow breath patterns, clenched jaws, and a nervous system primed for output. That’s the sympathetic nervous system in action—your fight-or-flight mode.

Massage techniques, especially slow rhythmic strokes or pressure along the spine, stimulate the vagus nerve. This activates the parasympathetic response—also known as “rest and digest.” Once the body enters this mode, blood flow returns to the digestive tract. Muscle tension lowers. The diaphragm loosens. Digestion resumes. Gas starts to move. This isn’t dysfunction. It’s evidence that the nervous system has received permission to exhale.

Burping during massage often surprises clients more than any other bodily sound. But the explanation is mechanical.

Your diaphragm sits just under your ribcage. It’s involved in both breathing and digestion. When it’s tight—as it often is from stress, slouching, or shallow breathing—it compresses the upper stomach. When massage work releases that tension, air that’s been trapped can move. Especially if you’ve swallowed air from talking, drinking soda, or eating fast, burping is a natural outcome.

Massage pressure on areas like:

• the upper abdomen
• the solar plexus
• the thoracic spine

…can directly trigger this release. It’s not rude. It’s physiology.

Lower gas release—yes, farting—is just as normal. Especially during longer massages or abdominal-focused work. Most of us hold unconscious tension in our pelvic floor. Massage encourages that area to relax. That opens up space for the intestines to do their job.

Combine that with:

• increased colon circulation
• slow, deep diaphragmatic breathing
• abdominal or lower back pressure

…and it’s easy to see how gas gets nudged out. Your gut is always working. Massage just gets the traffic moving again.

It’s not just burps and farts. Clients often sigh, groan, or hear audible stomach gurgling—also known as borborygmi. These are all signals that peristalsis—the muscular wave that moves food through the digestive tract—is back online. Stomach gurgles don’t mean you’re hungry. They mean your system is functioning again after being quiet for too long. Massage helps reawaken the body’s default systems—the ones that only run when it’s safe. The noises? They’re your proof.

Fascia is the connective tissue that wraps around your muscles and organs. It also links major systems: breath, posture, digestion. Massage works directly on fascia. When fascia is tight—especially around the ribs, back, or hips—it restricts your diaphragm. That restricts your breath. That slows digestion.

When fascia is released, the diaphragm can expand. That shift increases intra-abdominal pressure and opens space for the gut to process and move things along. That’s where gas comes in. Burping is a top-down reset. Farting is a bottom-up one. Either way, your body is clearing space.

Not all massages produce these effects equally.

The styles most likely to generate digestive noise or gas release include:

1. Abdominal Massage
Specifically targets gut motility. Often used for constipation relief or post-surgical recovery.

2. Craniosacral Therapy
Light touch that encourages deep parasympathetic relaxation. Breath shifts can lead to burps or sighs.

3. Myofascial Release
Works on fascial lines around the abdomen, diaphragm, and hips. Deeply tied to digestive function.

4. Thai or Shiatsu Massage
Involves rhythmic pressure on energy lines along the abdomen and lower body. Triggers gut activation.

5. Prenatal Massage
Helps reposition internal organs compressed by pregnancy. Can stimulate gas release safely.

If you’ve ever left a massage and immediately needed the bathroom—that wasn’t coincidence. It was your gut catching up.

If you're nervous about gas or noises during your next massage, a few small adjustments can help:

• Avoid fizzy drinks before your session.
• Skip heavy meals within 2–3 hours of your appointment.
• Try light stretching or deep breathing before arriving.
• Let your therapist know if you're sensitive in the belly or prone to gas.

But don’t stress. Therapists expect this. For most, it’s just another day at the table.

Occasional burping or farting is normal. But if you experience excessive gas, discomfort, or bloating during every massage—or outside of it—it may be worth investigating further.

Ask yourself:

• Do I regularly feel bloated after eating?
• Is my stress level high most days?
• Am I swallowing air while chewing or drinking?
• Do I experience reflux, constipation, or indigestion often?

Massage may be highlighting an existing dysfunction—not causing it. If so, you may benefit from working with a physiotherapist, dietitian, or gut health specialist alongside your massage therapist.

Massage therapists hear it all. Gurgles. Gas. Snoring. Sighs. Even sobbing.

They’re trained to read the body’s responses—and gas is one of them. Some use it as a helpful diagnostic:

• Burping during neck work may point to diaphragmatic tension.
• Flatulence during hip release can indicate pelvic floor holding patterns.
• Stomach gurgles during back massage may reflect vagus nerve activation.

Therapists don’t think it’s gross. They think it’s working.

We tend to think stress lives in our mind. But it also lives in the gut, the breath, the pelvic floor, the diaphragm. We clench to control. We brace to perform. We compress to keep going. Massage is one of the few spaces where that gripping gets undone—safely, slowly, and without needing words. Gas release isn’t an interruption to the experience. It’s part of the return to balance.

In a world obsessed with control, letting go can feel embarrassing. But your body has its own logic. Burping during massage? That’s your diaphragm relaxing. Farting? Your gut restarting. Gurgling? Your digestion humming again. These aren’t signs of weakness. They’re signs of regulation. Let them happen. Because when the body finally feels safe, it stops holding. And when it stops holding, it starts healing.

If it doesn’t release during rest, it’ll store up under stress. Better out than held in. Most people assume healing looks clean. Stillness. Candles. Silence. But the body doesn’t care about appearances. It cares about balance. Regulation. Pressure relief. Gas release—whether through burping, flatulence, or a full-body sigh—is a physiological checkpoint. It confirms that your nervous system has hit the brakes. That your digestion is back online. That tension is moving, not just hiding.

If your gut is talking during massage, it’s not betraying you. It’s showing you what it feels safe enough to do. Ignore it, and that tension gets rerouted—into your shoulders, your jaw, your sleep. Release it, and you give your system one less burden to manage unconsciously.

This isn’t about being relaxed. It’s about being reset. And sometimes that reset sounds awkward. But it’s smarter than forcing stillness on a body that’s asking to exhale. So the next time something escapes—gas, a sigh, a stomach growl—don’t apologize. Just notice. Your system is working. Your body is processing. Your nervous system is updating its status from fight to flow. And that’s the whole point.