Massage is a necessity disguised as a luxury

Even the most enjoyable experiences can be pretty stressful, particularly the first time we try them. And of course most of us don't like being the "new kid on the block"  So here's a brief  "peek" into a typical massage session designed to calm some of those first time jitters.  The Intake Interview If this is your first massage ever or your first massage at Tranquil Escape , please arrive 10-15 minutes early to complete an intake form. The intake form is used to document your current state of health and gives your informed consent to receive massage therapy. You will have a brief interview before your massage to discuss your goals for the session, any condition that may affect your massage and specific areas of your body that you want (or don't want) included in your session. Sharing your goals will allow me to customize the session to your needs.  The Massage Session I will leave the room to give you time to disrobe. Take off only as much cl...

In a world that sells dissatisfaction, it’s almost heretical to feel happy about your body. And on the rare occasion when body satisfaction is socially acceptable, it’s usually in the context of “Dang, I look amazing in my wedding dress/tailored business suit/perm/bathing suit/whatever I just spent a lot of money on in order to make me feel this way for a couple of hours.”  For all the sunshiny Facebook messages telling you “You’re beautiful!” there’s not much to make us feel legitimately joyful to be in our own skins. So where does happiness come from, anyway? Psychological studies show that happiness stems not from being the best, most successful, or sexiest, but from gratitude. So telling yourself over and over that you’ve got a great body is less likely to leave you feeling happy than feeling grateful for the body you’ve got. It’s not always easy. None of our bodies are perfect. We often feel at odds with our bodies, feeling as though they’re betraying us in some fundamental ...

October 10th is World Mental Health day  An estimated 1 in 10 adults in the United States suffers from some kind of depression, according to the Centers for Disease Control. That’s around the same percentage of American adults who are left-handed, and yet while handedness is seen today as a quirky curiosity (or sometimes an advantage, in the case of athletes), there is still stigma and silence surrounding depression as an illness. So let’s talk: what is depression? Why is it problematic? And is there anything that can help? What is depression? Let’s start with what depression isn’t: a bad day, a brief period of mourning after a loss, or a pessimistic outlook on life. It consists of a period of more than two weeks of a bad mood, decreased interest in things that one normally finds enjoyable, and can also include fatigue, changes in weight, difficulty concentrating, inappropriate guilt, and even suicidal thoughts. While two weeks is the minimum length for defining de...

6 Tips for Active Aging Everybody talks about active aging, but not everybody knows what it’s supposed to look like. Working to stay happy and healthy as we get older shouldn’t be a drag, something done to slow an inevitable decline into decrepitude. Some things get better and better with age! While the grocery store magazine rack offers all kinds of tips for getting a bikini bod or looking 20 forever, there’s not much actual health advice anyone ought to be taking. So here are five tips for keeping active with each amazing birthday. 1. Keep moving, in whatever ways work for you. Don’t limit yourself. However you choose to stay active, make sure it’s something you enjoy. Being miserable while you move is not a great way to stay motivated! If being happy in motion means finding a salsa dance partner who can keep up with you all night long, don’t worry about the fact that the rest of your friends are more into yoga or golf. Don’t let assumptions about your age keep yo...

 I've found that over the last 2 years of being a massage therapist that many people are under the impression that massage is only a luxury item.    The type of work I do is geared toward relieving pain. My goal is to break long term pain cycles for my clients, whether it be from a long term condition or a more recent injury. I firmly believe massage therapy is a necessity for everyone to help us cope with our daily stresses. The Benefits Of Massage What exactly are the benefits of receiving massage or bodywork treatments? Useful for all of the conditions listed below and more, massage can: Alleviate low-back pain and improve range of motion. Assist with shorter, easier labor for expectant mothers and shorten maternity hospital stays. Ease medication dependence. Enhance immunity by stimulating lymph flow—the body's natural defense system. Exercise and stretch weak, tight, or atrophied muscles. Help athletes of any level prepare for, and recover from, st...