Have achievable goals. There are many reasons to get regular therapeutic massage. You can come in once a month as part of your complementary / preventative healthcare routine to help you reduce overall stress and increase a sense of calm and peace. You can also come in to reduce pain, increase range of movement, improve sleep. It is important to maintain realistic session goals. For example, if you have discomfort and limited mobility from twenty years of hard, repetitive movement at a job, it is probably not going to go away in one sixty minute massage treatment.
What could be possible is the pain going from a ten to a six; range of motion improving by a few inches; anxiety around what is going on in the body decreases; willingness to do follow up self-care at home, like stretching, walking, or drinking more water increases. Healing often comes in small increments and over time how you live in your body will feel freer and easier.
When you are ready to book your next massage just go here and click on the ‘booknow’ button.
I look forward to seeing you.
More tips to follow . . .
[See tip No. 1 here. See tip No. 2 here. See tip No. 3 here.]
Communicate. Before you ever step into the office, communication is important. A health intake form is sent via a secured site so that you can take your time to fill it out, completely, without pressure. Amongst other things, we are looking for contraindications, to be sure it is safe for you to receive massage, and for your session goals, to gauge if our style of working and accumulated CEU’s align with your desired outcome. Once you are in the office, please take a minute to let us know what is going on that day. Do you just want to relax or is there a knot in your shoulder that you would like us to address? Let us know about superficial adjustments as well. Is the heat on the table too much? Would you prefer different music? Does it feel better to have a pillow under your head when you are supine?
We are invested in creating an environment that feels safe and relaxing and want you to leave feeling a little better than when you arrived. Each person who walks through our door experiences life in their body differently. To one person the lightest touch can feel painful, and to another all the pressure we can muster feels like nothing. While many bodyworkers are intuitive and are looking for clues to how the body is responding to the work, we cannot read your mind, and it is ok to speak up and let us know what is going on.
When you are ready to book your next massage just go here and click on the ‘booknow’ button.
Prioritize hygiene. This does not mean you need to shave your legs or have stepped out of the shower five minutes before your appointment. It does mean that we need you to come in clean. For example, don’t come to us directly after a hot yoga class. Please have showered and washed your hair the same day as your session. Consider not wearing strong perfumes, colognes, or body lotions. If you have a cold, please give us notice and reschedule your appointment for when you are feeling better.
It is respectful to your massage therapist to consider their experience as well as your own. We prioritize hygiene and cleanliness too, for ourselves and our rooms. Everything that we used for your appointment, anything that we have touched or you have touched, gets sanitized after you leave. All sheets, towels, etc. get washed. All surfaces get wiped down. It is part of our job to make sure your health and well being are looked after. We love it when you take our health and well-being into consideration too.
When you are ready to book your next massage just go here and click on the ‘booknow’ button.
Schedule your appointment so that you can arrive a few minutes early, especially if it is your first visit to the building. This gives you a chance to find parking, silence your cell phone and use the restroom if needed. Having a cushion of time so that you are not rushing to the massage room signals to your body / mind that it is ok to start slowing down. It also gives us a chance to chat for a moment about your goals for that day’s session. Another important note is that being on time ensures that you will receive all the minutes that have been set aside for you.
[photo taken by me on a visit to the ocean this year . . . makes me feel peaceful and reminds me to breathe]
When you are ready to book your next massage just go here and click on the ‘booknow’ button.
I’ve always been mindful of what goes on your skin during a massage session. There are some ingredients in skin care products, such as endocrine disruptors, that can affect hormone health. In the past [and sometimes still] I’ve even made my own small batches of massage balms to use in my practice, ensuring that every ingredient was organic and high quality.
I’ve recently fallen in love with some massage body butters that are handcrafted in a small warehouse in CA by Rebel Massage. The ingredients are clean, provide therapeutic effects from the organic base lotions and essential oils, and they smell amazing! I get excited each time I use them because I know they are good for you – and for me. The version with a bit more grip lets me access deeper muscle tissue layers with more ease and the version with a little extra melt is perfect for days when you’ve just come to relax.
Some of my most frequently used ones are: Sore Loser – which has Peppermint, Eucalyptus and Arnica to help sore muscles; For Your Inflammation – with Roman Chamomile, Juniper Berry and Wintergreen, which helps with inflammation; and Sole Food – which has Turmeric, Lemon and Black Pepper – great for foot health. I like Sole Food so much that I keep one at home as well, just for me.
Sole Food Total Meltdown Professional Bodywork Butter
Know that when you come in for your next massage appointment your wellness and well being are being truly thought of. I only use products that I’d feel good about putting on my own skin. Bonus that you get to go home smelling like heaven.
When you’re ready to book your next appointment just go here and click on the ‘booknow’ button. It’s so easy. See you soon!
Massage is not just a fun spa day treat. Therapeutic massage and bodywork have been around for thousands of years and were part of health care systems in India, China and Egypt. Healing, therapeutic touch is essential to wellbeing, including mental health. To book your next appointment go HERE.
Whether you sit at a desk, spend time driving, or work a physically intensive job – we all hold a lot of tension in the head, neck, and shoulders. Come in for a massage session that focuses on just those areas, along with the face, to help ease the mind, reduce your stress load, and support a better night sleep. This slow, calming work will be done on a heated massage table and will employ Swedish Massage, acupressure, and facial rejuvenation techniques.
(IF YOU’RE SEEING THIS VIA EMAIL – GO TO MY WEBSITE TO SEE THE VIDEO BY CLICKING THE TITLE ABOVE. AND IF YOU KNOW HOW TO HAVE A VIDEO SHOW UP IN THE EMAIL – I’D LOVE SOME GUIDANCE. :-))
It’s been twenty years since I graduated from massage school! Can’t believe how fast the time has gone by. I’m going to share twenty random things in several different videos. Could be about school itself, things your massage therapist wants you to know, self care practices to try at home, things I’ve learned, etc.
This is video eight and thing number eighteen – hot stone massage & cupping therapy. I did this once before when it had been 14 years and shared the reflections on this website as written posts. Just type ’14 things’ in the search bar and they’ll pop up. I’d love to see you soon. You can click ‘Book Now’ under the Massage tab and find your way to your next appointment. :)
(IF YOU’RE SEEING THIS VIA EMAIL – GO TO MY WEBSITE TO SEE THE VIDEO BY CLICKING THE TITLE ABOVE. AND IF YOU KNOW HOW TO HAVE A VIDEO SHOW UP IN THE EMAIL – I’D LOVE SOME GUIDANCE. :-))
It’s been twenty years since I graduated from massage school! Can’t believe how fast the time has gone by. I’m going to share twenty random things in several different videos. Could be about school itself, things your massage therapist wants you to know, self care practices to try at home, things I’ve learned, etc.
This is video seven and thing number seventeen – Massage Math. I did this once before when it had been 14 years and shared the reflections on this website as written posts. Just type ’14 things’ in the search bar and they’ll pop up. I’d love to see you soon. You can click ‘Book Now’ under the Massage tab and find your way to your next appointment. :)
(IF YOU’RE SEEING THIS VIA EMAIL – GO TO MY WEBSITE TO SEE THE VIDEO BY CLICKING THE TITLE ABOVE. AND IF YOU KNOW HOW TO HAVE A VIDEO SHOW UP IN THE EMAIL – I’D LOVE SOME GUIDANCE. :-))
Massage Is For Every Body
I have so much to say about this that I made video after video, just trying to keep it short. My hair was cute and curled at the start … and slowly frizzed out as I got more frustrated at trying to contain a topic that I have so many thoughts and feelings about.
If you’d like to have conversation about this, please reach out.
It’s been twenty years since I graduated from massage school! Can’t believe how fast the time has gone by. I’m going to share twenty random things in several different videos. Could be about school itself, things your massage therapist wants you to know, self care practices to try at home, things I’ve learned, etc.
This is video six and thing number sixteen. I did this once before when it had been 14 years and shared the reflections on this website as written posts. Just type ’14 things’ in the search bar and they’ll pop up. I’d love to see you soon. You can click ‘Book Now’ under the Massage tab and find your way to your next appointment. :)
Tania Palermo [Studio on Main] 