Brains!

I've been meaning to write about massage for months now. I just haven't. It's hard for me to explain that massage really isn't frilly fancy touching and relaxation. When someone for example comes in to see Pa, Ke, or Re they are often times blown away by how they feel after. That's really how you should feel after a massage. I mean some people are zombies, others can move their heads from side to side finally. I've been lucky enough to experience massage from the best sampling of therapists that Nashville has to offer. I'm really not just saying that to promote us, but rather this is something I feel completely confident about after hearing clients talk about their experiences elsewhere. I mean you only have to look at Pa's schedule and 6 person wait list to know there's something special and very different about us compared to elsewhere. To me it's enough to believe in all these crazy alternative medicines. We carry many products that have changed clients lives, and mine. Nasya oil is one...I no longer get nose bleeds or dry throat from the AC and pollen here. Pa says she has not had a sinus infection in two years, she used to get them three times a year. I truly believe that if you treat lifestyle and your body from a holistic view point you can cure multiple symptoms caused by any variety of things. Treating things symptom by symptom doesn't prevent anything, it's just a perpetuating a cycle. That's mostly what western medicine is, you get sick, they conquer it. What about prevention? Many alternative medicine focus on this prevention and maintenance (not to mention most of those are thousands of years old and lasted that long for a reason). When most people think of massage they think it's all muscle, how strong the therapist is. When in actuality it's all a matter of the quality of your therapist. Some therapists, such at Pa who has been practicing for 20+ years have had the experience and luxury of combining all sorts of techniques over time and the experience of working on so many different types of bodies. She's a master at listening to the body, completing what is asked of her and then saying thank you to your body for complying with her therapy. And again it's not just muscle...it's energy. There are specific therapies designed to help people with all sorts of issues, and half of them include the therapist directing energy throughout the clients body. I like to think our therapists are witch doctors. I'm not afraid to say they do magic still based in science in many ways. We've forgotten a long time ago how to listen to our bodies and others. If you just listen you can tell what's wrong with your insides. Pa worked on me the other day, and commented on my spleen feeling full. She released the lymphs around it and the fluids moved on their own. Apparently the spleen is a place where folks like to keep all their worries and stress. I'm not going to go as far as saying I was particularly worried that day, but I am in general an anxious person and that makes sense to me. Half the time the therapists and Re (owner and ayurvedic consultant) can help me pinpoint what my body is trying to tell me just by listening to what I have to say and seeing where that fits in emotionally, physically and even environmentally. You feel different during different seasons based the foods and supplements you are eating, the weather changing, the air you are breathing. Even the temperature of your food makes a difference. If you are ever in the position to get real therapeutic massage regularly, I say invest and for heaven's sake do your research. Find a licensed therapist(s) who is hard to get booked with, has got some experience, and a wide knowledge of the different therapies out there. Approach your body from a holistic view point. Combine therapies such as acupuncture, chiropractic sessions and varied exercise. Pay attention to the seasons, what you eat, when how, why? But above all listen to your body, and if you don't know how meet someone who knows how.