The Pregnancy Massage Privilege

I received news yesterday, that one of my pregnancy clients had finally gone into labour. She has been coming for regular pregnancy massage with me since March so I’ve been privileged to be a part of her health and wellbeing whilst growing a new baby.

I find pregnancy utterly mind blowing. I find the human body incredible with what it can do and how it responds to both genetic issues as well as the external environment (more so now as a massage therapist than ever before). To create a whole new person is a concept that, at times, seems too awesome for my headspace to fathom…

This may sound a little odd as women have babies all the time and, after all, it is what we (women) are ‘built’ to do. But when you break down what actually has to happen to create a baby, grow a baby, feed a baby and then raise a baby into childhood (on their path to adulthood) I question whether it’s just too scary for me to consider…at ANY stage of my life.

I absolutely adore giving a pregnancy massage. Firstly, to know that I’m providing a degree of relief to an aching back, hips and/or legs; and secondly because I’m a small part of helping the emotional wellbeing of an unborn baby. How amazing is that?! Through massage I help “mum” to relax and unwind and, as a result, the baby benefits (usually showing their appreciation by becoming rather more active!).

People often forget how pregnancy can affect the rest of the body. Over nine months there is dramatic weight gain (after all by the end of the third trimester women are literally carrying on the inside the baby they’ll be holding in their arms!). It’s no wonder that muscles and joints will ache, circulation will be affected and lymph drainage may be more difficult for the body to cope with. Normal* weight gain from simply eating the wrong types of food, over a prolonged period of time, and not moving your body enough on a daily basis does not occur as dramatically. For a start this type of weight gain will be spread over the body rather than being focussed on one area. Muscles have a little more time to adjust and develop to the new weight and gradually your body will adapt to your new size.

That’s not to say that weight gain won’t come with it’s own issues (which I won’t go into here as we’ll be here all day!) but I’d question whether it’s really understood (or perhaps acknowledged) how much pregnancy can take its toll on the rest of the body:

• lower back and hip problems
• fluid retention, especially in the lower legs and around the ankles
• tight muscles throughout the thoracic (middle) spine
• insomnia (due to hormonal change and mental stress as well as having to give up favourite sleeping positions)

It can’t be denied though that giving a pregnancy massage is as fantastic as receiving one (well…I hope so anyway!) but the “icing on the bun in the oven” (as Catherine Counihan says: Yummy Mummy Wear) is when I get the first visit from a pregnancy client who has her new born baby in her arms.

It sounds cheesy, but seriously, when you’ve been a part of someone’s pregnancy journey (and in such an intimate capacity) there are no words to express what I feel when I see this perfect creation. It’s truly amazing. Respect to Mother Nature!

And the best part is yet to come when I can then teach parents how to massage their own baby….

*For want of a better word here as pregnancy weight gain in itself is “normal” but you know what I mean!

Be Conscious Of…

Here’s my latest little webcast to help you all Be Conscious in June….

Be Conscious Of Professional Wellbeing Month & Father’s Day this June!

Congratulations! It’s a business!

The Racing Bug…Have You Been Bitten?

It’s been a while since I was in the flow of blogging. So many topics to cover and deciding which would provide the most interesting reading changes so frequently that I then commit to nothing. For this I apologise.

However, at last I find myself in my favourite place to blog (and by favourite place I mean headspace as well as my physical location!). For those you who know me, even a little, you’ll picture me typing away in Costa, latte in a takeaway cup, Blackberry to one side and diary open (ready to pencil in potential clients for the next week with any luck!). In terms of my headspace, I’ve tried several times to update my blog but struggling to find the words. Today, however, I feel back in the game and will hopefully produce something that wants to be read.

What has caused this change you may wonder? Easy question to answer…enter a slight change in my work-life balance. That is, I seem to be making time for “life”!

For the last year or so my passion for running has stayed on a treadmill. After completing the London Marathon for the third time in 2008 (sorry, a little boost for my ego there!) I decided that my marathon days were done and I would stick to shorter distances…after all I’d been there, got the t-shirt several times! Looking back over my ‘racing’ years (and I use the term ‘racing’ very loosely here; I’ve done a handful of half marathons and three marathons, I wouldn’t call myself a ‘racer’ by any means!) I seem to be stuck in a pattern. Every two years my body seems ready to enter races again and my competitive runners’ streak seems to rear it’s ugly head. And it really is ugly.

The pressure I put on myself to achieve decent times and smash previous personal bests is ridiculous. The nerves kick in easily a good five to seven days before race day. Sleep is unsettled the night before and I’m plagued by thoughts such as “Have I done enough training?”, “What if I can’t do it?”, “What if I’m really slow?”. This last question is the one that is the most problematic for me:

“What if I am slower than the last time I ran the same distance?”

To many people this is a crazy question to be worried about. Just running the race and finishing is an achievement in itself. And I get that. But, if you race regularly I think you’ll agree, it’s all about the time. Those few seconds faster or slower, which can make the difference between exhilaration or sheer defeat when crossing the finish line.

I remember completing my first half marathon in 2003; The Great West Run. No expectations other than to finish. I had zero racing experience, and I train alone so I had absolutely no idea whether I was any good. I just wanted to be fit and healthy; and running has always felt the hardest thing for me to do, which is then why I love it so much. It’s also the fastest way to change body shape (let’s be honest here, there’s an element of wanting to look good as well as feeling great when we workout). So when I came in at 1:50 I was beside myself with joy.

If you’re new to half marathons you’ll always aim for the 2hour mark. First time marathon runner, you’ll aim for 4hours. I cannot begin to describe how I felt after that first race. Elation doesn’t come close. I couldn’t stop grinning for the rest of the day, and by the time I came to flopping into bed I think my faced ached!

I had done it. Not just the race…I had caught the bug. Stronger than any drug you can imagine, I wanted to feel like this again and again. And so it begins. I entered the London Marathon wanting to run further, faster and discover just exactly what I was capable of. And so in April 2004 I found myself, a nervous wreck, at the start line of my first marathon.

And what happened? Disaster. I had aimed for 4hours (and who knows perhaps faster?!) so when I crossed the finish line and discovered my time was 4:15 I was gutted. No endorphin rush, so sense of achievement. Just pain, stiffness and overwhelming disappointment. This wasn’t what I was expecting at all! It also rained constantly so I was cold and wet and…well it was all rubbish as far as I was concerned!

Relating how I felt on that day is a little embarassing. I am now aware that for a first time marathon that’s a good time, but I had so wanted to finish in 4hours. I wanted (and I realise this is all about the ego!) but I wanted to feel elite in some way and this time didn’t make me feel that at all. So, what to do? Enter again. I needed my ‘hit’ more than ever. Once you’ve experienced it there’s simply no question.

Half marathon times were doing well. I completed the Cheddar half in 1:47 (it was a PB, good enough for me) so I had my fix there. But I didn’t get into the London in 2005. Gutted. To be fair the 2004 entry had been a fluke (a charity runner had dropped out and I was offered their place at the beginning of March 2004 and needless to say I took it without any hesitation). But then I was pulled out of the ballot in 2006 – result!

That year was a turning point for me. I had more experience, more training, more confidence. I came in at 3:45 for the marathon and proceeded to smash my PB for a half marathon two weeks later with 1:45! I was on fire! And I had proved myself as a decent runner. Not just a jogger anymore, but someone who could hold their own in races and actually achieve a decent time. Ego restored. No one could take those times away from me (or the medals for that matter!) so once again I was drunk on endorphins and pride. Is that terrible? Possibly, but it’s honest.

Suddenly in 2007 I was faced with a new dilemma. I’d had such a good year in 2006 did I want to risk entering races and being unable to achieve the same times or faster? As fate would have it I unfortunately fell rather ill and the medication I had to take prevented me from outdoor running anyway: I was treadmill bound. And so began the love affair with the treadmill. An affair so intense that I soon began to doubt whether I could run outside at all anymore. Here I was safe, I was fast, I was unbeatable. On the treadmill I could try (and usually succeed) in beating my time every time. It was uncredible. I raced only myself trying to see how far I could run in half an hour: the belt wurring, music pounding, sweating profusely (really…not a good look!). Half an hour was soon replaced by distance: how fast could I run 10k on a treadmill? It’s this new love affair that still continues today…

Time passed, I was off the meds but I was not off the treadmill. I recieved news that I had a place in the 2008 London Marathon but I was so involved with the treadmill that I wasn’t interested. The racing bug had been flushed out of my system, but I still felt the need to justify why I didn’t want to run: “too much impact for my joints”, “not enough time to put in for the training” etc etc. But the truth is I was scared. I hadn’t done any real road running for nearly two years. I couldn’t do it anymore and if I did, there was no way I would get a good time. There would really be no point in running the race as far as I was concerned. It would be a repeat of the 2004 marathon and I really had no desire to put myself through that again!

But then I started massaging clients that were running the marathon. I started to feed off their excitment about the day that lay ahead. I listened to their training routines and in turn shared what little racing experience I had. It was soon out of control. It turned out that I wasn’t immune from the racing bug after all. I missed it desperately. So with six weeks to go, I decided to run the 2008 London Marathon…and not tell anyone!

Insane? Yes. I told a couple of close friends and my parents. No need to get excited, it was merely an experiment. Could I do it? Don’t aim for a time, Steph, simply get round. So three weeks to race day I completed an 11mile outdoor run just to see how it felt. Not bad. But clearly only 11miles, I must be mad!

Race day. Thousands of runners and yet I was so alone. No one there to support me, cheer me on or meet me if I completed the race. Silly girl, what was I thinking?! But I knew what I was thinking. Imagine…completing the marathon with no marathon training; now that makes me a nutter, and I quite liked that! But not only did I complete the race I came in at 3:55! Seriously, sub 4hours with no real training. Now that was something to celebrate. The only occasion I’d run a race slower than a previous race and felt just as elated, ecstatic. No…overwhelmed.

That’s it. That’s the high like no other. But that’s where I wanted to leave it. Three marathons, job done. The treadmill greeted me with open arms (despite my slight road infidelity) and I was back in the zone. Or so I thought…

But two years later and I’m here again. Not at the start line of the London Marathon, but I’ve caught the racing bug again. It started with the Kingston Breakfast Run. 16miles, third outdoor run in two years, what time could I possibly achieve? 2:05 was what I achieved. Again, how is that possible?! It’s there, recorded in black and white. It’s still so odd seeing a certain time with my name next to it but the confirmation is essential, otherwise I wouldn’t believe it was real. So what’s next?

Yesterday I completed the Richmond Half Marathon in 1:38, smashing my 1:45 2006 PB out the park. I’m overwhelmed that my body can do this. I have entered another five races this year, including the Dublin marathon in October. I must be crazy.

You must be thinking I’m fairly fit. Yes I am, but to be honest, I’m not a ‘built’ runner. I find running really hard so I can testify that to complete any race, in any time, is at least a 90% mental process. I’m just stubborn! Your body comes second to what your brain wants it to achieve 99.9% of the time. You can train your body to do anything, how amazing is that?

I’ve had several new clients this year who have seduced me with their own race enthusiasm. I have made good friends who share the same drive to feel that incredible high, knowing that, when standing at the start line there is no guarantee that this race will be the race to give you that buzz. That’s the risk you take…

If you wanna catch the racing bug here’s my line up for this year, you’re welcome to join me:

St Albans Half Marathon 13th June

Windsor Half Marathon 26th Sept

Cabbage Patch 10 17th Oct

Dublin Marathon 25th Oct

Hell Runner! 28th Nov

http://www.theconscioushealthcentre.com/index.php/therapists

The Exchange of Treatment

There are so  many reasons why I love my profession, most of which I could have guessed before I even went into remedial massage, but as time the years roll on there is one element to being a therapist which has been a complete surprise to me. I used to feel guilty for it, but I have learned that it is simply another amazing aspect of my job, for which I am totally overwhelmed.

The unexpected, yet fabulous, “pro” that I refer to is how my clients help ME.

The fundamental reason for me to study remedial massage was how I could help others with conditions such as circulation problems, acute and chronic muscle and joint injuries, stress headaches/migraines, insomnia, arthritis (the list goes on) but it never ocurred to me that my clients would have such an impact on me. Surely I’m supposed to be the therapist that, during their treatment, helps the client (whether it’s just a physical problem or both physical and emotional)?

Needless to say, the type of massage I practice usually encourages clients to chat throughout their treatment (although there are always exceptions to the rule!) rather than float off to plinky plonky music! It’s during these conversations that I’m convinced most of the benefits occur. I’m touched that clients feel able to discuss personal problems and situations with me, knowing that anything discussed is entirely confidential of course, which in turn helps them off load emotionally and thus their physical body is positively affected. But what has truly amazed me is the number of times I have been asked about my life; what’s going on in the world of Stephanie Blake?

I have always worn my heart on my sleeve. Something I have been criticised for, and something I have tried to change in the past. But, as I’ve got older I realise that, not only is this pointless (from the view of not being true to myself) but that the friends, and clients I have, actually like this about me. Clients like the fact that I’m open and honest with them about my life and how I feel about things and I hope it is this aspect of myself that encourages relative strangers to open up to me: talk about their issues and problems with someone impartial and maybe, on some occasions, gain some clarity or closure.

Frequently the conversations I have are mainly concerned with having a giggle. A bit of light, emotional relief from a somewhat stressful day at work or at home. Equally as therapeutic, in my opinion, as an indepth discussion on some major issue that has been penetrating ones thoughts on a daily basis! But it astounds me that this really works both ways…

There have been countless occasions where I feel clients may have helped me more than I have helped them! It touches me that clients want to offer advice and talk about things that have been upsetting me in my personal life and, where appropriate, offer solutions. In turn, my energy levels are often lifted and by the end of the treatment I’m not sure whether I should have paid the client rather than taking payment myself!

It’s not surprising then that a few clients, over the years have become friends. Massage itself is a very intimate treatment. Essentially I’m asking a complete stranger, who is experiencing some sort of discomfort or pain, to remove most of their clothes and trust me to make them feel better. That’s quite a  big ask! I think it helps that, in the majority of cases, the client will be looking down or away from me for the most part, which allows an element of detachment arguably a big help in making the client feel comfortable engaging in conversation.

I also think it helps that I, myself am rather a chatterbox! I like to think I know when to keep my mouth shut though, always taking my cue from the client as to whether they actually want to chat during their treatment or not. That said, I am a firm believer that the emotional state affects the physical one so if a client talks freely and is comfortable answering any questions I have it helps me gain a deeper understanding of the physical issue at hand. It makes sense then that despite my extremely physical job and passion for running, biking and gym training, that my body is injury free (it needs a good deep tissue massage more frequently but essentially it is injury free!). My clients, you, are helping me more than you realise…something I am eternally grateful for.

I was asked recently, in a video interview, how I stay so motivated and energised as, not only a massage therpapist, but also as a business owner (where I have to wear so many ‘hats’ even I’m not sure how I do it!). The answer came to me so quickly and with complete clarity: my clients help me as much as I help them.

You, the client, are the reason I love my job, want to be the best therapist I can be and strive to create a health centre that encompasses security, comfort and well being. If it were left to me I doubt The Conscious Health Centre would exist. Thanks to you my passion and dream has been realised at such a young age, and it excites me that there is still so many ideas I have yet to explore and potential yet to be unleashed. Both of these I am convinced will come from you.

It’s true that one gets back what they give out. I only hope I am giving as much as I’m receiving.

Check out my new YouTube Conscious TV Channel and hear more on what inspired me to set up The Conscious Health Centre and ‘Top Tips’ for your health!

running on empty? sometimes you can just keep going…

A couple of weeks ago I found myself driving to work (which is unusual in itself considering I’m a firm believer of walking where ever possible!) and as I came to stop at some traffic lights I noticed several similarities between my car and my life!

For a start I drive an old R reg Vauxhall Corsa. It’s only a 1.2 so as you can appreciate, in order to over take I need to be travelling on a decline! I believe that rain is responsible for keeping the outside of my car clean and as long as it continues getting me from A to B I need not worry too much.

That said, sat at the traffic lights I realise that (for the last month anyway) I’ve been pottering around with hardly any petrol. Trying to save a few pennys I decided to use my car as little as possible and find the needle quivering very comfortably in the red. Now, I’m the sort of person to remedy a petrol issue as soon as the gauge gets even remotely close to the red but circumstances this year have forced me to see just how long I can get away with avoiding petrol stations and the inevitable rant that prices induce.

From the wobbling needle no longer even trying to leave the red I start looking at all the other neglected parts of my car: the crack in the windscreen that has gradually inched its way along to a length of about  eight inches, which now makes me nervous every time I’m driving when there’s heavy rain fall! The temperature dial that actually just slides out of the device if pulled rather than turned; wing mirrors that have been replaced so many times due to the bastards that find it amusing to smack them off after a few drinks late at night, that I just can’t get them into quite the right position anymore; and finally the swinging bonnet leaver that dangles around my foot as I drive (instead of fitting snugly against the inside of the car it came off in my hand months ago and ever since I have to use a pair of pliers to pull the cable to release the bonnet catch).

Little bits of rust have started to appear here and there, the tyres have cracks and there’s condensation on the inside of the windscreen during the colder months….

…but with all this it still keeps going. It’s remarkable. I actually have genuine appreciation for all the abuse I put my car through and yet it continues to start when I turn the key and gets me to my destination without any problems.

That’s not to say my car and I haven’t fallen out from time to time. About eighteen months ago it decided to give up if I dared slowing down to first gear. Needless to say approaching any kind of junction or roundabout or traffic congestion turned me into a nervous wreck driving round London (drivers really show no mercy on the roads here!) and I would pump the accelerator and speak words of encouragement to my car in the vain hope that on that occasion it would still keep going. After the last shred of trust was lost between us I took it to the garage. Turned out one part of the engine had stopped talking to another part of the engine so said engine thought it was permanently cold, provoking bursts of petrol to pump through when there was really no need. £150 lighter and problem sorted.

If only life were that simple!

So sitting at the traffic lights, I’m thinking about my car and how, at that moment it reflected my entire being. Or how I felt about myself anyway.

I’m literally runnning on empty. And yet I still keep going, getting up every morning and going to bed every night, breathing in and out depsite the abuse I put my mind and body through during the day. No one said running your own business was easy. I didn’t expect it to be. I relished the challenge of making something that I had created a success. I still do. But I do believe it comes at an energetic price.

Not only do I put pressure on myself to work seven days a week (even if it’s only catching up with emails on a Sunday) but I’m constantly berating myself for not working hard enough to get the results I want more quickly. What’s even more crazy is that I do this with everything. From brushing my teeth so frantically I get toothpaste on the mirror to trying to beat the last time it took me to get from Middlesex to Warwickshire when going to visit my folks. I don’t seem to be able to pull out of this crazy competition where I am the only competitor!

And like my car, the cracks are beginning to show. My body’s petrol gauge has been shaking on empty for a long time. My gym training has become gruelling (and yet I still feel a need to enter races to motivate me to train harder, for longer), bags have taken up permanent residence under my eyes and my joints are having a shout out each morning after the previous day of massaging. But it has become abundantly clear that I have remarkable staminar. I simply just keep going. We all do. Granted, some are better at it than others but, whatever level you’re operating at it’s clear the brain will always override the body’s warning signals.

The driver will continue to put the key in the ignition and expect the car to run no matter how little care and attention they have given it over the last year (or years!). We expect our body to function without problem despite the continual demands the brain makes whilst ignoring that niggling pain in our back, the constant headache or the insomnia.

And that’s where I come in as a massage therapist. Deep tissue massage is so fantastic to help answer the body’s requests for attention (even if the brain doesn’t want to add the body to it’s ‘to-do’ list). Where you will eventually need to take your car to the garage if the neglect is constant, so will you need to get your body ‘serviced’. However, it’s easy to get new car parts to replace those that really have given up once and for all, but not so easy to replace body parts!

I’m learning the hard way that the body needs a regular MOT more than my car does. I don’t want my body to suddenly break down to a point of no return, so I need to fill the tank and get out of the red again. Even just a little care and attention will prevent me from ending up on the scrapheap  before my brain is ready to be there!

“Do as I say, not as I do” is a phrase that often comes to mind when I’m dispensing advice to clients during their massage treatment. Take that short break, have a duvet day, eat that bar of chocolate. Most importantly book in for that massage because otherwise one day you’ll put the key in the ignition and there really won’t be any petrol left in the tank. Now all I need to do is follow my own advice!

Am I missing something?

So I’m going to jump straight in with my thoughts…

I’d like to think that as far as common business sense goes I’m pretty good. Infact, I’d even go as far to say that I was definitely blessed with the common sense gene. However, depsite feeling as though I’m ticking most of the small business ‘boxes’ I still can’t fathom any pattern.

Networking, tick, (although admittedly I could do more of this!) client tracking, tick, twitter, tick, facebook, tick, client follow ups, tick, loyalty incentives, tick, marketing goals, tick, amazing health centre, tick, and of course amazing product (ie complimentary therapies and myslelf practising Deep Tissue/Remedial Massage) TICK!

As time passes, I also believe it’s worth taking a look at client numbers on a monthly basis…how many new clients did I see, for example, Jan 2007, 2008, 2009? and so on..I also think it’s worth streamlining my marketing so I’m dividing my clients into categories: regulars (those who book in for their next treatment before leaving the centre); infrequents (those who book in after a gentle reminder that I haven’t seen them for a month or so); injuries (those who only get treatment for specific injuries/problems that arise on occasion); and one-offs (I treat them once and then, I like to think, they disappear into the ether forever).

Surely this way the loyalty of clients doesn’t get overlooked, as well as offering different incentives to one ‘category’ of client that wouldn’t, perhaps suit another.

Then there are the pregnancy clients which I keep completely seperately. Some ladies again, need that one-off massage to help them through a tough week; others (and I’d obviously like more of these!) enjoy a massage roughly once a month throughout their pregnancy to keep them relaxed, help their backs and legs as they gain weight and generally off load any anxiety/stress they’re experiencing. Again, it is these ladies that I would also like to see for baby massage courses, then as they realise how their bodies are stiff and aching from holding their little one all the time and the toll breastfeeding takes on the body, I like to remind them that a remedial massage would sort them out!

So, despite my best efforts I find it frustrating that I simply can’t predict a pattern in my ‘busy-ness’. Some days/weeks are inundated with clients. I’m tired but energised, thriving on seeing several people everyday, helping their injuries, easing their stress, stretching their muscles. And then….nothing….the panic sets in and I can’t understand what I’m doing wrong. Did I forget to follow up? No. Did the client benefit and enjoy the treatment? Yes. Is it summer holiday time? No. Has there been a freak weather episode? No.

In the past these “quiet spells” whether they last a couple of days or (god forbid!) a couple of weeks, usually balance out with the expected madness that follows but should this occur at all? And why is it I always have a lot of people wanting the same day and time? This intrigues me.

Maybe it’s the industry I’m in..

Maybe the seemingly lack of predictability is the actual pattern..

Maybe I’m just extremely impatient and in fact want a client base that will just take some time..

One thing I have noticed is that I seem to be quite good at giving advice when it comes to other peoples’ businesses. Friends, who have asked for advice, actually think I make a lot of sense (which in itself I find rather amusing!). And yet, I’ve never studied business or marketing but seem to have a general knack for it. So it’s possible that the lesson is to enjoy the ride of business – you can only measure so much. And when I really start to doubt whether there’s enough time in the day to get all my stats done I remember,

“even the most successful people in the world have only 24hours in a day”

Isn’t that fantastic?!

Too much choice: too much confusion?

The amount of choice we have today, whilst being the best we’ve ever had, can also lead to a little confusion. No longer is there one type of butter to spread on your toast in the morning, but now you need to choose from no salt butter, goats butter, tastes like butter, clearly it’s not butter!!!

Personally, I don’t cope well with too many options…and as it happens most of us get too over whelmed with too much choice and as a result end up with nothing! Unless one is an expert in the field having all these options seems to work to our detriment rather than providing a solution. And the same can be said with complimentary therapies and the alternative health industry.

Now, I could go into the many, many, many different types of therapy now readily available today, depending on your health issue, type of therapy personally suited to you and the best therapists and practitioners in said field. However, as a remedial massage therapist I would like to take massage as an example. I also believe massage as exploded since the emergence of Aromatherapy in the 1980s and now we find ourselves with huge choice when it comes to choosing which type of massage is best for you!

Every time I attend a health fair there is always a new massage style I haven’t head of adding themselves to the already huge list: holistic, Swedish, sports, deep tissue, remedial, aromatherapy, Hawaiian, Thai, Indian head, pregnancy, baby, hot stone, shiatsu, reflexology…..the list goes on!

Now, how many of the general public are ‘experts’ in massage? I’m guessing there really aren’t too many people who have in depth massage knowledge that would enable them to make an informed choice as to which massage they would most benefit them.

I fully believe that any form of touch is extremely powerful on a physical and emotional level so arguably whichever massage you go for it could be a win-win situation. But, add the fact that it will also depend on the therapist you get (and therefore the quality of the massage you receive), into the mix, you really need to know your massage! Confused? Yeah, me too and I AM a massage therapist!

That’s why I’m now going to plug the therapy I practice! Remedial massage (which does involve deep tissue work) as given me more job satisfaction that I could have believed possible. I don’t consider it a ‘job’ it’s too much fun! Sounding cheesy? Well, let me list some of the health problems I can help with: stress (physical manifestations and emotional); circulation; headaches; muscular and joint problems; sprains and strains; muscle atrophy; body maintenance and injury prevention; insomnia….just to name a few! Impressed? You should be because I can also chat at the same time!

Remedial massage used to be prescribed by GPs in the same way antibiotics are today and teams of massage therapists were sent out troops during WWI! Sadly, after WWII remedial massage was lost to the emergence of physiotherapy, which then dominated right up until Aromatherapy started being recognised for its health benefits. This put massage back in the map but unfortunately as much more of a ‘treat’ and ‘pamper’ therapy rather than a real health solution.

The battle continues to get Remedial massage the recognition it deserves by GPs, health insurance providers and the NHS but things are now moving in a positive direction, so it’s now up to you to make the choice: incorporate Remedial massage into your weekly/monthly health routine to prevent muscular problems or reduce the effects of stress; or seek Remedial massage after you’ve ignored your body’s warning signals and it’s all gone wrong!

Either way…there is really only one option…Remedial Massage!

I am based at my own clinic called The Conscious Health Centre, based in Twickenham, www.theconscioushealthcentre.com.

Hello world!

Welcome to WordPress.com. This is your first post. Edit or delete it and start blogging!