Previously, we examined the American Organization of Bodywork Therapies of Asia’s (AOBTA) definition of Asian Bodywork Therapy (ABT) using three styles of bodywork — amma, shiatsu, and Jin Shin Jyutsu (October/November 2004, page 114).
Some years ago, I wrote an article for the New York State Society for Medical Massage Therapists titled “Counseling Psychology and Massage Therapy.”1 Rereading it recently, I realized I had more to say about the connection between the fields of bodywork and psychotherapy. Both practices are deeply involved in the therapeutic relationship and have much in common. The emerging field of somatic psychology has much to teach us.
Close your eyes and imagine the Caribbean. What do you see? Palm trees, crystal blue waters, sandy beaches? What do you feel? Warm tropical breezes, moist salt air, the weightlessness of floating in the ocean?
Now imagine a spa that utilizes those sensations and the natural, soothing environment of the Caribbean Sea. More than a massage on the beach, these treatments incorporate water, salt, sand, and the rhythms of the sea to create a powerful healing experience.
Somewhere between meetings, writing reports, returning phone calls, and answering e-mail, Americans try to squeeze in lunch. We’ve developed a new breed — busy people, too busy to take advantage of lunch. Others get to the end of their day before realizing they never had a lunch break. Some do manage to eat, but they fill themselves with often unmemorable foods just to keep going. As a lifestyle coach, I meet these people all the time.
Originally published in Body Sense magazine, Spring/Summer 2005.
Copyright 2005. Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals. All rights reserved.
While shopping in your grocery store’s produce section, you may notice the organically grown apples are pocked and not as big and perfectly round as the conventional produce, but they are more expensive. What’s the difference, and which do you choose? Your decision may significantly impact not only your health but the health of the economy and the planet.
We all feel stress from time to time, and many of our lifestyle habits don’t support us in our journey along a healthier path. Here are 10 lifestyle changes that will help you become more relaxed and increase your overall feeling of well-being.
While the U.S. spa industry has consistently struggled with the definition of “spa,” the market continues to expand, explore, and test the boundaries of consumer expectations and demands. Although “mind, body, and soul” is the mantra many spas have used throughout the last decade, the “mind” aspect of the spa movement was rarely a priority until energetic services began to attract clients’ intrigue and dollars.
--Paul Pearsall, Ph.D., author and lecturer
Understanding this statement pushes us beyond what is often considered politically correct. But to miss its meaning causes profound unhappiness.
Pearsall explains that certain behaviors and attitudes disconnect us from the world and from other people, and we end up isolated and miserable.
When Nancy Sinatra sang “these boots are gonna walk all over you,” perhaps she was describing ashiatsu. This ancient practice—which involves a massage therapist literally walking on your back—has been performed by Buddhist monks for centuries and is now available in various forms across America.
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