Too many of us don’t set aside time to rest. We tend to forget the importance of resting and how it can help heal our minds, body and spirit.
Recently I undertook a stress management course and it really got me thinking about what I am doing to myself and those that surround me. Now I know what you are thinking, how can a massage therapist who is trained in relaxing others be suffering from stress? From a young age I have always worked two jobs or more at a time. It’s been drummed into me that if you work hard it will pay off at the end. My average working week is close to 60 hours and I am not alone. With England in a recession for the second time within 4 years, gas and electricity bills going up, people are working longer and harder to make rent.
There is a fear that if you are seen resting that you are lazy; not achieving your best and it seems like there is always something important to do. Every Saturday my husband complains that I am cleaning the house, I respond with “it’s the only day I have free to do it!” Sad really that my only day off I fill with chores. There is also the notion that if I have a free moment I should fill it with catching up with people. There I go again thinking of spending time with others during my ‘rest’ time…WHERE HAS MY ‘ME’ TIME GONE?
I didn’t realise quite how stressed I was until I undertook a stress audit during the stress management course, and I tell you what my level of stress was nothing compared to some others. What are we doing to ourselves? As we sat and discussed our different stress levels, whether it was work, family or emotionally related, it was evident we were not setting enough time aside to just relax. YOU TIME! So from now on once a week in my diary I shall be setting aside time for myself.
Sickness rates at work have shot up; people are off due to stress, mental illness and back problems. The lunch time break has become a thing of the past, we tend to sit at our desks and work through. And when work is finished we don’t stop there. We have to pick up the kids from school, do the dinner, walk the dog, and help with home work. Thank goodness we can do on-line shopping now because where would we find the time to fit it in?!
Many of us have heard of the “fight or flight”, but have you heard of “rest and digest”? Your parasympathetic nervous system maintains and restores your energy and it directs blood to your digestive tract making sure you actively digest food. It also maintains your blood pressure, heart rate and breathing rate at a low level. That’s why it is sometimes called your ‘rest and digest’ system. When we under go high levels of stress our adrenal glands go into overdrive which can cause physical problems such as lack of appetite, nausea and headaches and that is because when we enter the ‘fight or flight’ mode and we have increased adrenaline our blood supply stops going to important areas such as your stomachs as it believes it is needed elsewhere such as the legs.
Its time we take note and started making time for ourselves. There are various ways to relax including reading a book, meditating, having a bath or massage.
Here at YOU Massage Therapy we have various treatments to suit everyone’s needs. We have several new treatments including Reiki a popular treatment for ultimate relaxation. Reiki has been around for centuries, originating fromJapan, a hands off healing treatment that can be incorporated with aromatherapy or meditation to give the client the relaxation that is needed. Reiki uses the energies that surround us to balance the body, mind and spirit. The practitioner uses ancient Japanese symbols to heal their client. The three popular symbols used are the power symbol Cho Ku Rei, the mental and emotional healing symbol Sei He Ki and Hon Sha Ze Sho Nen, a symbol that transmits Reiki energy through time and space (for distance healing).
Every client of mine is different so every Reiki experience is different. Some clients will feel heat, others a tingling sensation or swirling motion. I myself the practitioner also gets to feel certain emotions and feelings when working on clients. Because I work with the chakras I tend to focus on colours where energy is being draw to and clients are amazed by what I describe to them after, being able to relate it to the current or past circumstances. During the treatment I advise clients to visually imagine leaving the worries they have brought in with them outside the door, usually in the form of a written note folded and placed inside a box, placed outside the door and closing that door because the next hour is all about their time to relax. When a clients mind is relaxed their body begins to relax and the healing process begins. Some clients may need a little help so we enhance the treatment with meditation and I will guide them through peaceful imagery whilst they also focus on the sounds of the music within the treatment room and the warmth from the candles that are lit. What every client takes away from the treatment is a sense of relaxation and rebalance.
If you are interested in trying out Reiki then give us a call today or book in for one of our luxury treatments that include mini holistic facials with our new organic products.
Remember book in some YOU time in those diaries.
