To: Heather ********
From: Jim Caddell
Date: Thursday, July 08, 2010
Dear Heather,
Here is your July massage newsletter.
Your appointment status:
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Your last appointment was Tuesday, June 15, 2010. Your next appointment is scheduled for Wednesday, July 28, 2010 from 5:00 PM to 6:30 PM at My Office. You are eligible for a $10 discount because you are on a regular appointment schedule.
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I hope to see you soon.
Jim
The Tranquility Times
July Goings On:
July 1 is Canada Day
(formerly Dominion Day)
July 4 is Independence Day,
and the day I got back to
What is it about July that
makes the world so patriotic? Whatever the reason, I’m offering $10 off to vets
this month. See the Coupons
for details.
Independence Day in Somalia, July 1
Independence Day in Belarus July 3
Recognized Independence Day in the Philippines
July 4
Independence Day in
Independence Day in Algeria July 5
Independence Day in Argentina July 9
Independence Day in Bahamas July 10
12th July (Battle of the Boyne) and (Orangemen's
Day) in Northern Ireland.
Bastille Day July 14, the start of the
French revolution.
Independence Day in Colombia July
20
Independence Day in Belgium, July 21
Revolution Day in Egypt
July 23
Constitution Day (Occupation Day) in Puerto Rico July 25
Independence Day in Maldives July 26
Independence Day in Peru
July 28
Independence Day in Vanuatu, July 30
July 14 is also National
Nude Day. And if you’re going to be naked anyway, what
better time to get a massage? J
July 18-24 is EveryBody
Deserves a Massage Week, sponsored by ABMP,
Associated Bodywork and Massage Professionals. I’m offering $15 off on any gift
certificate so that every body can have a massage! Start your Christmas
shopping early! See the Coupons
for details.
Trip to Esalen
I just returned from a week-long massage
workshop and retreat at The Esalen Institute,
at
Esalen
massage is everything that a typical
Massage recipients often hold their bodies rigid on the table. If I lift an arm or a leg, it remains raised when I attempt to lower it. If I move a limb, the client unconsciously assists the movement. If I were to rock a limb in a steady rhythm, it might even continue to rock long after I had moved on. We call these involuntary motions “holding patterns.” We have all experienced them, and we all know how difficult it can be to simply let go and allow our bodies to relax.
Esalen massage seeks not to “fix” your body, but to release these holding patterns, thus allowing deep relaxation and giving your body a chance to heal on its own. By combining Esalen style with therapeutic Swedish, Deep Tissue, and Trigger Point massage, we achieve a powerful combination of deep relaxation and deep myotherapy that allows your body to heal naturally.
Esalen massage is not so much a technique as an attitude. The emphasis is on the quality of touch, clarity of focus, and approaching the human body with warmth, reverence, empathy, and respect. There is less professional distance between the client and therapist: no starched uniforms, minimal draping, and even the terms “client” and “therapist” have been replaced by “Giver” and “Receiver.” At Esalen, the therapist does not perform a massage on a client; the Giver and Receiver work together to accomplish the massage.
The techniques used in Esalen massage are too varied to review here, but there are some techniques that stand out, and I’m sure you have noticed them in my style.
Slow, slow, slow: Esalen
massage is slow. Sometimes it looks like the Giver is doing nothing at all,
when he is gently treating several muscles at once.
The Long Strokes:
Swedish massage treats one body part at a time. When the therapist is done with
that part, he goes on to the next part, and before long you start to feel like
a collection of parts. Esalen massage uses long strokes, generally
passing at least two joints, sometimes flowing from the foot to the shoulder
and back down the arm. This helps the massage feel more continuous and
integrated. To perform the long strokes smoothly, the
Giver must keep his feet moving, whereas Swedish therapists tend to stand still
while working.
Pauses: The Giver pauses for
three breaths or more to allow the receiver’s mind and muscles to assimilate
the bodywork. The Receiver will often sink into a deep state of relaxation
during these pauses.
Three-dimensional work:
arms, legs, abs, neck, and head are surrounded by hands rather than just
receiving pressure from one direction. Limbs are cradled and nurtured.
Contact: In Swedish massage,
therapists usually just grab a body part and start working. Esalen places great
importance on how a Giver approaches the Receiver’s body. First contact is slow
and gentle, allowing the Receiver to gently make the mental transition between
“not being touched” and “being touched by someone.” This is particularly
important in American society, where we place great importance on who is
allowed to touch us and when. Once contact is made, the Giver pauses to assess
and mentally “tune in” to the Receiver’s breathing and heartbeat before
beginning the massage. The Giver maintains contact throughout the massage, and
when the massage is complete the Giver breaks contact as gently as he first
made contact. My clients often tell me they can’t tell when I have removed my
hands from their bodies.
Presence: I think my teacher
was channeling Yoda as he scolded young Luke Skywalker: “Always on the
future your mind is! Never on where you are. What you
are doing!” Esalen massage calls for a Jedi-like clarity of focus, with the
Giver’s attention on the Receiver’s mental and physical state. The Giver
should not be thinking about what to fix for dinner, or the weekend’s party, or
even carrying on a conversation. When such thoughts intrude, the giver gently
pushes them aside and returns his focus to the Receiver. This is the same
technique used in many meditation practices, so it is not surprising that I
often find myself more relaxed and energized after giving a massage.
Awareness: The Receiver’s
mental and physical state can be revealed to some extent by heartbeat,
breathing, muscle tension and tone, warmth, small vocalizations, and other
subtle cues. The Receiver must remain aware of these cues and react to them to
maintain the proper quality of touch.
Breath: The Giver must also
be aware of his own breath. It helps to retain focus and calm. I like to
breathe out on the outward strokes and in on the inward
strokes. This helps to set an appropriately slow pace, and it keeps me
oxygenated, mentally calm, and physically cool.
Movement: Esalen massage is
like a dance, with slow, graceful movement. Our workshop used Tai Chi, dance,
yoga, and body awareness exercises to reawaken our sense of movement. We must
always use the proper working postures to prevent injury to ourselves as well
as to provide steady pressure and quality touch.
Silence: Esalen
massage is performed with a minimum of conversation. Rather than music, the
natural sound of the ocean crashing on the rocks below provides a dreamy,
tranquil tempo. I can’t bring you the ocean, but this is why I often use the
sound of waves in my treatment room.
Draping: Back in the ‘60s
and ‘70s Esalen massage was often performed with both giver and receiver nude,
but that was a more innocent time. Now the giver is fully dressed and the
receiver is draped with a towel or sarong, which still allows easy access for
those long, slow, full-body strokes. I keep bath towels handy if my
Receiver wants to try towel draping, but my default technique for
Energy: Many of Esalen’s teachings deal with energy work, but I do not
bring metaphysics into my sessions. You won’t catch me combing your energy
field or balancing your chakras. (And so far no one has complained of a tangled
aura or unbalanced chakras!) I’m still not convinced that chi exists, and yet
people tell me I have good energy. I take this to mean that they recognize my
attitude of respect, love, empathy, and confidence.
Some
of the therapists I met at Esalen return every year for this workshop/retreat.
I wish I could afford to do that, because every time I go I believe that I
return a better massage therapist. I seldom have the opportunity to give a
straight Esalen style massage. I generally have a treatment plan, with a
specific set of problems to address before the session ends, whereas Esalen
massage is intuitive and unstructured. Still, I strive to bring a little taste
of Esalen to
Esalen is what puts the “Tranquility” in Tranquility Time.
Pictures
If you are curious, you can see photos of The Esalen Institute here on my FaceBook page.
Photos from our Seattle trip are on this other FaceBook page.
Summer Supplemental Newsletter
A special full-color Summer
Supplement is still available HERE as a PDF
file.
There are some good articles in this issue:
· Healthy Aging and Your Skin: Trends and Treatments for Baby Boomers
· Lavender: An Essential Oil for Fundamental Health
· The Art of Aromatherapy: Essential Oils Provide Healing and Balance
Jim Shortage Continues
The Jim shortage will continue next month, since I will be out of town from August 26 to September 8.
Food Drive!
For the last several months I’ve offered discount up to $20 with your donations to the North Texas Food Bank. This month I’m upping the ante!
The David M. Crowley Foundation will match every dollar you donate to NTFB, up to a limit of $50,000. Business-wise, I’m just a little guy, and I can’t afford to do that, but I will match every dollar that you donate to NTFB up to $20 for each massage appointment. Just bring your donation receipt to your appointment, and your $20 donation is effectively a $60 donation. Or donate $50 and NTFB will really get $120 ($50 + $50 + $20). Or donate $100 and they will get $220. ($100 + $100 + $20). See the Coupons for details.
NTFB is a lean, efficient organization that gets the food where it will do the most good. Don’t kid yourself: people are hungry right here in our community, and we are in a position to do something about it.
For more information on the David M. Crowley Foundation’s generous gift, please read on:
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New
Stuff!
Immerse your hands and/or feet into a warm paraffin bath that will rejuvenate tired, sore muscles and joints while stimulating circulation. This treatment deeply hydrates the skin while delivering fast, drug-free relief from pain. Great for those who suffer with arthritis.
Hands $10; feet $15
Free Stuff!
Here’s a reminder about all the free stuff that’s available with your massage. Just ask for it!
My Client Loyalty Program: 6 Ways to Save
And these days, who doesn’t want to save money? Read all about it by clicking here.
Note: the discounts described in this program are currently scheduled to end on December 31 of 2010, although if we are still fighting a recession at that time they might be extended. After July 30, 2010, discounts will only apply to appointments during “office hours:” before 6pm Monday through Friday and before 1pm on Saturday. So please take advantage of these discounts while you can!
July Coupons
July’s money-saving coupons
are at Coupons.TranquilityTime.com.
¨ EveryBody Deserves a Massage Week: $15 off all gift certificates the week of July 18 to 24 only. Order by phone or in person to receive the discount; the gift certificate sales website is not programmed for that.
¨ Hero’s Discount, as a “thank you” to our men and women in uniform. $10 off for vets.
¨ Up to $20 matching funds for your donation to the North Texas Food Bank. Your entire donation will also be matched by the David M. Crowley Foundation.
¨ $10 off for new clients. (But none of you are new clients, so you get $10 off if a new client drops your name. Tell ‘em to say “Heather sent me!” and I’ll make a note in your file. That’s all part of the client loyalty program.)
Note: most coupons have
restrictions. See the conditions printed in red at the bottom for specific
information.
Thanks!
Thanks for being a loyal client and continuing to subscribe to the newsletter.
Best wishes,
Jim
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Links and Contact Information
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