Thank you Blue Ridge BBQ Festival!
We had a great time at the
Blue Ridge BBQ Festival with our chair massage tent. We loved getting out into the community and seeing our clients enjoying the live music and fun food. Thank you to all the massage therapists that participated;
Betty Ann Foster of Tryon, Mary Marin of Inman, Nakeisha Miller of Hendersonville, Virginia Walker of Boone, Abbie Yandle of Tryon and student Stanley as well as Drs. of Chiropractric, Eric and Ginger Tickle of the
Tickle Family Health Center in Saluda, NC. It would not have been possible with out each of you.
We appreciated the opportunity to raise the awareness of the benefits of therapeutic massage. It is a win-win for everyone . The more massage in the world the happier people are which makes for a much more pleasant day for us all. Don't you agree? We look forward to doing it again next year.
Newsletters
May 2009
June 2009
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Articles
Massage Therapy and the "Art of Allowing"
by Pauline Loeffler
Moving towards a greater understanding of our whole self in an attempt to discover our treasure of wellbeing, we are finding out that stress-free living is one of the golden keys to maintaining balance in our lives. In this time when we are hearing more and more about our thoughts and attitudes creating our reality, massage therapy can be a useful tool in allowing our reality to be as we desire it to be.
From the Divine Matrix by Greg Braden to the Law of Attraction by Esther and Jerry Hicks , the message is clear: our outer world is a reflection of our inner world. Whatever we can do to encourage peaceful happy thoughts in ourselves will also help us to have peaceful happy experiences in our lives. Not only does massage therapy have tremendous physical benefits, it also gives us a powerful opportunity to allow ourselves to be in blissful state of mind for the duration of the massage. It is from this state of mind that we can create thoughts that can affect our point of attraction all month long.
When you set the intention for a massage session to assist you in releasing any and all resistance, you will allow the life you dream of to come to you and the results can be life changing.
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Intention is Everything
By Pauline Loeffler
The intention of each massage that I perform is to create the environment that allows each individual to leave in the highest state of mind and body possible at that point in time. I respect each person’s free will; that is what their preference is at that time. I am merely a facilitator to each person’s intentions for receiving a massage. Therefore, my intention is to facilitate the best feeling sensations, with therapeutic massage, in order to induce a state of ‘least resistance’ in order for each person to achieve their desired state of well-being. Some of the various intentions of massage therapy are as described below:
1) Some receive therapeutic massage purely for physical purposes. They may have pain, or an injury and are wanting to feel better physically. Some are simply wanting the positive affects of therapeutic massage, ie. detoxification, improved flexibility, improved mobility, calming of the parasympathetic nervous system, lowering of blood pressure etc. etc. etc. They are numerous.
2) Some receive massage therapy in order to relax and improve their perception of life. When we are calm, balanced and grounded, we tend to see things in life from a much better vantage point. From this perception, life just simply seems to unfold in a pleasant and loving way.
3) Some receive massage for much deeper intentions. As we are learning more and more about the seen and unseen, and expanding our awareness of the universe as we know it today, we are learning just how truly magnificent our ‘bodies’ really are. Our bodies can tell us a lot about our past and present life and, if unchanged, also about our future. As we intend to improve our lives, we work through issues emotionally and mentally. Each cell in our body has memory and infinite intelligence. If we allow our body, that is to not perpetuate an attitude of resistance, it can ‘reset’ itself to the original blueprint, the perfect state intended for its existence. When we receive massage it can help us to process these old emotions and allow us to be renewed and refreshed to our intended state of well-being.
For more information about massage therapy or this article, please contact Pauline Loeffler, BSEE, LMBT #7395 at 828-329-6557.
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Massage Therapy, A Process
By Pauline Loeffler, LMBT #7395
As a massage therapist, I am always trying to balance the customer’s desires and requests with my listening to their body. Some people have very specific ideas of what they want. Therefore, they want a very deep massage and cannot seem to relax with out extremely heavy pressure and ‘force’, if you will. Some people do not want that at all. They prefer a much lighter touch, mostly for relaxation to let go of these tension spots naturally. Some like it somewhere in the middle. The varieties are infinite.
In each massage, I am open to going where ever I am guided. There is no text book routine that is correct for every body. Not even for specific injuries. As in life, there is no exact approach to any experience. It is beneficial for us to get in the habit of navigating our way by tuning into that still small voice with in and following our guidance in each moment. This is how I approach each massage. All the while, respecting the client’s verbalized preference because I always want them to walk away satisfied and the fact that I respect that each client knows what they like. After all is the why they are coming to massage. On some level, they like the way massage therapy feels.
With that said, my goal is always about finding the path of least resistance for the body to heal itself. That is what is happening in any ‘healing’. Our natural state of being is one of well-being, always. The only thing that ever holds us off from this well-being, is resistance. Therefore, if we can find a way of feeling better and focusing on something that feels good, emotionally or physically, then we are more inclined to allow our body to ‘do its thing’ and return to well-being. With massage therapy, sometimes if we go right to the trouble spot, the clients undivided attention is there and then the muscle will continue to ‘bounce us off’ and resist relaxing, especially if the approach is forceful. However, if we begin at a place where the body is very receptive to the touch and immediately begins to relax, then when we get to the area of need, the muscles will release much more easily.
Along with the physical aspects of the body, the mind is also a most important factor. Some people just need to talk to feel better. As massage therapists, we learn to be excellent listeners, as well as respectful of confidentiality. While each cell in the body stores memories, it is natural for memories, feelings, thoughts or emotions to come up during a massage. Nothing needs to be done about it. Often, this is an excellent way of allowing ourselves to feel better about things that we once did not necessarily feel good about. It is all perception. We always have a choice to perceive things a little better than before. It does not necessarily happen overnight, but if we intend to feel better, eventually we will. Massage is an excellent means of facilitating this. As these thoughts pass through our mind in our “now” awareness in a peacefully serene and safe environment and while we are in a grounded awareness, we can naturally feel better about almost anything. We do not have to be aware that this is what is happening for massage to benefit us. However, the stronger the intention and the more aware we are, the more we notice the effects and utilize them to our greatest advantage.
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Benefits of Massage
Did you know massage therapy:
- Significantly reduces job stress scores
- Heightens awareness
- Raises speed and accuracy at math calculations
- Greatly reduces migraine headache pain
- Enhances mood
- Increases immune function
- Improves sleep in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome patients
(The Touch Research Institute at the University of Miami School of Medicine)
*63% of subjects reported no pain after six massage therapy treatments.
(In a two month study of low back pain at University of Guelph, Ontario)
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Massage therapy also:
- Alleviates low-back pain and improve range of motion.
- Eases medication dependence.
- Enhances immunity by stimulating lymph flow-
the body’s natural defense system.
- Exercises and stretches weak, tight, or atrophied muscles.
- Helps athletes of any level prepare for, and recover from, strenuous workouts.
- Improves the condition of the body’s largest organ—the skin.
- Increases joint flexibility.
- Increases sense of wellbeing
- Promotes tissue regeneration, reducing scar tissue and stretch marks.
- Pumps oxygen and nutrients into tissues and vital organs, improving circulation.
- Reduces post surgery adhesions and swelling.
- Reduces spasms and cramping.
- Relaxes and softens injured, tired, and overused muscles.
- Releases endorphins—amino acids that work as the body’s natural painkiller.
- Relieves migraine pain.
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A Better Way:
When we hear statistics such as: ‘ninety percent of disease is stress related’, we feel in our hearts that there has to be a better way. That is why many of us are seeking out more effective holistic methods of enhancing our wellbeing. Consider the long term benefits
that massage therapy provides, like;
- Increases energy
- Improves concentration
- Increases circulation
- Reduces fatigue.
- Decreases anxiety
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More Profound Health Effects
In response to massage, specific physiological and chemical changes cascade throughout the body, with profound effects.
Research shows that with massage:
- Arthritis sufferers note fewer aches and less stiffness and pain.
- Asthmatic children show better pulmonary function and increased peak air flow.
- Burn injury patients report reduced pain, itching, and anxiety.
-High blood pressure patients demonstrate lower diastolic blood pressure, anxiety, and stress hormones.
- Premenstrual syndrome sufferers have decreased water retention and cramping.
- Preterm infants have improved weight gain.
