A Touch of Wellness
for the personal in personal care
Massage & Bodywork - Aromatherapy - Wellness Products
| If your questions have not been answered here, you can phone or email to ask Brenda. |
What should I expect when I come for a massage?
First and foremost, you can expect complete confidentiality.
When you come for your first massage session, you will be asked to fill in a general health questionnaire. We'll discuss it, and the specific reason for your visit that day, and decide together what we want to accomplish. You may remove clothing to the level at which you are comfortable, and will be respectfully and generously draped throughout the session regardless. The session is for your benefit. You may wish to talk, exchange information, ask questions........or you may wish to be quiet and relax deeply. Rest assured, you will be supported in whatever manner is right for you.
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If I get a massage, do I have to take all my clothes off?
Some techniques don't require the removal of clothing. Some do. A good, versatile therapist will be able to adapt her or his techniques to the needs and comfort level of each client. Regardless of the amount of clothing you keep on, in a professional setting a drape should always be provided. If you are uncomfortable undressing to any degree and the massage practitioner demands it, walk away and find another therapist. At A Touch of Wellness, your comfort is of primary importance and allowing you to feel safely cared for is key, so you will never be asked to remove more clothing than you wish.
Having said that, there is a great sense of freedom and release of tension one feels without the constriction of clothing during a massage session. The body's blood, lymph and energy flow better. If you are unused to this, I suggest you chose a practitioner with whom you feel safe and secure and try taking this step.
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What payment methods do you accept?
Visa, MasterCard, PayPal. Cash and local checks are accepted in person.
Do you accept medical insurance?
After several frustrating and time-consuming attempts, I have chosen not to deal directly with insurance companies. However, at your request I shall provide a statement of treatment for you to submit to your insurance company for reimbursement and/or inclusion in your income tax return.
How do you ship your products?
USPS Priority Mail.
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Can massage really help anything?
Massage and bodywork can be adapted to any situation. Even when the tissues are too traumatized to be touched physically, energy methods can be used to lower the pain level, often relieving it completely. Any condition can be helped if the practitioner has a good understanding of normal physiology and anatomy, and any pathologies that may exist. You will sometimes hear that massage or bodywork is contraindicated at times. Some techniques would certainly fall into this category, and some practitioners are limited in their repertoire of touch therapies. That is not the case at A Touch of Wellness and here you can find help.
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Can anyone legally practice massage professionally in the US Virgin Islands?
A professional massage practitioner must obtain a business license from the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs. There are several components required to qualify for a license, one being that the practitioner must show proof of professional training. Your welfare is important and we recommend that if you have any doubts about a practitioner, you contact the Department of Licensing and Consumer Affairs.
What is energy?
There is a life-force in all things. It is known by various names : Chinese 'chi', Japanese 'ki', Sanskrit 'prana', Greek 'pneuma', Polynesian 'mana', Hebrew 'ruwach'. Some will also call it Godspirit. It is essentially a bio-electric energy that flows along traceable pathways. In the human body, it is this chi that is stimulated during Chinese acupuncture. Practitioners of Reiki, Polarity, Therapeutic Touch, for example, all work with this energy using different methodologies. The seven chakra in ayurvedic (Indian) medicine are energy focal points aligned with the center of the body. The ancient cultures of the world have all interpreted and worked effectively with this life force and it is only in the past couple of hundred years in our western intellectual, scientific world that it has been invalidated and scorned.
Although energy is not well recognized by the scientific, medical profession, more research and measurement techniques are being developed to show that this force, invisible to the naked human eye exists: not only that it exists, but that its fluctuations are a reflection of illness and wellness, and that increasing the flow of this energy in someone who is ill or in pain leads to healing.
One of the first methods of showing our energy field (aura) was Kirlian photography which used an infra-red camera.
Each person is capable of sensing this energy, and as we develop more technology to satisfy the scientific mind of its existence, we can continue to use our awareness and the use of our other senses to heal and vitalize our being through energy balancing.
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What is meditation?
Meditation is the practice of focusing on a single point of concentration to clear the mind of all distracting thoughts. When practiced daily, meditation generates peace, serenity with spiritual and mental clarity. This allows us to live more authentically as we uncover the truth of who we really are.
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How can I meditate?
Allow fifteen minutes to begin with.
Find a quiet place where you will not be disturbed. Sit comfortably upright and make sure your shoulders, neck, back, hips are relaxed. Close your eyes to eliminate distractions. Breathe deeply and fully, allowing tension to leave your body with each exhalation. Here are three methods to try. Use only one method at a session and see if one works better for you than another.
1} Light a candle and place it in front of you. Look constantly at the candle while you relax your body and focus on the movement and color of the flame. After a few minutes, close your eyes and see the flame in your mind's eye. Remain focused on the flame, opening your eyes when you need to refresh the image.
2} While keeping your eyes closed, focus on your breathing. Breathe deeply, slowly and easily, drawing breath all the way into the bottom of your lungs, filling them up to your collar bone, and expelling it all the way out, emptying the lungs. As you breathe in, feel powerful energy fill your body. As you breathe out, feel tension flow out and the body lighten. Stay focused on the sensations of the air moving through your lungs.
3} While keeping your eyes closed and your breathing deep, full and rhythmic, make a sound. This sound will last the full length of each exhalation. The sound of "om" is commonly used but any sound you are comfortable with will work. Simply repeat the sound with each exhalation and allow your body to relax more and more deeply.
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