Well, it is official. Spa Grace will be opening up by the end of the holiday season this year! We have signed our lease at 2913 Boone’s Creek Road. It is a great location just off I-26 in the shopping center where Woodcraft and Beef O’Brady’s is located (across from Kemosabe’s). The build-out process is underway and we will post pictures of our progress periodically.

We will be at the Women’s Expo in Kingsport at the Meadowview Convention Center on October 20th and 21st, promoting Spa Grace and our new line of products. Come by and register for our great giveaways including a “Zen Earth Escape” spa package, an “Ultimate Pedicure” and an “Eminence handmade organic skin care of Hungary” Prize Pack.

I am also proud to announce that we will be upper east Tennessee’s only “Green Spa”. We will strive to maintain our pledge to be a Green Spa supporting our health, environment, and earth. All of our products will be Organic, Paraben-Free, Vegan Friendly, and come from sources who support our earth by “going green”. Our walls will be painted with eco-friendly paint, and we will purchase products which are non-toxic and either biodegradable, recyclable, or made from post-consumer recycled materials where possible.

Check out our complete service menu and fabulous products at http://www.spagrace.net. You may go ahead and purchase holiday gift certificates with either Spa Grace online or at gracehealing.com, as always. And, don’t worry…if you have a gift certificate which has NOT expired, it will be honored at Spa Grace at the original purchase-price value.

We will still be available for our current service offerings at our Jonesborough location until Spa Grace is opened for business, at which time the Jonesborough location will close. I am currently re-vamping the facial treatment options at Grace Healing Therapies to include our new Eminence Organics skin care line. I will post news about those changes in a week or so.

We are so excited to be on this journey of expansion! Spa Grace will work hard to provide fabulous spa experiences, five-star customer service, and youth-inducing, world-class treatments.

Inhale. Pause. Enjoy. Repeat as necessary.

Chocolate has recently been touted in both the health food and the cosmetic industry as having lots of positive effects on the inside of our bodies as well as the outside! Ingredients found in chocolate and cocoa have been shown to produce some very encouraging results on the skin. For example, the cocoa butter in chocolate has a softening effect on the skin, which helps to ease the appearance of wrinkles. Also, chocolate contains powerful antioxidants!! Therefore, it can help neutralize the free radicals that cause skin damage and even cancer. What better way to sooth your tired skin after a long, hot sun-drenched summer?

If nothing else, chocolate definitely gets to the chocoholic within us all! The sensual aroma of cocoa calms and soothes the spirit and brings back childhood memories of happiness whilst eating any chocolate treat. It can really bring back any nice feeling you ever experienced from any event involving chocolate or cocoa. Really…how can you go wrong with a treatment this scrumptious???

And, the best part is, you don’t even have to count one single calorie!

This September, why not ease your way back into work/school with a sweet treat you definitely won’t feel guilty about afterwards!

Our Chocolate Indulgence or Ultimate Chocolate Experience spa package is sure to not only bring a lingering smile to your face, but health, vibrance and refreshment to your skin!!

NAMASTE,

Beth

Soak aching, tired feet in a pan of water with half a cup of Epsom salts and not only will your feet feel better, but they’ll smell better too. Epsom salts work to neutralize odor and soften skin. Soak feet until they feel better then rinse and dry well.

As you’ve probably heard me say before, a full bath should contain 2 full cups of dissolved Epsom salts for relief of sore, tired feet, back muscles, legs, bruises or just as a way to have softer skin. I highly recommend this after any massage or bodywork treatment, as it can actually help prevent a large part of the soreness one might experience after having an intense deep tissue massage. If you have any strained muscles or sprains, you can take 1/2 to 1 cup of Epsom salts and make a “pack” with it to place on the affected area, wrap with hot towel and allow it to rest for 20 minutes. TIP: This can be alot less messy and more relaxing if done in the bath.

You can also rub Epsom salts all over the body, while wet, then rinse and towel off. Rubbing Epsom salts directly on the body exfoliates skin and leaves it smooth and silky. They make a great gift to give someone when you put them in a nice glass jar with lid and tie on a pretty ribbon. You can add scent to them by sprinkling them with essential oil. Or mix Epsom salts with moisturizer or olive oil and keep by the sink if you wash your hands a lot.
The salts do wonders for the hair, absorbing oil from problem hair by adding 8 tablespoons of Epsom salts to a half a cup of shampoo that’s formulated for oily hair. Put a tablespoon of the shampoo mixture on dry hair and work it in and around the scalp area, rinsing it out with cold water. To rinse it well, and further treat oily hair, pour a cup of apple cider vinegar over the hair, leave on for 5 minutes, and then rinse with cool water. To add fullness to thin hair, combine equal parts of Epsom salts and hair conditioner. Warm the mixture in a pan then work it into hair. Leave on for 20 minutes and rinse with warm water.

For occasional constipation or irregularity, adults can mix 2 to 4 teaspoons into water until dissolved and drink. Kids 6 to 12 take half of that. This can be used twice a day by taking the first treatment, waiting 4 hours and taking the second dosage if necessary.

So, the next time you’re shopping for bath, health or beauty products, pass by the fancy, expensive stuff and try Epsom salts for an inexpensive, healthy and effective alternative!

I would be willing to bet that your first thought was “it’s just a massage with scented oils”.

Sadly, most people don’t know what aromatherapy really is, nor do massage therapists take the time to educate their clients on the power effects it can have.

By Definition:  aromatherapy: aro·ma·ther·a·py - noun - The use of volatile plant oils, including essential oils, for psychological and physical well-being.

Essential oils are really key here. Essential oils are pure extracts of flowers, fruits, leaves, roots, trees and grasses in concentrated form. There are many methods of extraction (including chemical) but steam distillation is always the purest and most preferred form of extraction by the health-conscious therapist and consumer. They are a necessity to medicines, foods and cosmetics. However, synthetic forms used in the cosmetic industry merely for “aromatic” benefit as in perfumes, IS VERY DIFFERENT from 100% pure therapeutic grade essential oils. Also, essentials oils which have been “cut” with a carrier oil (such as almond oil, etc) are weakened. It is always best to go with the purest.

Each individual essential oil has its own medicinal and therapeutic properties. Among the list of benefits essential oils can be: antiviral, antibacterial, anti fungal, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory, antineuralgic, antirheumatic, antispasmodic, anti-venomous, antitoxin, antidepressant, sedative, nerve-calming, analgesic, digestive aiding, deodorizing, stimulating, diuretic, and the list goes on.

Aromatherapy is administered most effectively in three ways: by inhalation, massaging the oils into the skin, or by osmosis in the bath. The essential oil molecules go into the lungs and/or penetrate the skin and go to work right away in the bloodstream and nervous systems, just the same way a medicine would after taken orally. Only, essential oils can be more effective since it does not have to pass through the digestive system on the way. Also, unlike drugs, they enter and leave the body with NO harmful side effects, leaving NO toxins behind.

Our “De-stress Raindrop Massage” is our version of the Aromatherapy massage. We allow you to personally experience each essential oil blend and decide which one agrees with you the most. After all, your body is very intelligent and will let you know which oil you need, if you listen. This massage focuses along nerve pathways of the spinal cord, cranium and sacrum. It stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, responsible for putting you to sleep at night and making you relax and unwind. It also “resets” the sympathetic nervous system, responsible for your stress, keeping you wide awake and alert. Sedating you and inducing a hypnotic state of relaxation, the essential oils penetrate into the body and produce desirable therapeutic benefits.
… don’t be surprised if the “real deal”- 100% medicinal grade oils - are a tad expensive. Rose oil, for example, is very costly. However, it takes 60,000 rose blossoms to produce just 1 oz. of rose essential oil!!

Here are some more specific examples of a few essential oils and their benefits/uses/treatments:

Sandalwood: Acne, Cystitis, Menstrual problems, depression, skin infections, fungal and bacterial infections, sedating.

Tea Tree: fungal, viral and bacterial infections, colds, influenza, cold sores, warts, candida (yeast overgrowth)

Roman Chamomile: Nerves, migrains, acne, inflammation, insomnia, menstrual problems, and dermatitis.

Frankincense: (favorite of the spa and used for inhilation at the beginning of treatments) good for sores, wounds, fevers, coughs, colds, stress, nervous conditions, eases tension, grounding, bronchitis, laryngitis, and migraines.

Oils can be blended to form a desired effect(s). Right now, I am working on special essential oil blends, exclusive to Grace Healing Day Spa, for a wide range of uses. If you have any questions or have a specific ailment and would like to know which essential oils may benefit you, please do not hesitate to contact me.

NAMASTE

Hello all! Recently I started a Referral Rewards Program to give my valued clients something back, as well as their family, friends and colleagues. I want you all to share your experience and be able to give others a discount on their first treatment - and benefit yourselves as well! The following describes the ins and outs of the referral program!
How does it work?
I have created special Referral Reward Cards that you may distribute to anyone you know looking for fabulous massage or spa services. They include our contact information and are essentially a “coupon card” for $10 off with a slot for your name. Simply let your friends, family and colleagues know how much you enjoyed your treatment(s) at Grace Healing Therapies by presenting them with one of our referral cards with your name on it. When they come in to get their first treatment, that is considered a “qualified referral” and they will receive a $10 discount and you get a $10 credit placed on your Rewards Account.

How can I redeem my credits?
You may let your credits build up until you have enough to get the treatment you desire, or you may use the credit(s) at your next appointment as a discount. In addition, you can transfer the credits to someone else to use, or, you may redeem them for gift certificates!

How do I get referral cards?
Give me a call or send an email with your mailing address, and I will drop some in the mail to you, or I can leave them for you in the box on the wall outside the spa office. You may also pick them up at your next appointment. Keep them on hand so that if anyone you meet is looking to get a great massage or spa treatment, you can hand them a card with your name written on it. They can save$10 and you get $10 credit!

How will I know if the people I referred have come for an appointment?
When we receive a referral card with your name on it or a referral in your name, we’ll send you an email or give you a call to let you know. A credit will be placed on your account in your file. You can also contact us at any time to inquire about your credit balance.

Start Referring Your Way to Free Spa Treatments Today!

There are many times when I am in the mood for a spa day in which I want to experience it alone. Sometimes peaceful solitude is simply what I desire, and to go experience the quiet ambiance of the spa with my favorite book in hand to read in between treatments is, indeed, very rejuvenating and relaxing. But what about being able to share the experience with someone else? Maybe a friend or your partner who, for whatever reason has been leery of bodywork because of shyness or just the mere uncertainty of what happens during a massage. Spa culture in East Tennessee is relatively new to most. What better way to introduce a friend or family member to the wonderful world of therapeutic massage and spa therapies then to go to the spa together?

It can be a very romantic gesture for a man to book a couples’ retreat and a lovely dinner afterward to celebrate an anniversary, her birthday, or “just because”. That way, not only does she get a great massage, but he can too, and they can share the experience simultaneously, in the same room. Ladies, you can be romantic too… so it is something you could surprise HIM with as well!

Women enjoy being together, going out to lunch and going shopping with each other. But going to the spa together can be a fun and different way to relax and have a day out. Most recently, I’ve had mother/daughter come in for a spa day together, and some friends who wanted to share the spa experience. While couples massage with 2 tables in the same room is mostly for romantic couples… you can still bring a friend and enjoy massages, facials or body treatments in separate treatment rooms since we now have another therapist available to provide services.

So, next time you want a massage but would like to bring a friend, or, if you want to bring your partner, call ahead and we can get you set up with multiple treatments or couples massage. Maybe you could bring mom to the spa for Mother’s day! You can treat her and yourself all in the same day!!
It is a terrific way to spa!

I base this article on several different books that I have read, but one in particular called “The Seven Spiritual Laws of Success” by Deepak Chopra (one of my favorite authors). In this book, he discusses the seven spiritual laws which naturally govern our lives. To me, the effects of these “laws” are just as obvious and natural as the law of gravity effects us. I have lived them and learned to recognize them often. If something here doesn’t equate with your personal belief system, that is fine. All I ask is that you take what you need, leave what you don’t.

Today I want to discuss the Law of Detachment, or for me… the law of letting go. It has, perhaps, been one of the most difficult things I’ve had to learn how to do in my life, but it has helped me to grow immensely. Dr. Chopra says this about detachment… “In detachment lies the wisdom of uncertainty…in the wisdom of uncertainty lies the freedom from our past, from the known, which is the prison of past conditioning. And in our willingness to step into the unknown, the field of all possibilities, we surrender ourselves to the creative mind that orchestrates the dance of the universe.”

How powerful is that? Whenever we need to move on from something in life and can’t seem to let go puts us in a horrible place. It makes us feel stuck, stagnant and heavy. That need to cling to the past comes from fear and insecurity and self doubt… our WORST enemies. It may sound odd… but when you need to move on in order to embrace growth, it helps to find security in insecurity. After I left my marriage… I had no where to go, no one to turn to. I knew that I was going to leave my job soon to pursue a career in Healing Arts. But how? Where would I go? How would I survive? Honestly, I had no idea. All I knew is that I had faith in myself. It was like stepping off a cliff with a blindfold on. All I had was INTENTION of knowing what I wanted. I did NOT have an answer for HOW I was going to get here. You know that old adage, “let go and let god?”… Well, read on.

The only way to get to that conclusion is to get used to letting go. Don’t give up your desire or intention…just be detached from the result. Let the Universe handle that part. Be very clear to yourself and your thoughts about what it is you want for yourself. You can get on the road and head to California in the dark. You can only see 200 feet of the road in front of you. Do you stop because you can’t see the all of the road that will get you to your destination? NO. You just have faith that the road will be there, and it will eventually get you wherever you intend to go.
I’ve been through so many storms of change in my life… I’ve almost grown to love change. Well, ok maybe not LOVE it but I certainly try to embrace it. I’ve learned the hard way. It started with my brother’s death when I was young, my divorce, giving up jobs with security, questioning where money would come from, and having unwaivering faith that my plan would just “work”, not knowing how. My experience has told me that change comes INEVITABLY, so you really must make the best of it. Resistance never does anything good. Resistance only tires you out and makes you OLD before your time. (But thats another article all together).I prefer to try and go with the ebb and flows of the tides of life, although it is a conscious process. You have to THINK about it and sort of convince yourself to LET go and let the universe handle the how’s of your life. My only job is to focus on WHAT I want. The Universe’s job is to figure out how to orchestrate it for me…and ohhhhhhh … what a song it has been so far.

So how about discussion? Does anyone have a story or words of wisdom to share? What are your experiences with letting go and the law of detachment?

Namaste,

Beth

The weight thing? Ohhhh…yeah. That. Ah-hem. Ummmm…

Actually I had been doing really well, with the exception of Thin Mint girl scout cookies that David brought home. Damn those cookies!! They are EVIL I tell you! And this is coming from a lady who was a girl scout for 11 years. They are eee-vil…like the fru-its of the deee-vil.

Last week I managed to be down a total of 6.5 lbs. I am up a couple from that now. Ick. Time for some real motivation.

The warm weather we’ve been having lately has really made me feel motivated. Yesterday I woke up thinking to myself that what I really need is a change in dieting. All these years I’ve been considered a Diet Guru of sorts, because I have been on nearly every diet in existence, and have written about each of them and my experiences thoroughly. For years, I kept an online blog called “Beth’s Diet Journal” which received over 300 hits a day. My faithful followers read each entry about how I struggled and succeeded in losing a total of 50 lbs. The diets that worked best for me were the Susanne Somers diet, “Somersizing” and “The Fat Flush” detox diet. All the other ones I have tried worked for while but eventually I fell off the wagon. So lately, I’ve been on a combination of those two diets and doing fairly well… obviously. Losing 6.5 lbs in 3 weeks is nothing to sneeze at. But I’ve not been motivated to exercise alot. So I thought “I need a change…a new challenge.”

I thought about what kind of diets are out there that I have yet to try (there are few, trust me). Then I thought of the South Beach Diet. Frankly, every time I read or heard something about it I rolled my eyes thinking it was just another fad. Until yesterday, I didn’t pay any attention to it. So I decided for once to do some actual research on South Beach Diet, and I liked what I found. I went to Amazon.com and read hundreds of reviews and overall it seemed very positive and hopeful. So, I gathered up my Barnes and Noble coupons and headed to the store. When I stepped outside, the warm air made me realize that, with the exception of a few cold snaps, SPRING IS HERE! And, I need to lose at least 15 lbs to wear my cute little capri pants I love so well.  Anyway, I bought the paperback version for $15 and the Dining out Guide companion for $7. They had a great looking hard-back cookbook for around $30, but I figured I’d start with the basics and go from there.

I like South Beach principles because, unlike the two-week fat flush, you can have 2 servings of lowfat dairy per day with some nuts and seeds. That may not seems like a big deal, but it will help me to stick with it. I typically lose 10-14lbs during the 2 week fat flush. South Beach promises on their 2 week induction that you will lose 8-10 lbs, so we will see. I think it is a very healthy, well rounded and balanced diet. Actually I’m kind of excited to try something new!! As far as exercise… I plan on doing the elliptical part of the time and aerobic dancing the other part. Dancing keeps me motivated and it is fun for me. I get more out of it then feeling like a caged-up rat on the treadmill.

So here I go… bearing my soul to you all. If nothing else, maybe it will give others who read some hope and inspiration to do the same along with me.

Come on Spring!!

Biologists are beginning to realize that all cells in the body have the capacity to store information in their cytoskeletons (the nervous system of the cell). This includes information regarding memory, otherwise known as “tissue memory”. Any physical or emotional trauma we’ve experienced in our lives can be stored in muscle and tissue cells. Ask yourself this: have you ever had to deal with an unpleasant person who, after they leave the room also leave you with a pain in the neck or a wrench in your stomach? Do you ever find yourself at work in the middle of the day, leaning over your keyboard or desk with your shoulders tightened up and contracted? Do you even KNOW if you do? I’d say most of the time, you don’t. Let’s try an exercise to see. Do this NOW: take several deep, long and slow breaths… long exhales. As you do this, release your shoulders and roll them around a bit… now your head. Surely you probably noticed that you just released some tension… and all because you merely brought some awareness to that stressed, neglected area. Inner awareness can do a lot!

Any time a trauma is experienced, small unconscious contractions form in muscle tissues… a protective reminder of painful experience. Where physical injury is concerned this contraction will remain even as tissues heal, leading to further chronic pain. It can even spread to other parts of the body and, in response, the body may adjust and shift to strain patterns which can lead to chronic pain with no “known cause”.

Worries and stress build up and become outward physical manifestations. Maybe you were yelled at or scared by something or someone repeatedly as a child, and as a result, developed a “holding pattern” somewhere in your body, contracting a certain group of muscles. After years of continual adaptation to this, your conscious mind doesn’t even recognize that it can no longer relax. The contraction practically becomes an involuntary response. Trigger points develop, muscle fascia binds up and tightens. Aches, stiffness, and pain develop and worsen as time goes by as a result. (For those of you who have a hard time relaxing during a massage or at night before bedtime… this can mean you too).

Mind-body communication is a powerful healing tool. Many times on my massage table, clients have had an emotional release. Getting regular massage can help us become aware of our bodies and what is going on inside of them. After all, it is a well known fact that nurturing human touch is essential for healing and growth, and massage therapy is a beautifully orchestrated form of healthy touch. With Somato-Emotional Release in mind, massage can trigger memories that we may have blocked out or otherwise forgotten. During our lives, we’ve become so wrapped up in schedules, relationships, family, work, and social activities that we become UNaware of our selves. Not just our emotions in many cases, but our bodies and in turn… we become detached from grief or pain in order to “move on” or keep going (or so we think).

However, awareness plus focus equals release. If we become aware, initially we want to shift away from and ignore this uncomfortable sensation or memory. Very traumatic memories can be extremely uncomfortable or painful if they come up. It is easy to want to revert back to the old habit of blocking it out or running away. During massage, we are in a safe environment which allows us to STOP; become aware and focus on these forgotten matters that need attention, and remain focused on them. This can help us to acknowledge what happened, honor it and let it go… to become at peace with our past experiences, people, or events in our lives that have injured us. Also, you should never be afraid to ask your therapist for feedback or guidance about what you are feeling. She is working WITH you to guide you through this healing process.

True healing can only come from mind-body communication.

Awareness + Focus = Release. When we can acknowledge, grieve, honor it and let it go up and out of us… then we can experience TRUE HEALING.

We can then cope with life from a place of wisdom within.

When your individual identity is grounded in somatic reality, you can say: “I know who I am by how I experience myself.”

NAMASTE Beth

But what about the inside of our bodies? How many of us think about going on some sort of a fast or maybe a detox to clean out our insides? Some of us are just too busy or other factors prevent us from getting that serious about it. But what can you do? I ask you to consider Hydrotherapy.

Hydrotherapy is surely one of the oldest, safest and least expensive forms of treatment for many common ailments. The Greek Hippocrates, the “Father of Medicine” wrote about hydrotherapy and mineral baths as treatments for many diseases.

Today, Hydrotherapy is mostly understood to mean the treatment of illness through the use of water. The concept of Hydrotherapy is to rid the body of toxins that may be inflicting joint pain, inflammation, and other attacks on the systems of the body. It is used to relieve symptoms of:

• Arthritis and other joint problems (The buoyancy of the water relaxes the muscles, and supports and reduces stress on the joints which encourages freer movement. Relaxing the muscles helps to increase their range of motion.)
• Back pain
• Insomnia
• Muscle weakness
• Sports Injuries
• Poor circulation
• Stress
• Premenstrual syndrome
• Cellulite
• Anxiety
• Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
• Colitis and Gastritis
• Sciatica
• Fibromyalgia
• High Blood Pressure
• Migraines
• Varicose Veins

The pressure of the water literally massages the body, stimulating lymph drainage. Lymphatic drainage is important, because within and of itself promotes detoxificatoin of the body, reduces swelling, relieves sinusitis, bronchitis, and chronic pain. Lymphatic drainage can also regenerate tissues around wounds, stretch marks, scars and wrinkles, highten the immune system, reduce adiposis and cellulite tissue and has anti-aging effects! (Of course, you can get a lymphatic drainage massage or stimulate lymph flow in other ways; but that’s another article all-together.)
Hydrotherapy works by the water motion stimulating the touch receptors on the skin, relieving tight muscles and releasing chemicals that we produce in our body called endorphins. The hot water relieves fatigue and prevents stiffness. You experience a weightlessness which supports your body and lifts your spirits!

Various salts, herbs, oils and other additives can be very healing and can contribute to your overall hydro-bath experience. At Grace Healing Therapies, you have a wide range of choices to help you acheive your desired results.

This month, I’m extending my previous Special for an Aromatherapy Bath and Body Refiner plus Healing Massage for only $99! This will only last until March 15, 2007. For more information on our Spa Bath Oasis, visit our Hydrotherapy page.