Iowa Family Massage Therapy

Check us out in the Clive Living Magazine this month. 🥰

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Shirodhara is an Ayurvedic healing technique that involves pouring warm oil continuously over the head, scalp, and hair. Ayurveda is an ancient Indian healing system that is at least 3,000 years old with some sources saying it could be 5,000 or more!

That's a lot of tradition to pack into a modern context. While there isn't a ton of research on Shirodhara from a modern scientific perspective the studies that do exist show it can help improve sleep, manage insomnia, lessen anxiety, and reduce stress. It is often used for what is known as a vata imbalance.

According to the Kerala Ayurveda training program, these are signs of a vata imbalance:
Signs of a Vata imbalance include:
Dryness of skin, hair, ears, lips, and joints
Dryness internally – bloat, gas, constipation, dehydration, weight loss
Dry and lightness of the mind – restlessness, dizziness, feeling ungrounded
Cold: poor circulation, muscle spasm or constriction, asthma, pain and aches, tightness
Roughness, especially skin and lips
Excessive movement: anxiety, fidgeting, agitation, muscle twitching, palpitations

https://www.keralaayurveda.us/courses/blog/signs-and-solutions-for-fall-imbalance/

When these occur there are several protocols that an Ayurvedic practitioner would prescribe to their client. There are places, called Panchakarma centers, where you can get the full experience of Ayurvedic healing. If you were experiencing a vata imbalance you might be prescribed several interventions, dietary changes, and shirodhara treatments to deeply rebalance your body, mind, and spirit. The nearest center we have is in Fairfield and from what I've heard from experienced healers is that you could fly to India and go to a traditional center for less investment.

While I can't offer the whole experience of a panchakarma center I am very happy to be able to provide this service to my clients. It's one of my favorite things to receive and I enjoy sharing it with others. It's a very oily experience so there are some things to consider before signing up. If you sign up, it's nice to have plenty of time afterward to either shower the oil out of your hair, or I can wrap your head up and leave the oil on for a few more hours once you leave! Allowing the oil to soak into the hair and scalp deeply is very nourishing.

If you'd like to try, I am offering $ 35$ off my regular pricing for the rest of this month! You are welcome to book a regular massage along with the service and you can even stay afterward and use the sauna, steam room, relaxation room, or light therapy as a complimentary offering.

Visit link to book!
https://www.massagebook.com/IowaFamilyMassageTherapy/massage/deals/Shirodhara-Special-/140363

Thank you for all the support!

We had a lovely ribbon cutting and open house yesterday. I love being in this space with this amazing women owned businesses.

I'm celebrating this month with 20% off for new clients, 35$ off shirodhara and 10$ off Mother's Day gift cards!!

Have an amazing day!

“Ayurveda is one of the world’s oldest holistic healing systems. It originated over 5000 years ago, and is even more relevant today than ever before.

Unlike Western medicine, Ayurveda is a holistic science and looks at wellness as a whole: perfect health is defined as a state of balance between mind, body, spirit, and social well-being.
Rather than treating only the symptoms, Ayurveda focuses on finding and treating the root cause of disease.”
Read more here:
https://theayurvedaexperience.com/pages/what-is-ayurveda

Shirodhara is one ayurvedic treatment that is great for:
Relieving stress
Awakening intuition
Enhancing sleep quality
Diminishing anxiety
Pacifying vata imbalances

“Like a computer's motherboard whose circuits control all its activities, our head typically serves as the information processing center of the body. Shirodhara involves using various elements like oil, ghee, milk, and water, which help in balancing your doshas. It is a powerful treatment for anyone looking to enhance their well-being, immunity, clarity, and calm while maintaining their overall health."
Read more: https://vedix.com/blogs/articles/shirodhara-treatment

This treatment is one of my favorites! The oil is poured over the brow and scalp creating a soothing and deeply relaxing experience. The oil is warmed slightly above body temperature and is so
soothing during these cold winter months. After your session you can make it a complete spa day by enjoying the sauna, steam room, shower or sitting in the relaxation room with a cup of tea or water. You can even book with a regular massage therapy session if you want to have the full spa experience.

This is a very oily treatment. You have the option to wear a head cover I provide and wash the oil out later or you can use the shower we have on site. If you plan to leave the oil on your head and shower at home there are benefits to this, but please prepare by wearing older clothes you
aren’t worried about getting a little messy.
Sign up now and get 50$ off your first shirodhara session!

https://www.massagebook.com/IowaFamilyMassageTherapy/massage/deals/Shirodhara-Special-/131984

Health is Wealth!
These supplements have been a game changer bringing me relief and improving my health literally overnight.

They are top of the line and designed with bioavailability/absorption in mind.

Des Moines friends, if you can make it to this wellness talk on Wednesday it's worth it. These fabulous Dr's. Are going to teach you so much about how optimizing your nutrition can change your life! Let me know if you can make it and I'll plan to meet you there!

I'm not a competitive gal by nature but I got tagged for this today so...let's go!

#186 Best Local Massage Therapy
Iowa Family Massage Therapy

I would love to have your vote!!

https://www.dmcityview.com/2024-best-of-des-moines-ballot/?fbclid=IwAR1ox3_dwJrYbnD4N4mfhNPuDtlqEjc8kF3pssbjLuR3Z1LEZyoWVEQbbNA

2024 Best of Des Moines Ballot 2024 Best of Des Moines Ballot Here are the rules for the 2023 Best of Des Moines Readers’ Poll: The voting period runs through 5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 13. One ballot per voter (IP address), please. We reserve the right to discard any ballots we deem fraudulent. Voters are only required to f

It's been a journey getting things all arranged in my new space. It's starting to feel like home.

I've started assembling my new shirodhara system. It's not up and running yet but it will be soon!

If you haven't tried an ashiatsu here is what you should know!

It's definitely not for everyone! If you don't like deep tissue this is NOT the massage for you! (Don't worry I have plenty of other styles that range from very gentle to moderate pressure)

If you LOVE deep tissue and feel like it can never be deep enough chances are very high you will LOVE ashiatsu.

During a session I get onto the table and use bars to help myself balance as I use my feet to apply deep, steady pressure to release tension and stress from your body. This allows me to use gravity and my bodyweight and gives a very deep relaxation for my clients.

Book online through the link in bio!

Trauma is a highly activated incomplete biological response to threat, frozen in time. For example, when we prepare to fight or to flee, muscles throughout our entire body are tensed in specific patterns of high energy readiness.

When we are unable to complete the appropriate actions, we fail to discharge the tremendous energy generated by our survival preparations. This energy becomes fixed in specific patterns of neuromuscular readiness. The person then stays in a state of acute and then chronic arousal and dysfunction in the central nervous system.

Traumatized people re not suffering from a disease in the nomal sense of the word- they have become stuck in an aroused state. It is difficult if not impossible to function normally under these circumstances.

There is often a close relationship between emotion and physical sensation. Physical sensations in the body often co-occur with feelings.

Moreover, sensations of tightness and tension can develop as a defense against feelings. As unexpressed feelings accumulate, a greater degree of muscular tension is necessary to keep them under wraps.

Rewire your Resilience - Arielle Schwartz, PhD In order to rewire your resilience, you need to challenge your urge to avoid hard things. This post will help you to grow by enhancing your..

Embodiment in Trauma Recovery | Dr. Arielle Schwartz Embodiment in trauma recovery, focus your attention on your breath and body sensations as related to traumatic events. Attend to burdens of..

Experiential Therapy for Trauma Treatment | The Meadows Experiential therapy accesses parts of the brain that aren’t addressed through traditional talk therapies.

Mind-Body Therapies for Vagus Nerve Disorders | Dr. Arielle Schwartz You can learn to manage the symptoms of vagus nerve disorders by skillfully working with your mind and body to tone your vagus nerve. Mind-body therapies effectively increase your resilience by helping you develop your capacity to feel safe, calm, and connected—even during times of stress. Dr. Sch...

"Being able to feel safe with other people is probably the single most important aspect of mental health; safe connections are fundamental to meaningful and satisfying lives."

- Bessel van der Kolk
The Body Keeps the Score

ℹ️🌿 HOW TO USE YOUR SIX SENSES TO SELF-SOOTHE |

Have you ever felt completely overwhelmed by an emotion and as a result, acted on that emotion, only to regret it later? I know I have. We’ve all experienced a moment when we’ve responded with an emotionally-charged text or email, later wishing we had never pressed send...

Read full article:
https://www.hartsteinpsychological.com/use-six-senses-to-self-soothe

Unhealthy or toxic patterns within a broken family system often continue from one generation to the next until one brave survivor finally ends the cycle of abuse. The dysfunction, abuse and trauma didn’t start with you, but it most certainly can end with you.

It takes one generation to acknowledge and deal with the pain so that the next can live and heal. As recovering survivors, we face our trauma because we believe in breaking cycles, not repeating them.

Essentially, the introduction of the PTSD diagnosis has opened a door to the scientific investigation of the nature of human suffering. Although much of human art and religion has always focused on expressing and understanding man’s afflictions, science has paid scant attention to suffering as an object of study.

Hitherto, science has generally categorized people’s problems as discrete psychological or biological disorders — diseases without context, largely independent of the personal histories of the patients, their temperaments, or their environments. PTSD, then, serves as a model for correcting the decontextualized aspects of today’s psychiatric nomenclature.

It refocuses attention back on the living person instead of our overly concrete definitions of mental “disorders” as “things” in and of themselves, bringing us back to people’s own experiences and the meaning which they assign to it.

ℹ️🌿 7 TIPS TO HELP TRAUMA SURVIVORS IN A HEALTHY WAY |
BY ROBYN BRICKEL

One of our most popular articles of all time is on Loving a Trauma Survivor. This article continues that idea — how to help a trauma survivor, in a healthy, positive way.

Read more:
https://cptsdfoundation.org/2023/03/21/7-tips-to-help-trauma-survivors-in-a-healthy-way/

ℹ🌿 RETRIEVING MEMORIES LOST TO DISSOCIATION CAUSED BY TRAUMA |

My memories lost to dissociation come from having experienced prolonged traumatic abuses as a child. I developed the protective reflex of dissociation at an early age. Dissociation was my response to frightening, harmful, and unpredictable environments. I learned to tune out and shut down mentally while still being able to respond to my surroundings to function in the moment. I don't know this because I remember it. I know this because other people hold memories for me. Here is how I began reclaiming my memories lost to trauma-related dissociation.... "

Read more...
https://www.healthyplace.com/blogs/traumaptsdblog/2017/07/complex-ptsd-dissociation-and-reclaiming-lost-memories

Image credit: Lisa A Romano Breakthrough Life Coach

Lisa A. Romano is a Certified Life Coach, author, YouTube Creator, and expert in the field of codependency and narcissistic abuse recovery. Check out her work : www.lisaaromano.com

Whether you are raising kids, dealing with a stressful work environment or something else modern life can be extremely stressful. It's important to be able to meet the demands of life but if our bodies are not able to find a way to rest and relax occasionally it can have negative effects on our overall health and well-being. If it's been a while since you've had a massage or taken a break I can help with that. I offer a wide range of services to meet almost everyone's need for safe, healthy touch that can relive pain, tension, and stress.

You can follow this link to book online. There are still a few spots for February but space is limited. March has more openings. So many times people will wait until they are at their limits before scheduling a massage. You don't know what you don't know but if you can plan ahead to get on a better track for your physical, emotional and mental health it will go a long way.

New Clients can save 20% off when using this link! Reach out with any questions!

View Iowa Family Massage Therapy New Client Special Offer! on MassageBook  My purpose includes helping people who are healing from various forms of trauma or who are experiencing depression, anxiety, PTSD or body image challenges to feel healthy, happy and whole again. I am also passionate about providing support for the journey of Motherhood at any stage by providing bo...

Vagus Nerve Yoga: Twists to Unwind Stress Twists are some of the most nourishing postures for the body, they release stress from the nervous system and unwind the spiral fascia which runs from one si...

What does it feel like to be outside your window of tolerance?

👉 Feeling constantly exhausted. Never actually resting deeply enough to bounce back.
👉When you physically rest your mind is still active and restless.
👉 Feeling foggy, spacey and out of it. People say you seem off.
👉 Everything feels too much. Small tasks take up a lot of mental space.
👉 You’re snapping at people around you, feeling reactive and impulsive.
👉 You’re neglecting your body and self-care.
👉 You’re just trying to “get through the day”.
👉 There are daily fights with your spouse, partner or kids.
👉 Anxiety is through the roof.
👉 Time passes but you’re not clear on what you accomplished.

We all have moments like this, even those of us who are not trauma survivors.

The difference is when these situations are ongoing, with no relief in sight, and compounded by many of them at once.

When we’re constantly triggered, overwhelmed, or disassociated, it’s impossible to get traction with much beyond immediate daily survival.

This is an unsustainable way to live. It can lead to relationship problems, health issues, and more.

👉 Read the full article “The necessity of honoring your “Window of Tolerance” without guilt” on my blog: https://www.bethanywebster.com/blog/exploring-the-world-of-i-cant-the-necessity-of-honoring-your-window-of-tolerance-without-guilt/