Essentia Body Therapy

Reminder that we provide offsite services as well! In addition to our corporate massage programs, our chair massages also make a great addition for other events....like bridal showers! Visit us online to request a quote for your next get-together. 💆‍♀️🎁

Our endocannabinoid system, with its series of cell receptors, plays an important role in neuroprotection, stress recovery, immune balance, and homeostatic regulation. When CBD binds with these receptors, it stimulates a wide array of therapeutic and healing responses.

Research shows CBD to be effective in treating a number of conditions like:
🌿Anxiety
🌿Arthritis
🌿Chronic Pain
🌿Inflammation
🌿Skin Irritation
🌿Epilepsy
🌿Insomnia

For your next session, trying adding some CBD for even more stress and muscle relief!

Save $20 by booking a massage for ! It's the perfect way to keep some extra cash while enjoying relief for your body and mind.🌿🕯️ Today's reminds you to slow down and live in the moment. Living in the moment allows you to fully experience the present without regretting the past or worrying about the future.

Benefits of Being Present
✨Minimize unnecessary stress
✨Increase focus and productivity
✨Fully engage with ideas, boosting creativity
✨Better communication
✨Greater appreciation for the mundane and everyday moments

Tips to Staying Present
✨Grounding techniques like focusing on your breathing and senses
✨Meditation
✨Enjoying nature
✨Regular journaling or scheduled creative time
✨Decrease screen time
✨Decrease multitasking

In other words - concentrate on the layers of sounds in your favorite music instead of passively listening, practice talking with someone instead of talking at someone, take the time to recognize the detailed beauty in familiar surroundings you've grown to take for granted, and enjoy the richness of taste in your food instead of mindlessly scarfing down a quick meal. You'll enjoy a greater sense of gratitude and peace-of-mind! 💜

What's better than a wellness massage? A wellness massage with your special someone. 💜 Our couples massages are tailored to fit you and your loved one's individual needs and come with a complimentary glass of champage or sparkling cider. 🥂

For today's we're giving our chest some rest! Diaphragmatic breathing lowers stress, increases lung capacity, and reduces muscle tension. Take some time today to try it out!

🌿Relax your shoulders and place a hand on your chest and a hand on your abdomen.
🌿Take a deep breath through your nose, engaging your diaphragm.
🌿Exhale slowly through your mouth, feeling your diaphragm move inward.
🌿Repeat for 5 minutes.

This breathing exercise will help you feel calmer, reducing blood pressure and slowing your heart rate. 💜 We hope it gives you a great start to a relaxing Sunday!

In need of a good sports massage? A massage can help tired muscles recover, reducing inflammation, increasing blood circulation, and helping muscle fibers heal. They also ease soreness and relax the body after overtraining. 💪😌✨🕯️

Here's another example of how we're helping others feel good for ! Thank you, Savannah, for sharing your kind feedback with us! Shout-out to Lisa for the amazing bodywork she does! 🙂

It's ! Come treat tired hands and feet and all the muscles in between to a reinvigorating massage while saving some cash! 🙂 Today's addresses screen time. Yes, we're aware you're currently reading this on a screen. Bear with us. 😆

⚠️Too much screen time can result in physical health decline as those are usually sedentary hours. Screen time can also result in poor posture from looking downward at screens.
⚠️Excessive screen time can also have negative effects on mental health. Social media can influence anxiety, depression, body image, self-worth and divisive, controversial posts are often amplified through increased engagement. The act of "doomscrolling," for example, comes with a list of various risks.
⚠️Social media can be addictive, giving small hits of dopamine, discouraging users to seek out other healthier, feel-good alternatives.
⚠️Social media can also result in cognitive effects like shortened attention spans from information overload and perpetual short-form content or poor sleep quality from melatonin suppression due to blue light.
⚠️These risks are especially concerning for children and teenagers, who are still developing self-control, identity, and more. This includes even those who play games and do not use social media, as the reward systems present in these games can be addictive, even while frustrating, discouraging children to spend time in more traditional ways that support their development, like playing outdoors with friends or exercising their imaginations during "pretend" playtime. Note that we're referencing screen time that relates to leisure and not screen time that involves homework, learning, or direct communication with friends and family.

🟣0 hours of screen time for children under 2
🟣1 hour maximum of screen time for children 5 and under
🟣2 hour maximum of screen time for children 5-17
🟣2 hours of screen time begins interfering with melatonin production, so no more than 2 hours is suggested for adults as well

Quick, everyone go touch grass!

Choose one of twelve incredible essential oil recipe blends from our Body Bliss Design Aroma Bar. You and your therapist will together create the perfect blend to be incorporated into your massage cream. Arrive 10 minutes early to choose your customized blend! 🌿💆‍♀️

We're continuing our Self Care Sunday series with the neck!

🌿Alternate lowering your chin to your chest with looking all the way up. Go slow and hold each position for 10-15 seconds.
🌿Tilt each ear toward your shoulder. Be gentle, holding for 5-10 seconds and repeating a few times.
🌿Keep the stretches going, looking over each shoulder.
🌿Remember to maintain good posture while looking at screens, helping prevent the dreaded tech neck.
🌿Additionally, make sure you're sleeping with the right pillow every night!

Have a great Sunday, friends! 😊

Proud of our team! 🥰 The therapists we employ are all certified, highly skilled professionals with at least 500+ hours of specialized training. Most have worked in other clinical settings such as chiropractic, PT, and acupuncture offices. You can be assured that each one brings to the table a large body of knowledge, a passion for their work, and exceptional professional qualifications. You’re in good hands!

It's ! So here are a few ways a massage can make you feel good! 💜

🌿Relieve tension headaches
🌿Manage stress and anxiety
🌿Improve circulation
🌿Improve mobility
🌿Manage muscle and joint pain
🌿Release endorphins
🌿Improve physical performance

You made it to Wellness Wednesday! Phew! Need a massage now? Well, we understand. Take $20 off today! 🥳 Last week's Wellness Tip reminded you to stretch routinely, so this week we're touching on strengthening!

Why it's important:
✨Strengthening our muscles helps us maintain bone density, rebalance weakened muscles, and improve posture. When our muscles are strong, everyday activities are easier, improving our quality of life. It's also a great way to keep our metabolisms pumping!

How to do it:
✨Resistance training forces muscles to adapt over time, your body's way of making sure it can complete the activity you're asking it to. Progressive overload training is a great way to keep muscles challenged.
✨Pick the right program for your body. Keep in mind your starting fitness level, whether you should opt for low-impact or high-impact activity, how much time you have to dedicate each week, and movements that feel right with your anatomy.
✨Pay attention to maintaining good form. Good form maximizes results and protects you from injuries.
✨It's recommended you work out at least 3x per week. Make sure you give yourself rest days!
✨Allow yourself a good chunk of time to start noticing visible results! You'll feel them first (the main goal for wellness!) so don't get discouraged and give up.
✨Make sure you're feeding your muscles as well! Getting adequate protein is a must.

You got this! 💪

We love it when clients come in for some much-needed relaxation and stress-relief, but we also want to highlight how much good bodywork can do on a functional level! If you're struggling with chronic pain or an injury, let the expertise of our passionate massage therapists help you out!

We specialize in making sure our clients' bodies feel great, but we also believe that taking some time for self-care on your own is important too! So we're starting up a Self Care Sunday series, focusing on a different part of the body every week!

From head to toe, let's start up top with the head!

🌿Headaches - Headaches can have multiple causes. Make sure you're adequately hydrated and getting plenty of sleep. If you suspect a tension headache, try doing neck roll exercises or giving yourself a scalp massage until you can get in for a session with us. If you suspect a migraine from staring at screens all day, try a pair of blue light lenses while you're at work.

🌿Dental - Make sure you're keeping up with good dental habits and don't sleep on your routine check-ups!

🌿Hair - Find the right products for your hair type and be careful not to over wash. Shampooing too often can leave hair dry. Always follow up shampooing with conditioner and a leave-in conditioner for added moisture. You might put your hair up on windy days or try a silk pillowcase to minimize breakage.

🌿Skin - The skin on our face can be picky! Finding the right skincare products and routine for your skin type goes a long way. For Self-Care Sunday, try indulging in a mask.

Happy Sunday, everyone! 💜

Gentle reminder that our boutique has some amazing goodies ready for you! 🥰🌿

Add some feel good to your ! Our CBD Signature Massage utilizes an extra strength CBD massage cream, formulated and produced locally by Vital Body Therapeutics. The cream is infused with eight pain relieving herbs – including arnica, ginger, and chamomile – along with organically grown broad spectrum h**p oil. 🌿

Happy Independence Day! ❤️🤍💙

Reminder that Wellness Wednesdays are your weekly chance to save while booking a stress-melting massage! 😌 Today's reminds you to stretch!

Routine stretching helps:

🌿Improve flexibility
🌿Increase range of motion
🌿Improve posture
🌿Improve circulation

Stretching is great for those of us who are active, helping prevent soreness and injuries, but also helps us all protect our joints and mobility as we age. Stretching is an important part of taking care of our bodies - and also just feels nice! Whether you try out a new yoga routine or just take the time to fit in a few simple stretches, your muscles and joints will thank you!

Reminder that we also offer offsite services!

Benefits of Chair Massage in the Workplace
✅Decreased stress levels
✅Relief from muscle tension and pain
✅Combats seasonal fatigue
✅Improved immune function
✅Increased employee moral and productivity
✅Decreased stress-related employee turnover
✅Relief from headaches
✅Lower blood pressure
✅Prevents repetitive stress injuries such as Carpal Tunnel and Tendonitis

Reach out to us today to set up your workplace's program!

Make sure you get some sunshine and fresh air in for ! Research shows that spending time in nature has a positive impact! It's been linked to cognitive benefits and mood improvements like lowering stress, increasing attention span, and even reducing the risk of psychiatric disorders. It also helps us feel connected with our home and each other! So go visit your favorite local spot today and enjoy your Sunday! 🏖️🌲

Here's some client love for ! Thank you so much, Arti! 💜

Everyone have a great weekend!

It's ! Our weekly special gets you $20 off of a wellness or therapeutic massage. 😌 Today's is all about art therapy!

What It Is
✨Art therapy uses the creative process for self-expression and healing. It can be done with the aid of a therapist or alone as self-soothing. Art therapy is more about the process itself than the end result.

How It Works
✨Creating gives individuals a sense of control in externalizing inner thoughts and emotions that may be easily felt but difficult to express in words. This can be a constructive way to get overwhelming inner feelings out.

Try...
✨Collage. Art therapy doesn't require skill, and collage can take that pressure off. If you're not sure where to even begin, collage can be a helpful way to express yourself.
✨Drawing. Drawing can be a relaxing way to create something or self-soothe. The sensation itself of creating different strokes can be freeing.
✨Painting. Painting allows you to enjoy the sensation of blending and playing with the medium itself as well!
✨Sculpting. You may enjoy the tactile sensations inherent in creating something with clay!

Exercises
✨Express what you're feeling! Whether through color, shapes, or more defined forms - exploring emotions is a great way to express pent-up feelings.
✨Draw/paint what you see. You can visit somewhere with beautiful scenery or simply set up a still life at home. The act of recreating visual stimuli can distract you from negative or ruminating thoughts and allow you to exist in the moment.
✨Try found object art. This encourages you to see beauty and purpose in everyday things you may normally overlook and can be a great way to connect you with your surroundings or experiences.

There are so many different ways to lose yourself in art! Happy creating! 💜

Need a moment of calm? Our Signature wellness massage is the perfect way to relax while we work away soreness and tension. We also include a heated neck pillow and herbal-infused hot towel foot wrap for extra stress-melting goodness.

For this week's we encourage you to take some time to make a wellness planner! Yours should be personalized to you, reflecting your goals and needs. Here's an example we came up with to get you inspired!

Physical
🌿Yoga, No sugar, 30 minute walks, Vitamins

Mental
🌿8 hours of sleep, Take probiotics, No alcohol

Spiritual
🌿Meditation and prayer, Honoring nature

Emotional
🌿Gratitude journaling, Limited screen time

Intellectual
🌿Read every day, Take a class, Listen to educational podcasts

Social
🌿Weekly night with friends, Call mom and dad, Weekly lunch date with a loved one

Financial
🌿Plan a monthly budget, Make a schedule for paying off debts

Occupational
🌿Walk outdoors at lunch, Get up from desk and stretch periodically

Good luck on your wellness journey! 😃

Top Things to Do in Santa Cruz:

1) Relax with a massage at Essentia Body Therapy! 😃
2) Soak up some sun at the Beach Boardwalk
3) Hike at the Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park
4) Picnic at the Natural Bridges State Beach
5) Defy gravity at the Mystery Spot
6) Bike the West Cliff Drive

We know this barely scratches the surface - there's so many ways to enjoy our beautiful location! What are your favorites? 🏄‍♀️

Today marks the summer solstice! Make sure you get those sun salutations in! ☀️

Celebrating Juneteenth today! 💜

Our therapeutic massages utilize advanced body-work techniques and modalities, including neuromuscular therapy. If your muscles feel "stuck" - it's time for a massage!

Happy Fathers Day! 💜 We appreciate all of the shoulder rides. 🥲