Sage spa

Are you full of awesome?

Waking Up Full of Awesome

 by Melissa Atkins Wardy

 

 

There was a time when you were five years old,

and you woke up full of awesome.

 You knew you were awesome.

  You loved yourself.

 You thought you were beautiful,

even with missing teeth and messy hair and mismatched socks

inside your grubby sneakers. You loved your body, and the things

it could do.

 You thought you were strong.

 You knew you were smart.

Do you still have it?

The awesome.

Did someone take it from you?

Did you let them?

 

Did you hand it over, because someone told you weren't beautiful

enough, thin enough, smart enough, good enough?

 

Why on earth would you listen to them?

Did you consider they might be full of crap?

Wouldn't that be nuts, to tell my little girl below that in another five

 or ten years she might hate herself because she doesn't look like a

starving and Photoshopped fashion model?

Or even more bizarre, that she should be sexy over smart,
beautiful over bold?

 

Are you freaking kidding me?

Look at her. She is full of awesome.

 You were, once. Maybe you still are. Maybe you are in the process of getting it back.

All I know is that if you aren't waking up feeling like this about yourself,

you are really missing out.

 

 

And it seems like they've "feng shuied" the place...

"....I showed up with very sore muscles and left feeling a lot lighter and less tense. And it seems like they've "feng shuied" the place, which is nice, as it's really restful in there."- Yelp Review Sage Spa Brooklyn, , Mary L. Manhattan NY, 3/7/12

The five feng shui elements and their characteristics

Feng shui handles five main elements in order to achieve harmony and balance in any space. These five feng shui elements are: wood, fire, earth, metal and water. Each one of them has its own characteristics and properties, and we will detail them in the following lines.

According to Chinese traditions, everything is constantly changing and interacting and that happens through these five main elements. Feng shui traditional knowledge and all its guidelines are based on these five feng shui elements. Therefore, when wishing to harmonize a place according to feng shui, these elements must be properly employed according to their characteristics and effects.

One first feng shui element is wood, which has the Chinese name of Mu. Wood represents innovation, creativity and birth, and it is a sociable element. This element corresponds to the color green and the east direction. By placing this element at a strategic spot in any space, you would be adding all of which it represents.

Another feng shui element is fire, called Huo in China. Fire symbolizes and brings activity, enthusiasm and energy to the places where it can be found. It is a warm element that must be treated with measure since too much of it can destroy what surrounds it. Fire is represented by the color red and direction south, and symbolizes the puberty years.

A next element is earth or Tu in Chinese. This feng shui element symbolizes stability, patience and honesty. It is a methodic element that can also become demanding, and is ideal for everything that is related with real estate and inheritances. Earth is symbolized by color yellow and is representative of the early youth years.

Metal or Jin in Chinese is another main feng shui element. It represents success in businesses and harvesting. It can also represent a knife or cutting metal and be destructive through it. White and gold are the colors that symbolize it, and its direction is west. This feng shui element symbolizes the adult years of human life.

One last element is water, called Shui in Chinese. It has a very important role among feng shui elements, and actually the name feng shui contains its name in it, meaning water and wind. Water mainly represents communications and traveling. But it also represents learning, arts and media. Water is elemental for living, not only for humans but also animals and plants. It can be quiet or violent. This element is represented by the color black and direction north, and symbolizes the old human years.

Artcle from: Fengshuicrazy.com

The Hormone Guide

I couldn't resist posting this for our massage-for-PMS clients and for women everywhere. I found the image on Pinterest.

How To Grow Clouds

"It takes a lot of work: it is necessary to weed very carefully, to toss out muck and small stones by hand, to kneel on the earth, bend over, dig about in the soil, water profusely, collect caterpillars, exterminate aphids, loosen the ground and serve the earth; when your back hurts from all this and you straighten up and look at the sky, you will have the prettiest clouds.”

— Karel Capek

The Ever-Inspiring Human Body

At Sage Spa we've massaged a few feet in our day and we have no preference as to whether they are male or female feet.  As a massage therapist for 25 years I had never really stopped to compare the architecture, if you will, of male versus female foot until I came across this tumblr picture of the two side by side.  

Judging by the position and muscular development, these are clearly dancer's feet. The male foot is so much more muscular and strikingly thicker through the midfoot.  The female foot is strikingly more flexible through the metatarsals and more slender and less muscular in every way.  Her foot is probably very strong in spite of its fineness.

And now, speaking as a dancer myself, and in full recognition of the fact that we are world-class perfectionists... his foot is perfectly aligned with his knee while hers is "sickled" or leaning towards the little toe side.  With this in place, she is more likely to be injured while jumping than he is.

The human body is an endless source of beauty and inspiration.  Who knew that feet could be so interesting?

Is Your Mom A Style Icon?

With Mother's Day coming up on May 13th, this is the time of year when I start to think of my mother.  She passed away 5 years ago so I can't celebrate with her.  But, my brother and I always look for ways to celebrate her life in ways that honor the things that she loved.  My brother chooses to serve food to needy families at his church much in the way that our Mom did at her church.  It's a lovely thing for him to do and typical of my best-brother-in-the-world also being the-best-son-in-the-world.

 I, on the other hand, choose a different way to celebrate.  What I remember about my Mom was her love of stylish clothes.  It was a love she shared with me and that I inherited.  Every year she used to send me a few hundred dollars on my birthday and tell me to use it to buy some Spring clothes.  What ensued was a shopping trip to Macys.  It was a fun, self-indulgent day and I would call her afterwards to tell her what I bought.  It was a way to be together even though we were miles apart.

At one point after her passing I happened upon a site dedicated to stylish moms.  You could submit photos of your mom and possibly have the pictures accepted.  It seemed just perfect for her.  I submitted her photos and 
was delighted when they were accepted.  The photos you see on this post are the ones now  forever on the website (mymomstyleicon.com).

I just want to pass these ideas on to those of you who are remembering moms that are gone.  There are so many ways to keep the happy memories alive.

Sage Spa Orchid Show: Brassavola "Little Stars"

Brassavola "Little Stars" Orchid

This is quickly becoming my favorite. The fragrance from this orchid is completely soothing and relaxing. 

Fragrant at night, a charming primary hybrid between the Central and South American species Brassavola nodosa, and the Jamaican native Brassavola cordata.  Brassavola Orchids are native to Central Mexico, the Carribbean, Venezula and Peru. We've seen these have over six flowers on a spike! Intermediate growing. January - February blooming. 

Friends

I couldn't resist this fun commentary on the value of friends.

Thank you to all my silly friends.

Comfort Measures/Coping Mechanisms for Labor

Looking for ways to cope with contractions?  This workshop from our friends at Choices In Childbirth 
would be a big help to you. And the nice thing is that it's free.

Comfort Measures/Coping Mechanisms

Date: Thursday, February 16th

Time: 6:15-8:30 pm
Location: 14th Street Y (344 East 14th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues)

Are you preparing to give birth and wondering how you'll work with contractions? Is your partner expecting and you are thinking about how you will support her in labor? Join us for a discussion on a range of labor coping strategies, between parents old and new, and the doulas and practitioners who support them.

 

How Massage Heals Sore Muscles

NY Times February 6, 2012 By Nicholas Backalar

"A massage after vigorous exercise unquestionably feels good, and it seems to reduce pain and help muscles recover. Many people — both athletes and health professionals – have long contended it eases inflammation, improves blood flow and reduces muscle tightness. But until now no one has understood why massage has this apparently beneficial effect.

Now researchers have found what happens to muscles when a masseur goes to work on them....

________

Vigorous exercise causes tiny tears in muscle fibers, leading to an immune reaction — inflammation — as the body gets to work repairing the injured cells. So the researchers screened the tissue from the massaged and unmassaged legs to compare their repair processes, and find out what difference massage would make.

They found that massage reduced the production of compounds called cytokines, which play a critical role in inflammation. Massage also stimulated mitochondria, the tiny powerhouses inside cells that convert glucose into the energy essential for cell function and repair. “The bottom line is that there appears to be a suppression of pathways in inflammation and an increase in mitochondrial biogenesis,” helping the muscle adapt to the demands of increased exercise, said the senior author, Dr. Mark A. Tarnopolsky."

READ THE ARTICLE>

Valentine's Day for All!

Boyfriend-girlfriend, partner-partner, mother-daughter, grandma-grandchild, husband-wife.  All kinds of love is celebrated at Sage Spa on Valentine's Day.  Well, maybe except one... we know you love your dogs and cats; but, that's one kind of massage that we don't do. :)  Anyway, Sage is celebrating your love by offering a special Valentine's discount on our couples massage.  The special will be available from Friday February 10th through Valentine's Day itself February 14th. The price (normally $260) will be only $199!  There will be hundreds of red balloons in the air as usual.  Book now to reserve your place.

What should every modern woman have? (No need to read this, guys)

There are several apps for tracking your periods (and the moods and symptoms associated with it) but this one seems to be particuarly good.  Sage is conducting a study on PMS and one of the participants in our study turned us on to it.

Here is a REVIEW by a woman iPhone user that I thought pretty much covered all the plusses and minuses of the app.

Also, you can check out Sage's PMS session if you are interested.

 

Rating New York Hospitals On Their Caesarean Rates

It is unfortunate but true that hospital caesarean rates are on the rise.  Whether due to the physician's fear of a bad outcome or some other factor, this can't be a good thing for women.  We will need to be careful when choosing a hospital. In fact, we need to make conscious choices about every aspect of where and with whom to give birth in order to birth our babies the way we have envisioned. The World Health Organization recommends that the cesarean section rate for industrialized nations should not exceed 15%. A safe range, as determined by WHO experts, is 10-15%. Most hospitals in our area are well above this rate; but, you can at least make an informed choice by going to our friends at Choices in Childbirth  and checking out the numbers.  They did a helpful survey of caesarean rates from 2000 to 2008 in hospitals in the 5 burroughs as well as Long Island. When you click on their site, go to their Guide To A Healthy Birth to see the survey and have access to a wealth of information on healthy birth in general. Good luck with your planning!

 

Are you lean flank steak or fatty rump roast?

As an older person and a committed athlete for all of my life, I wonder... how fit can I be as I get older and how long can I keep up the pace?  The answer, as it turns out,  is very, very fit and for a very, very long time.  I recently went back to ballet class, though I had kept up a decent fitness level in the interim by doing running, yoga, Zumba and other exercises.  I have been amazed though that, with perserverance, you can up your fitness levels EVEN MORE THAN YOU THOUGHT POSSIBLE ... and I'm a pretty positive person to begin with.  In the same vein, I came across this video ( Senior Basketball Ladies) of basketball competitors, all ladies and the youngest of whom is 65.  Watch and believe.  If you are older or are destined to get older (and who isn't?) you should take steps right now.  It WILL pay off in all ways including body and mind.  I now can't wait to get older and be even better!  If you have a story of fitness to share, please do so.  We would all love to be inspired by you.

Contentment, happiness and hope. Sounds good.

We've all seen the psychotherapy jokes, the Woody Allen movies and, if we're human, experienced some internal angst ourselves.  Traditional psychotherapy tries to "categorize" what's wrong with us and work from there to heal, and mostly it's done good work; but, what if we didn't work FROM what's wrong with us but TOWARDS what could be right with us and for us?  Would we get better results for our life satisfaction and happiness?  Some people think so. I stumbled across this group the International Positive Psychology Association .  Their website describes their mission : "Positive psychology is founded on the belief that people want to lead meaningful and fulfilling lives, to cultivate what is best within themselves, and to enhance their experiences of love, work, and play. Positive Psychology has three central concerns: positive emotions, positive individual traits, positive institutions. Understanding positive emotions entails the study of

 

 

• contentment with the past

 

• happiness in the present

 

• hope for the future. 

 

 

 

 

 

Their goals are 

• Families and schools that allow children to flourish
• Workplaces that foster satisfaction and high productivity
• Communities that encourage civic engagement
• Therapists who identify and nurture their patients' strengths
• The teaching of Positive Psychology
• Dissemination of Positive Psychology interventions in organizations & communities

This all sounds like a worthwhile alternative to traditional psychotherapy and worth checking out.