Howard Clemmow – Southwell Life
Years ago while watching Dallas I witnessed the sight of JR having his hair cut while sat at his desk. I was impressed; here was a man who was powerful, important, a man so busy that he didn’t have time to get his hair cut so the barber had to come to him.
Nowadays, while few of us have scaled the corporate ladder to the heights that JR had, most of us are extremely busy and spare time is a scarce luxury. We are also more stressed than ever before. Consequently, now is the ideal time to launch an office massage service, which is exactly what Jacky Huson at Touch Therapy has done.
The benefits of massage are well known and include deep relaxation, loosening knotted muscles, easing headaches and relieving deep seated muscle pain, many of the symptoms of stress. A full body massage takes around an hour and involves disrobing, lying on a horizontal massage couch and the use of essential oils. All of these things preclude it from being performed in an office environment.
However, a half body massage can be performed in about twenty minutes on a semi-upright couch. No oils are used and there is no need to remove any clothing (although taking off your jacket and tie is strongly advisable.) Despite this, it yields most of the benefits of a full body oil massage. The massage can be performed in a quiet corner of a shared office, although a private office or conference room is better, simply because it makes for a more relaxing environment.
The treatment starts with a brief assessment, which covers any medical problems, symptoms of stress and any particular areas of muscular tension. Then you arrange yourself on the ergonomically designed chair. It looks rather like something from a torture chamber but actually supports your entire upper body very well and allows you to relax completely. The massage covers your back, shoulders, neck, arms and the back of your head and temples. I found it very soothing and it loosened the muscles of my neck and shoulders, which are prone to tension and discomfort.
A full body massage is deeply relaxing to extent that people often fall asleep during it and feel drowsy and lethargic afterwards. This massage leaves you feeling relaxed but invigorated and ready to get on with the day’s busy schedule.
The idea is that several office workers arrange to take time out for a massage during Jacky’s visit and possibly the company meets all or part of the cost. When you look at the number of working days lost through stress related illness and muscular-skeletal problems, this would be money well spent. I think this venture is an excellent idea and wish Jacky every success with it.
Southwell Life September 2006