Over the years the concept of “wellness” has evolved, and been both mocked and embraced. Today it’s generally accepted that taking care of body and mind to ensure maximum health is the best strategy. This includes everything from regular dentist appointments to exercise routines that fit each individual to therapy sessions that help work through problems or trauma.
It also includes skincare and haircare, as well as practices such as massage, acupuncture and chiropractic care, which many mainstream healthcare companies now cover.
On the Johns Hopkins website readers find this description of the use of acupuncture in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM): “TCM believes that the body’s vital energy, called qi (pronounced chi), flows along specific channels or meridians. If the qi is balanced, then the person has spiritual, emotional and physical health.”
While going on to say that Western medicine takes a different view of why acupuncture has been proven to reduce pain, the site cites a raft of uses for the procedure, including for headaches, fibromyalgia and carpal tunnel syndrome.
Massage, of course, has been used for hundreds, indeed thousands, of years to soothe and help repair the body, but today, the range of techniques offered has expanded exponentially. For example, Berkeley’s Sundhari Holistic Spa offers Swedish, Esalen, Deep Tissue, Sports, Trigger Point, Cranial-Sacral, Myofascial Release, Shiatsu, Acupressure and Trager styles of massage.
The connection between wellness and beauty is also obvious. Skincare and haircare add to this. The National Institute of Health published an article that states, “skin appearance affects psychological health, self-esteem and social engagement, reinforcing its significance beyond physiology.” Oakland’s Feliz DuBois Skin Care, for example, offers a skincare consultation that helps identify skin type, problems and potential treatments, alongside dermal infusion treatments, derma-planing, peels and traditional facials.
At Kume Float in Oakland, the Botanical Head Spa features its Botanical Scalp Treatment, which uses herbs and a clay peel to clean the scalp. Based on classic Japanese techniques, the treatment includes a scalp analysis using a high-resolution microscope, dry brushing to exfoliate the scalp, a scalp mask, herbal steam, “hydrodhara” oil flow and pressure point head massage, and a “waterfall” rinse.
Wellness isn’t a fad or a trend, but a way to support health and beauty for a lifetime.
For more info, visit sundhari.com, eastbaychiropractichealthcenter.com, felizduboisskincare.com and kumefloat.com.
