Forcible relaxation......

My Spa day yesterday was great. The 90 minute massage, the facial - superb. The pedi was so/so. I won't get one there again, only because I LOVE my Asian Pedi place. The Ladies are a hoot and they do a fantastic job. However the other spa treatments I had were awesome.

I had been to one other "spa" before in my life, several years ago T bought me a half day at some spa the ladies at work told him about. It was a horrible experience. The massage was weak, the facial was sterile, the pedi was rough and fast. This bad experience was the reason I have not returned to a SPA in all these years.

Now I do want to clarify that I do go for massages at least every 2 months, and pedi's usually every 4-6 weeks in the summer, maybe twice over the winter. So I do pamper myself here and there, just not in a spa environment.

Well the experience I had on Saturday was night and day....as soon as I walked in, they knew my name and greeted me with a warm smile. Asked me to kindly fill out some paperwork and then escorted me to the Ladies dressing room. They provided me with a locker, robe and flip flops. (the changing room was equipped with Salon shampoos/conditioners/facial cleansers/combs and brushes/ razors/toothbrushes/femine products) Once I was ready I made my way to the "waiting area". This was a nice dark room, with a fire place, wine glasses of water, light music and elegant chairs. My massage was first, one word for you FUCKINGAMAZING (well I made it one word!). I told her that my left shoulder and both shins were feeling a bit tight. She was awesome at her job let me tell you!

In between the massage and facial they moved me to the "relaxation room" OMG I want one of these in my house. There were 6 big comfy chairs and ottomans, waterfall sounds and light music, dimmed lighting, and warmed blankets to cover up with. I was in there for about 15 minutes and easily fell asleep with in 2 mins!

The facial was good, not at all what I expected. The girl only "sales pitched" me once, advising that I should get away from using soap on my face and look into a cleanser instead. Otherwise she just worked, massaged, and then left the room for 15mins or so...where I again fell asleep. The facial room was just like the massage room, dimmed lighting, quiet music, warm bed.

And then we moved into pedi's and like I said, it was ok, but nothing worth telling about.

The one revelation I had yesterday was that it was really, REALLY hard to let go and just relax. As a Mom, a Wife, or even just a female working full time, we don't really give ourselves that permission to just relax. Sitting in that relaxation room, I found myself jones'ing for electronics. I realized that it should not be THIS HARD to sit back and relax. I felt forced to relax, and did not like that. So out of this experience I have decided that I need more practice and have scheduled myself for another Massage and Facial in July! I am thinking that $200 every 8-12 weeks is reasonable for the amount I work and give to my family. A few hours to take back is deserved.