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Why I’m Not Increasing My Prices

Saving money on massage by putting quarter in piggy bank

Everyone should be able to afford massage. 

Therapeutic massage and reflexology are part of our healthcare. Body work practitioners are commonly categorized under beauty and cosmetics, but I believe we are providing a different type of service.  

Even for those who do not believe that our services are part of healthcare, we can all agree that you feel better after a massage than you did before. Furthermore, we are sought out to help recover from injury, rehabilitate from a surgery, heal energetic and mental wounds, and so much more.  

Money should not be a barrier to receiving healthcare. I want to reach as many people as I can! 

Advice from Many Business Professionals 

Victoria pondering her journey.
It’s important to keep our healthcare affordable.

Through my journey to becoming a massage therapist and business owner, I have received plenty of advice about what I should charge for my services. We learn about pricing in school. We do our market research, and we weigh the prices we charge as they relate to our expenses. After being in business for nearly 5 years, I’m told even now that I could raise my prices.  

This conundrum has been with me since the beginning.  In the first year, I thought that I was too new to the industry and that people would not pay the prices that I wanted to charge to see me.  

Today, I don’t have that fear. It warms my heart, all these years later, that I’ve had the pleasure to touch so many lives and that the MVL family has grown as large as it has. Despite these great things, I’m confronted with this pricing question repeatedly. Believe it or not, it really bothers me.  

Massage Should Be Affordable for Everyone 

There are many ways to save money for your health. This photo shows cash laid out.
Photo by Alexander Schimmeck on Unsplash

I finally have the words to express what I’ve always believed. I am not going to raise my prices at this time.  

I am not going to raise my prices because massage should be affordable for everyone. If I raise my prices, then I risk only reaching the people who have the means to afford it.  It is already expensive to live, and the COVID-19 pandemic has only made things worse.  

Many of us cannot afford much, so why should I put my services out of reach for those who potentially need it the most? Keeping my prices affordable means that more people can receive my services.  

What You Can Do to Save Money 

Despite these efforts, massage and reflexology can still be cost restrictive for some people. Moreover, massage is generally not covered by insurance. There are things that you can do to help with the cost of my services.  

  • Health Saving Accounts (HSAs): While insurance generally does not cover our services, the IRS does allow for money saved in HSAs to be used. 
  • Service Packages: I routinely create packages, or bundles, of services. These are designed to help clients return at varying intervals. These intervals are designed to benefit from the effects of the service. 
  • Specials: I run specials all the time. They are found on my website and they are a great way to save money.  
  • 45 Minute Sessions: To make services more affordable, and to have enough time to receive the benefits of my services, we’ve created 45-minute sessions for $50. 
  • Add-on Services: A more affordable way to receive the benefits from a variety of modalities is to add a shorter duration of these add-on services. You have the option to add on to your primary appointment with services such as Aromatherapy, a foot scrub, cupping, and stones.  

Conclusion

Massage therapy still has a long way to go to get rid of the stigma and categorization that it carries. However, we are making strides.  

Keeping prices affordable does not mean that the services should be charged at $35 an hour. There is still a lot of training, expertise, and knowledge behind the work. This is why the question of raising prices keeps coming up.   

MVL Wellness will be doing all it can to remain affordable. Massage is a benefit to your health, and you should have that available to you. 

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Health

A Convergence of Western and Natural Medicine

The word “wellness” can mean a number of different things to different people. Everyone has a different idea as to what wellness is to them. For me, I feel very passionate about wellness as a whole and how I have found my own way to take care of myself. This is a topic that I have pondered for a long time now. I believe it is very important to discuss our health care system because it can always be improved.  

Field.
Photo by dominikjpw.

All too often we get caught up in what we read on the internet or what we hear people say about wellness. Since everyone has a different idea of wellness, it is easy to get confused by the information available to us. How many times have we felt something “weird” in our bodies and then go and Google it? Instead of making us feel better it just causes our minds to rapidly process every bad thing it could be. 

I won’t pretend that that doesn’t happen to me because it does. However, I have found, over the years, that it is important to find a person you trust to help guide you, educate you, and validate what you are going through. It eliminates a lot of the stress brought about by Googling symptoms.  

My personal experience has been a rocky road with Western medicine. It felt like every time I had a question about my health I was never getting anywhere. For example, I had stomach issues and went to several doctors to try and figure out what was wrong with me. Everyone, it seemed, was saying the same things, but I was still in pain. As a result, I started to lose trust in these people that were supposed to help me. I know that I am not alone with regard to the mistrust toward the healthcare system. It was years of going to different doctors to be told the same thing and not feeling any better. Consequently, I decided to see a naturopathic doctor. I figured it was worth a try. 

Before my switch to a naturopathic doctor, I had a regular primary doctor. I thought she was a very kind, generous, and compassionate person. I really liked her as a healthcare professional, but what got me to change was one of my annual checkups. She had asked me if there were any concerns or questions that I had.  

“I’m still having this right-side pain, and it just won’t go away,” I said.  

“Well, that’s just something you’re going to have to live with,” she said.  

It was that comment that made me say to myself that I needed a change, that I didn’t have to live with this pain. I wanted some answers, and this comment was not a solution in any sense of the word. I wanted to know how to take care of myself, not how to give in to the pain. After that, I started to do research on naturopathic doctors.  

My digestive issues started in 2003. In 2010 I was diagnosed with IBS. My visit with my primary doctor happened around 2011/12. I had tried everything (diet, exercise, etc.) they had told me in that eight- to nine-year interval, but it wasn’t getting better. After doing my research into naturopathic doctors I found my current doctor, with whom I’ve been with for eight years now. I will say this: I am never looking back. It was a great decision, and I could not be happier with my decision.  

There’s been a long stigma of what naturopathic doctors are. At first, I didn’t know either. I had heard things such as: They aren’t real doctors, or What do they know? They are hippies! Etc. Etc.  

However, I was determined to find somebody that I trusted. Once I did my research and realized what they were all about, I was determined to break the stigma surrounding them. I wanted to find a solution so that, eventually, I could relay all I’d learned to others who felt they, too, had nowhere to turn.  

The doctor that I found is amazing. She has helped me in many ways. Just because she is an “ND” instead of an “MD” doesn’t mean she didn’t go to medical school (she did). Naturopathic Doctors still have to go through medical school (which is different than a Naturopath who does not). The path she chose to study is just different. It is a pathway that focuses on more natural ways of taking care of the body. It’s a pathway about not just taking your vitals but looking at your body as whole.  

She can prescribe medicine, she can take my vitals, etc. Her approach is to diagnose the problem and to treat that problem with natural supplements first. If some of these supplements aren’t working (for one reason or another) then she will look at conventional medicine to help treat the issue. She will then integrate the prescription into your daily routine. The important thing to remember is to follow the prescription. Taking something once does not cure or treat anything. The body needs time to adjust to something new. It takes time. It takes patience.  

During my journey, I went from going from modern medicine and listening to all these doctors to being very mistrustful about everything in the healthcare system. Once I switched to a naturopathic doctor, things began to change for me.  

The more I kept seeing her the more results I was seeing. She was giving me the guidance that I needed. The ratio I like to go by is this: 90% is me doing the work and 10% is her guiding me. (You can apply this to your own path with your own doctor.) In any case, the more I kept seeing things improve the more I liked her balance between having an understanding of Western medicine and Eastern philosophy and natural medicine.  

I admit that at one point I went too far with the natural medicine: I did not even like the thought of modern medicine around me. However, after going on an anti-depressant for the last two-and-a-half years my thoughts began to change.  

Why? My naturopathic doctor helped me in more ways than she may even think. When I was having panic attacks and some other health issues, she intervened and prescribed medication that helped me.  

That’s when I had my “aha” moment. If we can (modern and natural medicine) work together then the barrier can be brought down. Slowly, modern medicine is integrating natural medicine into their system. It’s about working together. There is a doctor in Waterbury that refers patients to me for reflexology, which is a great step forward in the integration process, and this is how I can help. I am doing my part to break down those barriers and help form a new balance between the old and the new.  

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Health

Reflexology and Women’s Health

Originally published in March, 2019

Foot Soak

In honor of Women’s History Month, celebrated each year in March, here are a few ways that reflexology has been shown to promote wellness through all stages of life. While this article is focused on Women’s health, MVL welcomes people of all genders and gender identities. Life is a complex series of triumphs and struggles, and it is our goal to help all those who come to us, regardless of who they are.  

Reflexology is the art and science of applying pressure to specific areas of the feet, hands, and ears to produce an effect in other connected parts of the body. It is a gentle, nurturing technique, creating an overall sense of ease so you can thrive regardless of life’s challenges. 

Spring– Many women are taught from the time they are teenagers to put up with cramps, back pain, headaches, nausea, etc., which come before and during their menstrual cycles. Reflexology is a powerful ally in healthy hormonal balance and pain relief. The first reflexology study ever published in a major US medical journal, “Randomized controlled study of premenstrual symptoms treated with ear, hand, and foot reflexology,” was published in Obstetrics and gynecology in 1993. The study involved a control group (those who did not receive reflexology), a group that received true reflexology, and a group that received placebo reflexology. Those who received true reflexology demonstrated a significantly greater decrease in premenstrual syndrome (PMS) symptoms than the control or placebo groups, supporting the use of foot, hand, and ear reflexology as an effective method for dealing with PMS symptoms. 

I believe reflexology is a powerful tool that helps with PMS symptoms, and, after studying with one of the researchers who authored the previously mentioned study, I am looking forward to sharing these techniques with the local community.

Summer– In her book, Gentle Birth Method, obstetrician Dr. Gowri Motha makes the assertion, “Reflexology is very safe in pregnancy, and is instrumental in helping 45.5 percent of my mothers give birth at optimum gestation of 40 weeks” (40). She goes on to describe reflexology’s benefits during pregnancy and it is useful for normalizing blood pressure, reducing foot and ankle swelling, improving sleep quality, and helping the body ease into the birthing process. Reflexology can also be a valuable practice to incorporate into your postpartum routine as your body, mind, and lifestyle adjust to welcoming your newest family member(s). 

Autumn– At MVL, just as we recognize that there is another way to manage pain, there is also another way to age gracefully and maintain a healthy, active lifestyle. Just as young women are told to “deal with it” when it comes to PMS, as women age they are told to “just deal” with changes that take place during menopause, or be treated with hormonal therapies that can be beneficial but may also have unintended side effects. Studies support reflexology as a means of helping regulate disordered sleeping and managing the hot flashes and psychological symptoms that accompany menopause for some women.

Far too often the stages in a woman’s life are treated as pathologies rather than rites of passage, or natural occurrences. While they can be uncomfortable or even painful, our bodies do know how to balance themselves. Reflexology is a non-invasive way to boost the body’s own capacity to thrive throughout:

  • PMS
  • Pregnancy
  • Postpartum adjustments
  • Life’s everyday aches and pains
  • Chronic pain or illness
  • Anxiety
  • Depression
  • Joyful aging with an active lifestyle
  • Menopause

At MVL, we strive to find personalized solutions to ensure everyone receives the care that is best suited to their needs. While the concerns above are common, our approach is individualized. We listen and work with you to meet your goals of relaxation, rehabilitation, and relief. 

Work Cited: 

Motha, Gowri and Karen Swan MacLeod. “The Gentle Birth Method Treatments.” Gentle Birth Method.              Thorsons, 2004, pp. 40.

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Why Stretching is So Important

Originally published in September, 2017

Photo by Abigail Keenan on Unsplash

There are many opinions on stretching as some people will say it is bad for you, and then others will say it is good for you. I went to school for exercise science and health and wellness and I had one professor say he thought stretching was not good for the body because he stretched his back once and he pulled a muscle. Then I had two other professors, all in the same program, say that stretching is great for the body. This was over 10 years ago and research has continued to grow with new knowledge of the benefits stretching has. It’s really important to know your body and the limitations it has. This will allow you to stretch properly without hurting yourself.

When I was a new personal trainer shortly after college I had a client come to me that wanted to feel better with hopes of losing weight. Together we worked on this goal. Then she got into a car accident during the time I was her trainer. One of the routines we did was I would assist her in her stretches. When we were done, this seemed to really help open up her back. After the car accident she came to me we would stretch her body along with some other exercises. While doing a back stretch, I let go of her for a second and she took her leg and pulled it into her body so fast she ended up pulling a muscle. She thought it was going to be better if she went deeper into the stretch. This can happen if we are not careful. When the body starts shaking in a stretch that is your nervous system in fight or flight mode. Your nervous system is telling you to relax a bit. It’s during this part that you could pull a muscle. You want to go into the stretch just before you start shaking and eventually you will be able to go deeper into the stretch.

There are a few different types of stretches that are great for your body. One is dynamic stretching. This is great before any workout, or just waking up in the morning. Dynamic stretching is done while moving. This helps increase blood flow and warm up the muscles. Another one is called static stretching. This kind of stretching is great for after a workout, or after you have done some dynamic stretches. Static stretches are the stretches that most people are familiar with. It’s when you hold the stretch in place for about 30 seconds. So what are the benefits of stretching?

• Increased flexibility and range of motion.
• Injury prevention.
• Preventing DOMS.
• Improved posture.
• Improvements in sports performance.
• Stress relief

Below are some great sites to visit if you would like to know more. Please note that these sites will talk about sports or running. These routines are highly used during these activities and that’s why you will see it talked about more. These are also very beneficial for those who do not participate in any of these sports. Your main goal should be to remain healthy and feeling good. I suggest a lot of these stretches to my clients and help them find a good time to use them. If you have any questions, or simply would like to book an appointment,  we can get the right treatment plan for you. I Look forward to seeing you!

http://www.sportsinjuryclinic.net/rehabilitation-exercises/stretching-exercises/benefits-of-stretching
Dynamic

https://www.runnersworld.com/dynamic-stretching
http://www.stretching-exercises-guide.com/dynamic-stretching.html
https://greatist.com/fitness/full-body-dynamic-warm-up
Static
http://www.active.com/fitness/articles/12-post-workout-static-stretches
https://www.runnersworld.com/static-stretching

Both
http://running.competitor.com/2014/07/injury-prevention/dynamic-stretching-vs-static-stretching_54248

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Walking Meditation for Everyday Mindfulness

Originally posted in April, 2017

Photo Credit: Gregory R.J. Rapoza

Meditation of any kind is extremely beneficial to the people who practice it. It calms your mind, relieves stress, and allows you to bring yourself to a better state of consciousness. However, when most people think of meditation they think of a form of sitting meditation, but there are actually many, many different kinds of meditation. There are eating meditations, heart meditations, sitting meditations, and others. One of the best forms of meditation for the person always on the move is a meditation called “Walking Meditation.” Using a walking meditation for everyday mindfulness is an excellent way to feel better, and to get your meditation worked into your busy schedule.

What Is a Walking Meditation?

Walking meditation is a meditation where you walk while you meditate. A key difference between this type of meditation and many other forms of meditation is that your eyes are open during it. Your eyes remain open so that you may see where you are going and not get hurt, but also so you can be fully engaged with your surroundings.
There are several different variations of the walking meditation, but the one I’d like to mention for this post is the mindfulness walking meditation.

Mindfulness Walking Meditation

A mindfulness walking meditation is just one variation, and it is a fairly modern one, too. It is, however, very easy to implement into your schedule. You can squeeze in a walking meditation any time you are walking somewhere. If you have a long walk to your car in the parking lot, or you have to walk clear across your place of work, using a walking meditation is simple and effective.
There are a few important things to keep in mind when you do your walking meditation. The first thing is to keep it slow. The slower the better. If you are rushing and walking quickly you won’t be able to focus on your thoughts or the world around you, and these things are key.
When you walk, take it slow and breathe deeply. Concentrate your thoughts on the way your feet feel as you walk. Concentrate on your surroundings. Is it loud? Quiet? If you’re outside: is there wind? What do you hear? How does it feel? If you find your mind drifting to thoughts about your day or personal life, re-focus them by concentrating on your individual steps, your breathing, and the ground that you are walking on.
By doing this you will increase your mindfulness of the world around you, and of your own body and soul. The best thing about this kind of meditation is that even a one minute meditation on your way to your car is beneficial. Just one minute of mindfulness can help relax you and decrease your stress. Of course, you can practice a walking meditation as long as you like. You may find that when you get home you want to practice it for fifteen or twenty minutes!
So the next time you’re walking somewhere, consider practicing a little walking meditation to ease your mind and increase your mindfulness.
If you’d like to find out what massage services we offer here at Mountain Valley Lotus, please contact us today! We’d love to help you!

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The Importance of Properly Fitting Shoes

Originally Published in December, 2017

Photo Credit: Brenda Battin

After my last training cycle this past winter I really learned a lot about my body and what it can handle. Our bodies are capable of handling more than we give it credit for, but this is not to say that we should ignore red flags; we need to pay attention to our bodies and when something doesn’t feel right it is probably because something isn’t. In the past, I have ignored red flags and have had to endure much more than was ever necessary.
At the time, I was training to run a marathon and was experiencing a lot of discomfort throughout my body. I knew that something had to be wrong. However, as I was training for this marathon I ignored these red flags because I was focused on getting to that marathon and finishing it. This was my mistake. My knees and my ankles were killing me, and eventually this pain found its way up into my back. I was able to finish my marathon, but afterward I felt my entire body crumble. I had ignored these symptoms for too long, and now I was feeling the result.
The issue? My shoes. I was wearing the wrong footwear, which calloused my feet and threw my gait cycle off, which accounted for the all the pain in my ankles, knees, and back. There was one shoe I was wearing that was not wide enough for my foot, and as a result I had hyperpronation in my foot, which made my bunion hurt which in turn threw my knee and hip out which threw my back out of alignment. As you can see, something as simple as footwear can have a far reaching effect on the rest of the body.
Nevertheless, during this time I couldn’t breathe because of the pain and discomfort (I have a history of asthma, bronchitis, pneumonia, and sinus infection), and was getting nervous. I went to the doctors, and to a chiropractor, and soon everything was beginning to feel better, especially when I changed my footwear to a properly sized shoe. There were three things I had to change in order to heal my body.
1. Get new footwear that was properly sized.
2. Do my daily exercises on a regular basis.
3. Change my socks on a regular basis.
All in all, it took about seven months to fix this issue with my body. After going through this whole ordeal I am practicing more preventive measures to avoid this sort of thing happening again. Now my body feels the way it should, and I am training for my fifth marathon.
I suppose the most important takeaway from this is to pay attention to your body. Don’t ignore it. Our bodies can handle a lot, but if there is something wrong our bodies will tell us, and it is up to us to listen. No one else can listen for us. If you think something is wrong then there probably is, and the longer you hold off doing something about it the worse the problem will get. So be sure to listen to what your body is telling you. It could be something as simple as wearing the wrong footwear!

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Drinking Tea to Boost Your Immune System

Originally Published in October, 2017

Photo by Carli Jeen on Unsplash

It is autumn, which means it is the perfect time to warm up on the sofa with a nice cup of tea. Tea has many health benefits, and tastes great too! Tea is especially great for your immune system. The immune system, as written in the Merriam Webster dictionary, is “the bodily system that protects the body from foreign substances, cells, and tissues by producing the immune response…” (Merriam Webster).
        Drinking tea will help boost your immune system and help your body fight off illnesses that come about as the air gets drier and cooler, and as we spend more of time indoors. Winter is the season where we get sick the most, so drinking tea in the autumn is a way of readying your body for the long, cold months ahead.
        It doesn’t matter which kind of brewing method you use (loose tea leaves or tea bags), both will provide you with the same boost to your immune system. I recommend drinking the tea black, as any milk or sugar will deplete the health benefits that the tea provides.
        You can also get creative with it! One thing you could try that I have been doing is making tea ice cubes. To do this, simply brew six bags of tea in a pitcher of water. Once brewed, pour the tea into an ice cube tray and freeze. Then put the tea ice cubes in a glass of water; this is a great method especially if you are looking to drink more water, and it makes it taste good too.
        Here are some teas that I recommend giving a try:
–          Eucalyptus
–          Rosemary
–          Lavender
–          Turmeric
–          Chamomile
In addition to tea, reflexology is a good type of massage that aids in boosting the immune system. There are points in the feet that when massages help strengthen your immune system. By boosting your immune system you will be protecting yourself against the common cold, flu, and other illnesses that come about in the winter. If you’d like more information, or to see what reflexology services I provide here at Mountain Valley Lotus, please contact us!

Work Cited
“Immune System.” Merriam-Webster.com. Merriam-Webster, 2017. Web. 18 October 2017.

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What is Refexology?

The Root to Well-being

What is Reflexology?

I. Origins

Have you ever wondered what exactly reflexology is? In short, reflexology is a type of massage where the therapist massages reflex points in the foot, which create a sense of relaxation within the body. Most people believe this practice originated in China, but it actually dates back to around 2333 B.C. in Egypt. The Egyptians would perform reflexology on soldiers during and between battles to help relax them. Most soldiers who received reflexology found that they were more relaxed and productive afterward. 

II. Practice

But what is the practice itself? Within the foot are reflex points that correlate to different parts of the body; by massaging these points we are reflexing other parts throughout the body. The theory behind reflexology is that our feet, hands, and ears are designed in the shape of our body. So, for example, your big toe is a reflex point of the brain, sinus, throat, and cervical spine area. By massaging the big toe you will feel a sense of relaxation in the correlating areas.
I recently had a client, whose big toe I massaged, say that she could feel a tingling sensation throughout the left side of her head; at the time, I was massaging her left toe. I was, in effect, stimulating her nervous system. Within the foot are other correlations as well. The foot contains the reflex points of our organs, so by massaging the foot we are taking care of the rest of the body. Each part of the body has a different reflex point.  By practicing reflexology, we are able to open up pathways to help the nervous system and circulatory system.

III. Benefits

Receiving reflexology is a great way to get relaxed, and to learn about the ways different parts of your body interact with each other. By understanding how your feet correlate with other parts of your body, both external and internal, you will be able to enjoy all the benefits of massage. Massaging the feet doesn’t just relax your feet, but it will relax your whole body.