“Valentine’s Day Bliss” Chocolate-Rose Couples Massage

Our decadent chocolate-rose aromatherapy massage… for two!  Be cradled in warmth on our thickly cushioned, heated massage tables and let the tranquil music and soothing massage carry you away to complete bliss and total relaxation.  A perfect way to delight the senses and increase the romance between you and your sweetie for Valentine’s Day.

Cacao is known to open the heart chakra, healing on the physical, emotional, and spiritual levels. Research shows that smelling cacao reduces levels of stress and anxiety. Cacao may also help to reduce cravings and addictive patterns…

Rose oil is a gentle tonic for the heart, with the key to Rose’s psychological properties being its effect on the center of emotional being. Rose calms and supports the heart, helping to nourish ‘heart-yin’ and restore a sense of well-being. The flower has been considered great in its ability to heal emotional wounds by bringing warmth to the soul…

As a special gift, we are also including in this package a custom blended chocolate-vanilla-rose botanical perfume for you to take home! Our aromatherapy massage oils and perfumes are custom blended and use the finest quality organic, therapeutic-quality essential oils that not only smell wonderful, but are good for your health, too.

Multiply the bliss with Hot Stones!  Hot Stones can leave your body completely tension free and your mind in a state of blissful euphoria!  Deliciously warm stones are placed along the chakras and energy points of the body, while the therapist glides smooth heated stones over the major muscle groups during the full body massage.

Appointments for Valentines week are being accepted now.  BOOK TODAY to be sure you get the day and time you want!  If you don’t see the time you want in the online scheduler, please contact us directly, as we are offering extended hours for Valentines Day!  Call Tammy, (434) 409-3817 or email tammy@searhythms.com.

Looking for the perfect gift this season?  EVERYBODY wants a SeaRhythms Massage this year!!  Here is the link… Click, click, done!

(Use coupon code TENOFF at checkout and your discount will be applied)

SeaRhythms Signature Essential Massage

This is the massage we design just for YOU!  It consists of light to medium to deep pressure, depending on your preference. A variety of techniques may be used to achieve your desired results, such as targeted deep tissue, joint mobility, neuromuscular, myofascial, or trigger point therapy, among others.

The Essential Massage can be delivered as a full-body relaxation massage, a focused deep tissue session on problem areas, or a combination of the two. Your massage will be custom designed to meet your individual needs.

We have secured a nice, quiet, and LARGE space not very far away.  Beginning September 1, we will be located at 513 Stewart St, Suite F.  It is on the second floor of the building shared  with Plantscapes Florist and Albemarle Lock & Safe.

Read our Press Release about the move here

If you’d like to see the Lexington Ave studio at lease once more before we move, why not book an appointment this month?  Just give us a call..

See you soon!

SeaRhythms Massage "Freedom Float"

Are you following us on Facebook and Twitter yet?  Go do it right now! It’s the ONLY place you’ll see our “Last Minute” discounts announced — we post these specials when we have unexpected cancellations -OR- our calendars aren’t quite full for a particular day.  All you have to do is tell us you saw it on Facebook and/or Twitter!

Many people who spend hours working at a computer day in and day out will eventually begin to have chronic shoulder, neck, and/or arm pain.

Why is this?

The problem is essentially poor posture and repetitive use strain that develops over time from sitting at a computer for long hours.  The arms are positioned forward, the head leans forward, the shoulders roll forward, the upper back rounds.  The muscles of the upper body are forced to work in unnatural ways to keep the body and head in an upright position, while muscles in the shoulders, arms, and hands work continuously for hours at a time at the keyboard and mouse.  Muscles become overworked and tender, spasmed, weakened, and strained,  Eventually, shoulder blades can get stuck in an abnormally high position, upper arms rotate and strain ligaments in the shoulder, the spine and neck lose their natural curve.  In addition to muscular pain, nerves can become compressed and irritated causing numbness, tingling and burning sensations.

The pain from this ongoing misalignment and muscular dysfunction will be felt in the head, neck, between the shoulder blades, and in advanced cases, all the way down the arm and into the hands. If the situation continues long enough, the body will develop a chronically slumped and painful posture that is very difficult to reverse without some sort of therapeutic intervention.

How massage can help

Any massage that relaxes and soothes tired, achy muscles will usually feel great and help overworked muscles to relax, improve circulation, and be generally beneficial.  However, with long-standing misalignment issues such as described above, a more focused therapeutic protocol may be needed to truly reverse the condition and provide ongoing pain relief.

After having suffered with this “Office Worker” problem myself, and having seen many, many clients with the same issue, I have recently begun using an approach that is designed to not only relax and soothe, but also to specifically address the abnormal alignment patterns described above.

With this specialized protocol, I stretch and relax the tense, overworked muscles that specifically tend to pull the body into the forward posture.  Once they are relaxed, I manipulate targeted connective tissues to help move the body back into a proper alignment.  Finally, I use specific techniques to stimulate and tone overly weakened muscles to help them do their job of supporting and stabilizing good posture.

This protocol works toward relieving pain by addressing the underlying causes. I have seen great results in my clients since I started using it.  In combination with at-home exercises and a client awareness of posture throughout the work day, this treatment can result in dramatic improvement in posture and lasting pain relief.

Of course there may be situations where there is a more serious underlying issue that this massage approach will not be able to help. In that case, a chiropractor, physical therapist, or even surgeon may be a better choice. I am happy to provide an assessment and offer a referral when needed.

If you are suffering pain as described above, why not give therapeutic massage a try?  It is a safe and effective treatment that may help more than you ever thought it could.  Even if you haven’t yet developed severe pain, it is always easier to address the problem when you catch it early on.  Don’t hesitate to contact me if you have questions.

Tammy Dudley Mundy, CMT

http://SeaRhythms.com

(434) 409-3817

As a fully trained hot stone massage therapist, hot stone massage is one of the more popular massages that I offer at SeaRhythms.  After receiving this treatment, just about everyone reports that it is one of the most relaxing massages they have ever experienced. However, most don’t realize just how therapeutic it can be for the average person, and perhaps even more so for the diabetic.

While the author of this article gives a very simplistic explanation of the disease process that really only describes type 1 diabetes and not type 2, which is far more common, the massage benefits and precautions she describes are accurate.  Contrary to the author’s general assertion that the disease is caused by the pancreas not producing enough insulin, with type 2 diabetes the pancreas often does produce enough insulin, however, the cells of the body are resistant to it, which also results in too much glucose circulating in the blood stream.  The effects on the body of both 1 and 2 are often the same, such as loss of energy, circulatory damage, etc.  Massage can address some of the common problems caused by both forms of the diabetes.

Article: How Stone Massage Can Help Diabetics

Excerpts:

“Research has shown how massage positively affects a person with diabetes. Massage can affect the glucose level, energy level, circulation, stress, myofascial improvement and comfort level for the individual suffering with this debilitating disease. Massage releases endorphins, which calm the nervous system. This, in turn, decreases stress hormones and creates homeostasis in the blood glucose level.

Massage and stretching will facilitate mobility and elasticity of the tissue. Diabetics experience thickening of their connective tissue, which can be greatly improved with massage techniques.

Administered properly, hot-stone massage can increase all the advantages of manual massage for a diabetic client…”

We had an awesome sunrise ceremony on the oceanfront of the Outer Banks. Here are  a couple of photos from the most meaningful,  beautiful wedding I could have ever imagined.  It was all I dreamed of and more!

Sunrise at the altar of our choosing

Exchanging vows

A toast to our new life together!

Belize City

We flew into Belize City a day before our rendezvous with our friends, and so spent the night at the Belcove.  The city was not our favorite place, to say the least.  Lots of poverty, lots of scamming, but also some very nice friendly people. Ultimately, the culture shock we experienced here was a great learning opportunity that opened our minds and broadened our understanding of the world and what we take for granted every day.

Belcove Hotel, a relatively clean, safe, and inexpensive place to stay in the middle of the city

View from our hotel room. This is representative of what we saw all over the city when we took a tour.

University of Belize. The main campus is in Belmopan. This is a satellite campus in Belize City

A primary form of transportation for the locals are bicycles. Also, lots of cars in the city. Eveyrone holds their space on the road, and I was afraid our taxi was going to hit the cyclers more than once!

We were there on Sunday, and not much was open. Most people of Belize are religious and consider Sunday the day of rest.

Sailing

Our ultimate destination was Betty & Doug’s Eco Adventurer sailboat,  and our accommodations for the next 7 days.  This is what we had been looking forward to!!  We spent every night on the boat, and also the days when we were sailing between the the city and the two islands we visited: Caye Caulker & Long Caye

Eco Adventurer

That's me sitting on our bed in our room aboard the Eco Adventurer

Our wonderful hosts, Betty & Doug

Head cook and first mate, Jen

Plenty of rum punch, tequila, or beer after 5 o'clock!

Brian and I don't have a care in the world!

Beautiful Caribbean sunsets!

Caye Caulker

Caye Caulker is a sleepy little resort-type island with lots of shops, hotels, and places to hang out and drink and eat.  They also have a great beginner snorkeling spot for novices like Brian and I, as well as easy access to the Barrier Reef for the more advanced folks.  We spent 2 full days here, and did our first snorkeling and took our first set of underwater photos.  We took a LOT of photos, so these are just a sampling!

Main Street, Caye Caulker

Internet, Telephone, and...??? did that used to say Bar? We were suffering from cyberspace withdrawal, so we were happy to find internet. But no drinks for happy hour here, lol.

Our favorite hang out was The Lazy Lizard Bar & Grill. So lazy, they even have picnic tables in the water! Also right next to the baby snorkeling area.

We LOVED snorkeling!

I photographed this odd fish swimming along the bottom. We were unable to ID it from any of Betty's books. If it turns out I discovered a new species, I think I'll name it the Tamelita!

Star Fish

$40 bz equals $20 usd. I think we could afford to come back and stay a while! So, of course I checked out the local competition (see next photos) in case I need to work while we are there.

Massage Therapy competition!

And another...

Ummm, no... these will NOT be my rates! hehe

Long Caye

After Caye Caulker, we sailed back to the city so Betty and Doug could get some parts and supplies for the boat and for the casita they are building on Long Caye, a remote island about 60 miles from the mainland where they own property. We spent most of a day in the city, and then on the island.  Long Caye is largely undeveloped, with one hotel that is currently being remodeled, the Calypso, and a Bed & Breakfast/Diving operation, Hurican.  There are also a couple other property owners, but not many.

I think Gilligan’s Island could have easily been shot here!  However, it was more than a 3 hour tour.  It took about 8 hours on the sailboat to get there from Belize City, and we arrived at night and didn’t get to see much. But, wow!  The next morning we were in awe of how beautiful it was. The water was crystal clear, and even though we were anchored in about 8 feet of water, it looked as if we could reach down just a few inches and touch the bottom.  The first thing we saw was a graceful ray swimming by, but we weren’t fast enough to capture it on camera.

There were several great places to snorkel off shore, but sadly we only got to explore one of them before storms began rolling in. I did get some nice underwater shots, including a lion fish and some bright blue and other colorful fishes. I cut my knee getting into the dinghy after a snorkeling session, and then was afraid to get back in the water later for fear of attracting Barracudas!

We spent a little time exploring the island and checking out Doug’s property.  Our last couple of days were cloudy and rainy. During one of the worst storms, our anchor began to drift and we almost crashed into a coral reef!  Thankfully, Brian saw it in time and we were able to move the boat to safety.

Long Caye

Long Caye Map

Bright blue fish swimming among the coral

Lion Fish -- this one can sting if you touch it.Aren't its feathery appendages beautiful?

Brain coral, a sponge, and various other underwater life forms

Doug's lot where he plans to build a tree house casita in the coconut grove

There were iguanas everywhere on the island. They are fed by the residents, but they always run away when you approach. These and hermit crabs were the most abundant wildlife on the land.

View from the island Welcome Center

Heading Home

To get back to the mainland on our last day we booked seats on the fast boat run by Hurican Diving . Instead of the 8 hours by sailboat, the fast boat would only take about 2 hours.  However, the bad storms and rough waters caused Hurican to cancel the 60 mile trip across the Caribbean Sea that day.  So we found ourselves stuck an extra day with no plans for food or lodging, since Betty and Doug had already dropped us off on the island and then went to move the sailboat to a safer harbor to ride out the winds and high ocean swells.

The island folks took care of us though.  Hurican let us use their phone and internet to notify family back home and to change our airline tickets, and also fed us lunch.  Then they helped us find lodging at the half-renovated hotel, The Calypso.  The rent was cheap, and there was no hot water or electricity, but there was a comfy bed and a breathtaking view from the room.  The hotel also fed us dinner along with the work crew there.

We left bright and early the next morning on the Hurican fast boat.  Waters were still rough and it was a harrowing ride!!  But we got back to Belize City all in one piece and had no further delays getting home.

What a trip!! We will never forget it!!  If you’ve made it this far, thank you for letting me share a little of this adventure with you!

Hurican

The Calypso Hotel

View from our room at the Calypso

Hurican Fast Boat. Jen and I are sitting on our suitcases waiting for the driver and other passengers to arrive

So, what convinced me that massaging the feet in a certain way (reflexology) can help relieve, say, a case of a mis-aligned spine, or even make your menstrual cramps disappear?

Well, it all started long ago when I learned to read, and then this habit I acquired of reading anything and everything I could get my hands on.  I have an inquiring mind, and I want to know… about everything.  Books are my Besties!!

At any given time you can find me reading about quantum physics, fractal geometry, black holes, quasars, herbal medicine, energy healing, anatomy and physiology, philosophy and religion, gardening, nutrition, cooking, homemade cosmetics, how to paint a watercolor, massage theory…  oh, and the novels!  Hundreds of them.  The list really just goes on and on.

And after all these years of reading such a variety of topics, I’ve started to see how everything in the world is connected, and just because at first glance you may think massage has nothing to do with quantum mechanics, well, I’m here to tell you it does.  Everything has something to do with everything. All these different topics put together are just one great big web of connected things that make up the world we live in.

And that’s how your body is too.  What’s your spine or your uterus got to do with your foot? EVERYTHING! It’s all connected.

The very same fluids that touch every cell of your pinky toe will eventually make their way up to touch every cell of your brain.  Complex networks of nerves extend from your brain to the most remote surfaces of your skin.  In addition to the hormones and nutrients your body sends around to every part, you also have energy circuits connecting it all, via clearly defined pathways.  This was recognized by the Chinese long ago, and Western medicine is now discovering the truth of it, too.

A premise of Reflexology is that illness in the body comes from blockages along the energy pathways, blockages which prevent your Mojo (or Chi or Qi or Life Energy…) from reaching the problem areas.  Reflexology’s goal is to relieve those blockages so that the body can get the Mojo back in, thus restoring health and vitality.

Reflexology also holds that the entire body and its organs can be mapped out on the foot (and other places too, like the hands and ears, but we’ll stick with the foot for now).  By stimulating specific reflex points on the foot body map, you can clear the congested Mojo and get things flowing smoothly again, and this will allow healing to occur as a natural result.

Reflex points on the foot

But you may or may not care about all this theoretic mumbo jumbo.  What you want to know is, does reflexology work? Does it really do what it says it can do? Well, I’ll just tell you about a couple of my personal experiences and let you make up your own mind.

Experience #1
I twisted my back out of alignment. A combination of too little sleep and too much work and turning the wrong way too fast, left me hurting from my neck down to my tail bone, but especially in my mid-back between the shoulder blades.

I tried stretching, and twisting to try to crack my back.  I had my sweetie rub my back.  I tried rolling around on a tennis ball.  Nothing gave me any relief.  Then I decided to try reflexology on myself.  Having been introduced to the basic techniques in massage school, I knew to look for sore spots in my foot.  And I knew that along the inner edge of the foot are the reflex points for the spine.  As expected, it was very sore there, especially just under the ball along the edge of my foot.

After I massaged the sore spot, and applied pressure, and twisted and stretched my foot as if I were twisting a spine, I felt the need to stretch my neck and shoulders.  When I did that, my back cracked, the muscles relaxed and my back pain was gone, gone, gone!  The reflex pressure point massage and “spinal twist” I had performed on my own foot seemed like the equivalent of a chiropractic adjustment to me.  I still felt a little sore the next morning, so I repeated the procedure, and got the exact same results. Haven’t had that same problem with my back again since!

Experience #2
Menstrual cramps. Need I say more?  Females empathize, males sympathize, but we all know this is a huge pain in the… well, you know.  Okay, so the reflex points for most of the reproductive system are just under the ankle bones on both sides of the foot, and also on the heel of the foot.  I felt for sore spots in these areas and found that there was one very tender spot under my outside ankle bone.  I pressed into and massaged the sore spot until the tenderness eased, and when that happened, the cramps were gone too. Just gone.  Easy peasy.

And so, people, I am here to confess that I am now a devoted believer.  I’ve been reading and self educating about the art of reflexology ever since, and I plan to be officially certified as a Reflexologist later this spring.

What do you think about Reflexology?  Are you a believer?

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SeaRhythms Massage in Charlottesville, VA welcomes a new partner

Charlottesville, VA – January 28, 2011- SeaRhythms Massage in Charlottesville, VA  is excited to welcome a new therapist partner, Emma Nicholson, CMT. Emma will be seeing clients at the SeaRhythms office at 415 Lexington Ave, Charlottesville, VA on Tuesdays and Wednesdays beginning February 1, 2011.  Owner and therapist, Tammy Dudley, CMT, will continue to see clients there on Mondays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays.

Emma and Tammy will be working together to make SeaRhythms the premier provider of therapeutic massage in the Charlottesville community. In addition to seeing private clients at their office, they are also available for outcall individual and couples massage, bringing to the home everything needed for the clients’ relaxation experience.

The two plan to actively seek opportunities to serve the wellness needs of the community.  SeaRhythms news and community events are reported at the SeaRhythms News Blog: http://MassageInCharlottesvilleVA.com.  A menu of services offered by Tammy and Emma is listed at http://SeaRhythms.com.

About Emma Nicholson, Certified Massage Therapist

Emma integrates Swedish, deep tissue, and trigger point therapies, among other techniques, into her massages to create a unique healing experience for each client. Emma is also a Reiki Master. She says, “While energy work is very subtle, it is very powerful and the effects last long after a session is over. It is truly the gift that keeps giving!” Read more about Emma at: http://SeaRhythms.com/emma_nicholson.php

About Tammy Dudley, Certified Massage Therapist

Tammy understands that her clients are all individuals with varying needs, and so she customizes each massage session for maximum therapeutic effect. She has developed a high level of technical skill in manual therapy, along with an intuitive, tactile understanding of the human body. After laying her hands on the client, she will often know right away exactly where they hurt and can focus her therapeutic work to relax the tissues, increase circulation, and promote healing in the areas that most need it, while also nurturing a relaxed state for the entire mind and body. Read more about Tammy at: http://searhythms.com/tammy_dudley.php

Contact Info:

Tammy Dudley, CMT
(434) 409-3817
tammy@searhythms.com

SeaRhythms Massage
415 Lexington Ave.
Charlottesville, VA 22902

Website: http://SeaRhythms.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/SeaRhythmsMassage
Twitter: @SeaRhythmsLLC

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