Indigo kids
Indigo kids
a ceremony with story music making fire and toasting marshmallows.
6 October 4-6 pm
£20 per family
Sound Healing
Each Full Moon at Indigo Spring
7-8pm
£15 each
maximum 8 participants
Book by emailing. [email protected]
Next dates in 2024;
Thursday 17th October
Friday 15th Novemebr
Sunday 15th December ( including Yule Ceremony and celebration) £25
A relaxing meditative session using breathing techniques, crystal singing bowls and huge planetary gongs, combined with rhythmic percussion. Participants sit or lie on a yoga mat, whilst the sounds wash over them. This affects neurology, physiology and psychology. It can help to shift physical, mental and emotional blocks.
1-1 sessions or family and friends private bookings available.
Why are we feeling this great when singing together for the EUROs?
It’s Coming Home!!
We’re all singing it, along with Football’s coming home again, and Sweet Caroline. But have you ever wondered why it feels so good?
Singing together has long been a unifying force for communities and groups to show allegiance to their cause, be it religious, sporting, or celebrating. When we sing we create vibrations both within our bodies and out to others. By singing together in unison, the vibrations we create “attune” to each other. (This is why its quite difficult to sing out of tune in a group) The vibrations align and the resultant effect is magnified. By vibrating at the same wavelength we feel kinship towards eachother and our sense of belonging and safety increases. This gives us the tingle down the spine feeling.
On top of this the type of songs often sung at football matches have catchy hooks and simple words, often to familiar tunes. This increases the participation and desire to join in.
Lastly the long drawn out vowel sounds encourages vibrations with in different parts of the body. So the “Oh” sound in the word home, resonates in the abdomen area. This is where feelings of nurture, relationships, wellbeing and pleasure are shown. The a sound in England, which is sustained, vibrates in the throat area, and represents communication and sharing of experience.
All these things, in addition to the sense of relief that lockdown is ending and we can be together again, contribute to us feeling great.
Enjoy the match. Come on England!
A big thanks to CD who emailed some great feedback today. I’m so pleased I can help. For those too far away for a hands on massage I also do FaceTime / zoom consultations and treatments
“Well since Tuesday last my feet have felt more comfortable than they have done in years. I have walked in bare feet with no pain or feeling I am on a golf ball which has happened often before.
My ankles have not shown sign of any swelling, although it is a wee bit cooler I would have expected to see some if I have been sitting for a time.
So the Cambridge Dictionary gives the following definition:
Thank you; I would like more please.
Guest review
A big thanks to CD who emailed some great feedback today. I’m so pleased I can help. For those too far away for a hands on massage I also do FaceTime / zoom consultations and treatments
“Well since Tuesday last my feet have felt more comfortable than they have done in years. I have walked in bare feet with no pain or feeling I am on a golf ball which has happened often before.
My ankles have not shown sign of any swelling, although it is a wee bit cooler I would have expected to see some if I have been sitting for a time.
So the Cambridge Dictionary gives the following definition:
Thank you; I would like more please.
Risk Assessment for reopening
Indigo Spring Risk Assessment
13. July. 2020
1. Track and Trace data to be compiled and kept for 21 days:
Name, contact Number, date and time of arrival and departure.
Who they had contact with.
2. Premises:
Onsite social distancing: Clients to be collected from their cars in car park. They will be brought in the side gate to minimise transmission to other householders.
Therapist to open and close doors and gates.
Remain at 2m for consultation outdoors or by phone prior to appointment
Arrival and departure times staggered with 30 minutes cleaning time between appointments.
Clients to only enter massage room and toilet.
3. Cleaning:
Deep clean premises prior to reopen.
Removal of unnecessary fabrics in rooms
Hot washes of towels and sheets between uses
Cleaning of therapy room and toilet between each client.
4. Hand-washing and Changing:
Client and therapist to both wash hands for minimum 20 seconds before and after treatments
Individual towels provided for drying.
Clothes to be placed on chair during treatment.
Chair disinfected between clients
5. Protecting clients and therapist on site.
Therapist and client will wear masks where possible
Therapist to wear a disposable apron.
Ask clients screening questions before appointment
(continuous cough, high temperature, loss of taste or smell)
Self Massage and stress relief
Dear Indigo Spring readers,
In this unusual time of Coronavirus lockdown. Many of our habits have changed. We will be sitting and standing and moving at different times and different ways. In the absense of Massage therapists to help you, I have created some videos to help you take care of yourself and your household. I hope they are helpful. Let me know if there are any areas you’d like me to focus on.
Stay safe love Morag
Find Your Happy
I thought I’d lost my happy. My happiness in simple things, my joy at the sun shining or raindrops down the windowpane. I truly believed that I would never feel that way again, free and at peace.
But this week a veil has lifted. The cloud that I hadn’t even realised was there, blew on by and let the sun shine once more. I still had moments of anxiety or uncertainty but now it was different. Let me tell you a little about it.
I used to be happy and carefree, even with money troubles and life’s ups and downs, I found great delight in my children and exploring the world with them. I grew up through being their mum. I was driven and determined and I found work that pushed these skills and made a difference in the world. I defined myself through these roles.
It all changed when I had an accident at work which left me with PTSD and anxiety. It doesn’t matter what caused it now, because it is about the changes within that I would like to reflect on.
My brain no longer worked and my thoughts could not be relied upon to be truthful. This is devastating ! It is difficult to make any decisions because the brain can’t sieve truth from opinion or the levels of danger. Everything could be life threatening and each noise, movement, change in light, could be about to kill me. My brain reacted as if it was about to die each time a change happened around me. This would happen at least 20 times a day. I retreated to my bed where I was safe. I needed help with everything, and couldnt sleep for the flashbacks.
Over the following years many things contributed to my recovery: Unconditional love from my family and close friends. Talking Therapies. CBT. EMDR. Medication. Yoga. Mindfulness.Massage. Time. Empathy for myself.
Without my family and friends I wouldn’t be here today. They rang and messaged and visited whenever they could, knowing that none of us knew if I’d get better, but loving me anyway. If there is one thing you can do for others, it’s Keep in touch. No-one knows what to do or say, it’s the fact you have made the connection that makes all the difference.
Go to the Doctor. It’s tough but combinations of treatment really do help. I didn’t want medication because I didnt want to believe I had a mental health problem. I self medicated with alcohol and codeine. It was only when my therapist pointed out that this was the wrong medication for my illness and that I was doing myself harm, that I tried, anti depressives. They make a real difference but don’t help alone.
Talking therapies were invaluable and although really hard work to do, I chose to view them as my work. I felt ashamed that I couldnt work and provide for my family. So this was something I could push myself to do. EMDR involved revisiting my most traumatic moment, over and over again, until the memory had less reaction to me. I would return home each week from therapy in tears and feeling worse. But over time the memory seemed more cloudy.
I was encouraged to return to Yoga which I had enjoyed previously. At first my teacher would collect me for class and I could only lay on the mat. Gradually I remembered how to breathe deeply and began mindfulness classes. This isn’t for everyone but the essence is to find an activity that makes you happy. It doesn’t matter what it is. Just do it when you can. Or encourage your friend or family member who may be struggling to return to or discover an activity they enjoy.
I felt confused that I could do an activity but not work, not realising that so much of my self worth was linked to my professional career. With a lot of persuading I took iceskating lessons which enabled me to bond with my step daughter. It was scary and loud, but I didn’t feel someone else would kill me. If I fell, then it was my own doing. Gradually I began to heal.
It took time before I could move onto thinking about what I would do next, and a long time before I dared to try something new. I took a massage course and began to help others once more. I had to learn to give empathy to myself.
Now I love being a massage therapist. I work part time and have to be really proactive about not working too hard ( or my anxiety attacks worsen).
I now pass on to others the trick of giving yourself some love. Think about someone or thing your give unconditional love to, your children or children in your family, your pets? If they make a mistake or need a hand, think how calmly you talk to them. Now focus on the part of you that isnt working so well right now. It might be something in your mind, or equally a physical probem like an injured knee. Talk to that bit of you as if they were your child/pet. Talk camly, allowing for change to happen. Loving unconditionally, whether it mends or not. This has made the biggest difference to me.
Finally, the veil lifting. I got closure. I received an apology that the incident at work had happened.
So if this story resonates with you or your loved ones, remember these few things that can make all the difference:
- Keep in touch with your family and friends, even if you don’t feel great.
- Go to the Doctor and take the help you can.
- Find an activity that makes you happy.
- Loving yourself and others unconditionally
Good luck with your journey. I hope you find your happy. It makes such a difference when you reframe the things that matter.
Love Morag
World Mental Health Day
As World Mental Health Day approaches, I am thinking about my own mental health, the journey I am on, and how massage has helped me.
Four years ago I was involved in a traumatic incident which changed me forever. I lost my mind, my career and my sense of self. I still have PTSD and am learning to adapt my life to making the best of my strengths. I still become hypervigilant when tired, in a crowd, when the light is bright, or there is an unfamiliar sound. I still find it hard to be around unpredictable people ( where people are drinking or dancing, children, crowds) or to be in airports and stations and supermarkets, but the difference is, Ive learnt strategies to calm myself and get to a safe place rather than to cry uncontrollably.
My mental health problems are now part of me. What has surprised me though, is how talking about my difficulties has helped those around me. The people who are also struggling begin to ask about support. The people who have had no contact with it, discover ways to help their friends and family.
I was helped by strong friendships, a good talking therapist, medication, yoga, massage and mindfulness. So now I’m holding the beacon for mental health awareness so that others may not feel so alone.
Here are some facts for you to consider:
Mental health problems affect 1:4 people in any given year.
- People who get the right combination of treatment, support and self care, get better.
- Mental health doesn’t improve with resilience.
How can I help myself?
– stay aware of your mental health
– nourish your social life
– try peer support
– make time for therapeutic activities
– look after your physical health
– contact a specialist organisation
What makes me feel relaxed?
- Having a massage
- Taking a bath
- Reading a book
- Listening to music
- Yoga
- Mindfulness meditation
- Walking in nature
- Caring for plants or animals
How does Massage help ?
- Massage reduces stress hormones, insulin and cortisol.
- Massage lowers blood pressure by improving blood and oxygen circulation
- Low blood pressure reduces depression, stress and anxiety
- Massage improves function of lymphatic system, reducing swelling and removing lactic acid from muscles
Give me a shout if you would like to book in for your stress relieving massage.
Making time to stretch
Whether you’re 17 or 70, when you come to see a massage therapist, the problem is usually muscle tension.
You may have over exercised, or exercised without a thorough warm up,
you may have pulled a muscle doing a movement you dont usually do, or when your body is under excess tension,
you may have been standing, sitting or walking without your posture being aligned, or
your stress levels may have increased and the potential energy has been stored within your muscles ( often neck and shoulders).
Massage helps to reduce the pain by soothing and stretching the muscles. A good massage therapist will spend time conducting an in depth consultation prior to treatment. This will include your medical history, your lifestyle, and habits. In addition to the physical therapy, I often provide ideas on how to adapt aspects of lifestyle to help alleviate these muscle strains in the future.
One of the most common ailment I see is pain around the shoulder blades ( trapezius and rhomboids).
This is common for many people due to sitting in a slouched position with shoulders forward. Think about this for a minute. …. yes that’s most of the time for lots of us. Activities such as sitting at a computer, using mobile technology devices, driving a car all typically see us in this position.
When our shoulders roll forward, our rhomboids stretch and cause pain. At the opposite side, our pectoral muscles contract.
In order to alleviate this pain, We can stretch our pectoral muscles which will allow our shoulders to sit more squarely and balanced.
Simple Pec stretches:
Stand in a doorway with one leg in front of the other.
Place your hands in the frame at right angles to your body.
Turn your hips away from one arm and then the other. Only stretch a little more than is comfortable. Hold for ten seconds each whilst breathing in and out. ( Don’t hold your breath).
I have found that most rehab exercises only work if we remember to keep doing them every day. This can be most effective if you choose a doorway that you see daily, say the bathroom or the bedroom. And every time you move through the doorway you stretch.
Good luck .
Lower back stretches.
The second most common difficulty that I see at Indigo Spring, is Lower back pain. This can stem from a number of sources. Weak core muscles, bending and lifting and poor posture, are just some of them. Whilst I recommend seeing a massage therapist to assess the specific problems, working on your core muscles will always help.
Here are a few to get you started. My favourite entry level strwetch for those of you who rarely strtch at all, is the Cat Cow . Here they call it Cat / Camel.
On hands and knees, align knees elow hips and hands below shoulders.
Breath in and look towards your knees, squeezing in your tummy and pelvic floor (the muscles used to stop you wetting or messing yourself ) and arching your back. Breath out and lift your chin to the sky.
Repeat these slowly , paying attention to you spine as it rocks back and forth.
Good luck.
What Id like you to take away from this article, is that you can help yourself alleviate pain by stretching. It can be simple and effective if done daily. MAKE TIME FOR YOURSELF @ INDIGO SPRING
Hope to see you again soon at Indigo Spring.
Remember if you are too far from our clinic, I do offer an online consultation service.