Flashback 2015: Apothecanna’s THC infused Spa products

Where there's smoke there is fire and the cannabis cloud over Colorado appears to be lingering like smog on a otherwise clear day. Cannabis proponent Apothecanna has positioned itself beyond the pale, as an adjunct measure in pain management and only time will tell if they can remain straight enough to keep their wellness branding intact. I wrote…

Licensure and Portability: NCB and ITEC UK team up to create international massage credential

The National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork announced on March 14th, 2015 that they have partnered with ITEC, a British education company specializing in international credentialing. The goal is to facilitate 'portability' and 'standardization' for the massage profession. This partnership is similar to ISPA's Spa Certifications that have been available to members and non…

Absolute Values? Professionalism and manifestations of the individual

This is the first post of a four part series on professional development. The series will utilize the terms Massage Therapist, Masseur and Masseuse as a touchstone. Massage Therapy is a growing field of professional endeavor. As the last fifteen years have demonstrated, the creation of civic, secular infrastructure to consolidate and incorporate the profession,…

Boredom: What is it and how should we respond?

What is Boredom? Why would anyone other than someone who is bored be interested about the topic? Why write about it unless your creating solutions to a problem? Could boredom ever be healthy? Boredom is a feeling first and foremost. It lies at the root of many illnesses, so many in fact, that the modern…

Clearing the air: scent and spa

The human sense of smell is profound. Not that long ago, the olfactory system was subject to a very different cornacoupia than we have available to us today. We are bombarded with scent, be it thru perfumes in our toiletries, in our home cleaning products, while we window shop in stores or boutiques and even…

Salt Cave!

I was just doing some research on Cystic Fibrosis and came across this link from the UK. It's a website devoted to Salt Caves as a treatment option for various illnesses. Now I am not about to presume this is an effective treatment but Salt Caves did enter the Spa Industry about five years ago.…

Aura Cacia Scents of Balance: Muladhara

  Aura Cacia is currently running a polished marketing campaign for their new roll on aromatherapy line based on the 7 chakras. Scents of Balance has great tips and ideas on their Chakra Journey Blog Their rolls on appear to be reasonably priced but they are a few dollars more than I would have expected depending on the retailer,…

Caldrea Aromatherapeutic Housekeeping

I came across Caldrea by accident about eight years ago. I was shopping in Target and saw a shelf of clearance items with cleaning products. I got a sweet deal on a full size counter-top spray and refill. I believe I spent less than eight dollars for both. Since that time, I have come across…

Welcome Saxon-Heart: Spa and Wellness Charitable Organization!

    Saxon-Heart is a Charity based out of New York, NY. I took a few moments to ask some basic questions of their founder Heidi Burkhardt. You have partnered with ISPA. I noticed that Chef Pedro received a new suit as part of his makeover. How does this element of fashion relate to the…

Untangling the story behind the Doomsday Christian Cult that created a Massage Business to hide their activities

The Spa Industry and all of us associated with it, remind ourselves and the public that our brand of holistic thought is about the philosophy of medicine wherein all aspects of people’s needs, psychological, physical and social should be taken into account and seen as a whole. Science and Technology are what keeps Modernism within the…