Thirty Minutes to Bliss

Once a week, I get a 30-minute massage. I emerge more relaxed and refreshed, my edges softened. Even when I can’t fully let go, I feel grateful for my skilled massage therapist gently tending to my body and mind.

I’ve been a semi-regular massage client since my mid-20s. My first professional massage brought me to relaxation so deep that only lying with my head between two speakers playing Pink Floyd had come close.

I always booked myself 90-minute treatments, or at least an hour. It took me a while to relax, I reasoned. Anything less was a waste of time. Since I became a massage therapist, most of my massage clients schedule 60 minutes, with 90 minutes coming in as second most popular.

A new client began seeing me weekly for half-hour treatments. I wondered if she was missing out. I thought maybe she’d benefit more from less frequent treatments that lasted longer. But she said she was getting what she was looking for.

Some changes in my own body led me to try 30-minute massages. I’m glad I did. My entire body looks forward to that time each week and knows how to utilize it.  It’s almost as if my internal perceptions understand the time allotted and my nervous system makes the very most of it. It’s easy to carve that time out of my week and stay committed to regular treatment.

A 30-minute treatment costs clients less time and money. For those who want longer treatments, I’m happy to provide. But when a client asks me whether a 30-minute treatment would be too short, a waste of time, I encourage them to try it.

You’ll be amazed how much you can experience in 30 minutes, and how much longer the benefits last.

By ja:User:KENPEI via Wikimedia Commons