Therapeutic Warm Water Bodywork (Watsu® & WaterDance)
WATSU® is a therapeutic warm water massage combining eastern meridian and point work with myofascial release, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation and breathwork. In a warm pool, the person floats weightlessly (as our bodies are naturally buoyant, although some use small floats wrapped above the knees for added buoyancy). The head is supported by the therapist’s arm eyes and nose out of the water. The body is gently twisted, stretched and wafted through the water in graceful fluid movements as the therapist massages pressure points.
Tense areas release, the limbs become fluid and joints loosen. The ears are slightly submerged and the swishing sounds of the water lull the subject into a deep and tranquil state of relaxation. Long held tension patterns unwind, physical armoring lets go, and latent patterns of playful movement begin to emerge. One may be reminded of being in the womb, or feel jelly-fish like, limbs like tentacles moving through the water, reconnecting you to your free and playful nature.
As the session progresses, the lack of gravity and the warmth of the water induces/encourages flexibility, giving the body more freedom to explore its full range of motion. WATSU benefits orthopedic, neurological and rheumatological impairments. People who experience arthritis, back pain, brain injury, cerebral palsy, chronic pain, fibromyalgia, multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, post traumatic stress disorders, spinal cord injury, and stroke have reported benefits from WATSU sessions. Healing can happen at a psychosomatic level: trauma patterns can unwind and neuromuscular impulses may be awakened and re-patterned for a healthier sense of self. WATSU allows for a truely unique experience!
Many clients report that nothing else is as effective for relieving stress and pain, and improving their ability to move, not just in the water but throughout daily life.
IMMEDIATE BENEFITS WITH FIRST SESSION:
- Decreased pain
- Increased range of motion
- Increased muscle relaxation
- Decreased muscle spasm
- Decreased spasticity
LONG-TERM BENEFITS WITH MULTIPLE SESSIONS:
- Increased energy levels
- Decreased pain
- Improved sleep patterns
- Improved digestion
- Improved healing and immune system response
- Decreased anxiety
- Improved breathing patterns
COMMONLY TREATED CONDITIONS:
- Fibromyalgia
- Chronic Pain
- Stress
- Fatigue
- Arthritis
- Headaches
- Insomnia or poor sleep
- Hip, Knee & Shoulder Injuries
- Spinal Injuries
- Strokes (CVA)
- Lupus
- Muscle or Tissue Injuries or Strains
Ask about our DISCOUNTED PACKAGE RATES
Watsu® for Pregnancy
Pregnant women derive a special pleasure from Watsu, since the warm water relaxes lower back tension and soothes away pain and stiffness. No other therapy offers the profound relaxing weightlessness and comfort for both mother and child. The 95 degree water is safe and perfect for the unborn child. Watsu is used frequently, often weekly, during pregnancy, especially during the last trimester. Both mother and child experience a new freedom and expansion benefiting both. One women, 8 ½ months pregnant, described her experience,“I had not felt this relaxed in a long time” and “I felt free from my aches and pains” (Y.D.)
Further Reading…
“Water, Watsu and Wellness” – Massage and Bodywork (November 2005)
“O, Baby, Baby: Complementing Tradition Pregnancy Practices”, Well Magazine: Spring 2008
WaterDance
WaterDance (also known as WasserTanzen) is a dynamic movement therapy above and below water. With an awareness of breath and the use of nose clips, the practitioner slowly guides the client into the weightless, three-dimensionality of the underwater world where deeper levels of freedom and therapeutic release become possible. Extensions, stretches, flexions, dolphin-like movements and snake-like rhythms release not only on the physical level, but allow the deepest states of relaxation and meditation to be experienced, sometimes even returning us to memories of the womb. The dive reflex activates and the breath and heart rate slow down. It is a profound therapy, in which time and space lose their meaning. Life and being become a flow. Regression often occurs in which wounds from the past can be effortlessly processed. WaterDance offers us, on the one hand, a strong and powerful therapeutic instrument, and on the other hand, a form of energy work and bodywork. Play, surrender, flow and harmony all combine in a unique manner in the warm water.