MASSAGE: SXSW EDITION

Did you know that you can receive a massage while listening to literally any kind of music?

At Mantis, your massage is all about you.  But did you know that? I mean really know that?  There are tons of ways to customize your massage. We want your session to be as unique as you are.  

STARTING WITH:  THE MUSIC

Each of our therapists has her own personal style, and that will probably be reflected in the music that she chooses for your session.  But there’s the key, the music is a choice. At Mantis, we don’t impose music on our therapists, they get to choose it. As therapists, sometimes we remember to ask you about your music preference, and sometimes we don’t.  As a client, you might not even have a music preference, and making too many choices before your session can start to feel like work - we DEFINITELY don’t want that. But maybe you do have a music preference. Maybe you just came from a fantastic SXSW jam session from this AMAZING new artist that you just discovered via your new best friend that you just met at the Westworld interactive.  If it can be found on Spotify, then it can be played during your massage session. But also! If for some reason it can’t be found on Spotify, but it has found its way onto your iphone, you’re in luck. Our sound systems are equipped to hook up to your phone too! (*apple products only*) Volume is also totally customizable. Some clients have even been known to choose no music at all, which is totally allowed!

TO HEAT, OR NOT TO HEAT, THAT IS THE QUESTION...

I heard once that in every room with at least 3 people in it, statistically you will find that ⅓ of the people are too cold, ⅓ are too hot, and ⅓ are just right.  It’s the story of Goldilocks and indoor climate control. The great thing about your massage session is that in this case, you are in charge. We’ve got heating pads on every massage table, and all have multiple heat settings.  We’ve also got warm, cozy blankets and optional hot towels. If heat just isn’t your thing, we also have fans in every room. Basically, no matter where you fall on the super scientific Goldilocks Heat Spectrum, we’ve got you covered.  

UM...WHAT’S GOING ON WITH YOUR BODY?

Sometimes, your whole body hurts.  That’s why you came in for a massage, amirite?  But sometimes, your body feels pretty great. Except for that one thing, which hurts like an evil demon of tension has gotten a hold of this one part of your body and just won’t let go.  (Is it possible to just chop off a chunk of my shoulder so I can go about my day?) Basically, we can spend your session giving an even balance of attention to your whole body, or, we can delve into your problem areas and exorcise the demon.  However we spend the focus of your session is totally up to you.

And on that note, it’s Spring!  Which means everything is, well, blooming.  If you are an allergy sufferer and just don’t want to spend any time with your face down, that’s ok!  Or maybe you’d rather spend all of the time with your face down to get your drainage going. Don't worry, we have tissues!  Just let us know what works for you and we’ll get you set up so you’re nice and cozy.  We can also change out our bolsters for pillows or set you up in side lying position. If you’ve got a bun in the oven, let us know when booking and we can make sure that a super qualified prenatal therapist sets you up with the level of bolstering that you need to keep you and your baby-to-be comfy and supported.    

UNDER PRESSURE...do wap, do do do do do (I’m not a musician, ok?)

Here at Mantis, we specialize in Deep Tissue.  But that doesn’t mean that’s the only thing we know how to do.  Maybe you usually like deeper pressure, but this week you’re recovering from all the hard work you’ve been doing festival hopping.  We can adjust accordingly and give you a nice relaxing massage to bring you back to yourself again.  Or maybe all that head-banging has beckoned the afore mentioned demon.  We've got the leverage to push it back out.  

This is one of the most important parts of the massage to customize.  Pressure is totally subjective, and sometimes different areas of the body need to be addressed differently.  I usually offer my clients a menu of pressure choices that go in order of intensity from Light to Medium to Firm to Deep.  Let us know what you like and what you don’t.

ESSENTIAL OILS

Soothing Lavender.  Peppy Peppermint. Some people totally dig essential oils.  Aromatherapy can be a powerful tool to alleviate stress. Research has even shown that intensive sniffing of lavender oils can help with some of the symptoms of PMS.  However great some people find essential oils to be, some people just don’t like them. Hormones can have a startling effect on your senses and if you’re pregnant, ovulating, or experiencing menopause, you can be super sensitive to strong smells.  We want you to smell nice..things. We want you to smell the things you want to smell and not smell the things you don’t. So let us know what’s going on in that ol' olfactory factory of yours.

COMMUNICATION

I've mentioned this before, but I think it's worth sounding like a broken record.  Eyes may be the window into the soul, but straight up verbal communication is like a breezy open doorway.  If you tell us about your individual needs, we will do our best to deliver.  But if you never tell us, we'll never know.  This is your therapy session.  Let it be as therapeutic for you as it possibly can be.