Pain: We’ve all had it. Some discomforts, like the kind from injury or illness, take us to our local “doc in a box” or family physician. However, many of the day-to-day or chronic aches and pains of life become something we—and our clients—deal with alone. Whether out of necessity or preference, the search for pain relief often brings people into wellness spaces.
Log in to view the full article
Pain: We’ve all had it. Some discomforts, like the kind from injury or illness, take us to our local “doc in a box” or family physician. However, many of the day-to-day or chronic aches and pains of life become something we—and our clients—deal with alone. Whether out of necessity or preference, the search for pain relief often brings people into wellness spaces.
From headaches and sore muscles to heartaches and miscellaneous pains that stretch deeper still, the soothing atmosphere of the spa beckons those who suffer. While not all conditions can be calmed or cured, many clients find relief from painful maladies within our walls. This has been the case for centuries; as time passes, new options for pain relief emerge and improve.
Manual therapies tend to take center stage for pain management. However, several subtle options for pain relief exist, many of which may be used alone or as an adjunct to any service or treatment.
1. Cannabinoids
As product ingredients go, cannabidiol (CBD) has had a lot of “buzz” around it for several years and is now firmly seeded into spa and wellness treatments where permitted. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), “Cannabis has been used for millennia as a pain-relieving substance. Evidence suggests that cannabinoids may prove useful in pain modulation by inhibiting neuronal transmission in pain pathways.”
The Fairmont Well & Being Spa in Scottsdale, Arizona, offers an array of CBD services including a CBD and Gemstone body treatment and facial, as well as a CBD Manicure and Pedicure. The Phoenician, also in Scottsdale, combines CBD oil and balm to its Relief Massage, along with cayenne and arnica to bring “soothing relief for the entire body.”
In 2019, the Elements Massage franchise added the CBD Herbal Ritual franchise-wide. “The intention of the CBD Herbal Ritual is to offer a simple, therapeutic and effective full-body massage service to our clients that also incorporates the wellness benefits of CBD,” says Eric Stephenson, Elements Massage chief wellness officer. “Our approach combines massage with CBD oil to help reduce pain and inflammation and calm the fight or flight stress response.”
Three years after Elements began offering this CBD treatment, Stephenson reports overwhelmingly positive feedback from guests. “It seems like CBD has a really potent effect for some clients, who have found pain relief that they haven’t gotten from other approaches,” he says.
2. Infrared Therapy
Ask any sun worshipper why they love soaking in rays, and they will likely tell you it makes them feel better. This practice may make estheticians shudder, but approximately half of the energy from the sun is made up of infrared rays which warm us—and those other heavenly bodies known as planets!
According to the National Library of Medicine, a number of painful conditions, including arthritis, back problems, trauma, injury to any part of the body, bursitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, fibromyalgia, neuropathy, sciatica, muscle strain and wounds, may all respond to infrared therapy. Infrared light has been linked to many other benefits, as well, including reducing sun damage and scars, improving joint health, preventing chronic and recurring cold sores, and relieving inflammation. All of those benefits may also have a side bonus of reducing pain.
Thankfully, infrared rays—both light and heat—are available without the accompanying sun exposure in a variety of wellness treatments. Infrared heat or light treatments may take place via a sauna, wrap, mat, bed or infrared device. It is often paired with hands-on treatments like massage before or after, and it can also serve as a stand-alone treatment.
3. Magnesium
The application of transdermal magnesium is not yet recommended by the NIH, but magnesium soaks and other magnesium-based products are touted for improving circulation and minimizing inflammation, joint pain, muscle tension and spasms, headaches, stress and fatigue. Perhaps this is the reason magnesium-infused pools are becoming popular in Australian homes, promoted as able to relieve muscle aches, reduce stress and promote health.
Similarly, spa and wellness businesses are including magnesium in various services. The Lodge at Woodloch offers the Restore Body Wrap, which includes magnesium, red marine algae, rosemary and juniper to help relieve tension and increase energy. The Fairmont Well & Being Spa in Scottsdale pairs magnesium, massage and hot towels to encourage the “detoxification and replenishing of commonly deficient magnesium levels in the body using heat-driven muscle repair.”
Certified massage therapist Peggy Murrell of El Cajon, California, specializes in pain relief. In addition to hands-on treatments, she provides a Magnesium Foot Soak for pain relief. As a bonus, the hands-free treatment is a part of Murrell’s own self-care, which helps preserve her body while giving her time to handle other business tasks and duties.
4. Sound Therapy
Eastern Vibrations, a sound therapy training company that partners with spas across the globe, describes sound therapy as being “used in healing rituals for the ease of physical illnesses, emotional restorations and spiritual awakening. The restorative vibrations have been proven to reset the body on a molecular level…” and may be utilized “for localized pain or any IBS challenges.”
Sound therapy can be both a stand-alone treatment, as it is at Remedé Spa at the St. Regis Doha in Qatar, or something to enjoy between services. At Ikalia Spa in Opatija, Croatia, guests can enjoy vibroacoustic sound therapy on relaxation loungers, some of which also feature chromotherapy (color therapy) and heat. Meanwhile, Kohler Waters Spa in Kohler, Wisconsin, blends topical and tonal therapies during the Vibrational Sound Treatment, which includes a full-body CBD oil application and a Himalayan singing bowl session.
As for how sound therapy can relieve pain, sound therapist Alexander Tuttle of Stokesdale, North Carolina, believes that pain occurs on multiple levels: physical, mental, emotional, energetic or spiritual. “The majority of pain we experience as humans resides in the emotional and energetic levels,” he says. Tuttle adds that his own personal healing journey overcoming years of chest pain, heart palpitations and “emotional frustration” after a huge loss taught him the most. He uses sound, energy work and a custom sound therapy table (that he designed) to help provide pain relief with many clients suffering from fibromyalgia, as well as chronic and acute moving pains with great success.
5. Grief Massage
As Tuttle points out, the pain our guests experience and seek relief from is not just physical. Although it’s true that all people will experience the pain of loss and grief at some point in their lives, the incidence of it seems higher since the pandemic. Enter grief massage, a specialized treatment helpful for those in need of something more supportive than standard Swedish or deep tissue techniques.
Space Coast Massage & Spa in Melbourne, Florida, describes grief massage as using “a gentle touch on the body areas most vulnerable to anxiety-induced tension. The belief is that touch is a form of emotional support that, like counseling, can also help reduce the emotional stress and depression that grieving people endure chronically.”
“Grief is not a response only to the death of a person or pet, but to any loss: home, business, finances, health, friendships, life changes,” adds Marelda Rodrigues, a grief massage educator and practitioner in Chicago. “Grief elicits the stress response, which can begin the cascade of stress hormones and inflammation. Pain can be a result of other unfavorable physiological activity, like a flareup of an existing condition.”
As in other treatments, a gentle grief massage can be enhanced by aromatherapy oils that are known for promoting relaxation and easing tension and anxiety.
While spas and resorts may not be a client’s primary resource for pain relief, they are places that clients visit and return to for their overall health and well-being. Finding ways to enhance or augment current pain relief options is a healthy choice for you and your guests.
A-to-Z Pain Relief
A guide to complementary pain relief therapies to consider exploring for your spa or wellness center.
- Acupuncture
- Biofeedback
- Cryotherapy
- Dry needling
- Energy work
- Float tanks
- Guided imagery
- Journaling
- Kinesio tape
- LED therapy
- Meditation and mindfulness
- Nutrition counseling
- Occupational therapy
- Physical therapy
- Reiki
- Sleep retreats
- Ultrasound
- Vitamins and supplements
- Hydrotherapy
- Exercise
- Yoga
Felicia Brown is a business, marketing and life coach for massage, spa and wellness professionals. She is the best-selling author of Creating Lifetime Clients: How to WOW Your Customers for Life and Free & Easy Ways to Promote Your Massage, Spa & Wellness Business. Brown is also a massage therapist, spa owner and entrepreneur.
