Getting Stoned
by Nina Gart

Stone Therapy… what is to be expected?

Lighting is soft …music tranquil and soothing. Your body ...comfortably nude, securely draped in a warm cotton sheet.

You begin your journey by reclining on a series of flat hot and cool stones, covered by a thick towel, that trace your spine. Your skin welcomes their therapeutic energy like ripples in a pool of water. Within minutes, your body and mind begin to trust and respond to the sensations. Your breathing slows, as oils are applied to your skin, the therapist, with hot stones in hands, rhythmically glides across your meridian lines. The waves of heat surprise your senses, quickly converting to bliss.

Starting at the feet, the stones move up your leg, along the side of the torso and up the arm, right to your fingertips, all in a delicate, non-stop ritual. Next, your chest and shoulders receive the same mindful practice. Large stones are cradled in your palms and coin-sized stones are lightly wedged between your toes. You completely lose track where the therapist’s hands end and the velvety-soft stones begin.

Heated chakra stones align and balance chief energy centres, sending their healing properties deep to your core. As the first half of the treatment concludes, your body feels there is more to come.

As you gently turn to rest upon your stomach, a large, flat hot stone is carefully placed on the cotton blanket, just above the tail bone supported by the sacrum. The sequence of synchronized movements follow the peaks and curves of your body, careful not to cross your spine or come in contact with bones and joints. Cool stones are placed on key areas to alleviate stress. More heated stones caress and massage every inch of your body with warmth and sedation. It’s as if Mother Nature is healing you with her own tender hands.

Earthly Delights of the Stone Therapy Experience

For many consumers, the contemporary form of this ancient healing art remains to be discovered, but for thousands of people, it is quickly becoming a treatment of choice in massage clinics and spas all across North America, Europe, and Asia.

The Stone Therapy process is a type of tai chi dance with stones, infusing vascular gymnastics with the thermo therapeutic application of heated and chilled stones, as well as breathing and meditation; all in kinetic motion. The journey often takes people by surprise.

Stone Therapy has gained its popularity since 1999, due to its efficiency and healing powers as well as increased marketing and media coverage. It is deemed a must-have on spa menus and the treatment draws rave reviews while delivering a variety of holistic benefits. That translates into a fledgling service with staying power.

Natural Healers

In today’s rapidly accelerated society, life begs for relief from stress, pain, and fatigue. Stone Therapy is touted as the essential marriage of body and energy work, not only repairing underlying problems but also relinquishing anxiety and tension.

There are two types of stones used in this therapy. Basalt stones are the givers of electromagnetic energy. They hold and transfer heat and electromagnetic energy from their core to the muscle tissue, nerves, and inner organs. Chilled marble stones cleanse, remove stress, and promote re-circulation and healing.

Physiologically Stone Therapy has been proven highly beneficial. Heated stones are reputed to leisurely initiate the parasympathetic nervous system, which slows down the heart rate, relaxes inner organs, increases blood flow, and boosts immune and lymphatic systems. At the same time, the cool marble stones are hard at work, lining the spine, caressing the neck and tucked under shoulders. They are swift to attend to problem areas, infusing healing energy in fresh, cleansing strokes.

Safe and Secure

Consumers should choose a Stone Therapist wisely, noting that the industry has grown too fast to monitor proper training and practice. Asking questions and checking for credentials from qualified schools will bring you peace of mind and allow you to fully appreciate the natural healing power within the stones as well as within yourself.

Clients are taken for a journey with stones. They discover dimensions and sensations within their physical bodies that they did not know existed. The results of the therapy can be truly profound or just greatly beneficial—to the degree of readiness. It truly is a treatment for our time.

For more information on Stone Therapy School programs and upcoming classes in Saskatchewan visit www.stonetherapyschool.com. For additional advice and information contact Nina Gart 604-459-8646 at nina@stonetherapyschool.com. Also see the colour display ad on page 19 of the 17.2 July/August issue of the WHOLifE Journal.