If you like yoga, you are going to love Ockenden Manor’s Chakra Wellbeing treatment, where even the background music has rhythmic significance, as Head Therapist, Georgie Hales explains …

What exactly is Chakra Wellbeing?

The treatments starts with a consultation specifically designed for the treatment to tell us about the client’s lifestyle and health.  We then prescribe the best oils to use and blend them.  The treatment itself begins with a foot scrub followed by reflexology on the hands, feet and scalp.  We then apply a full body scrub, and guests shower before having a full body massage focusing on chakra points, marma points and the lymphatic system and using heated poultices filled with Himalayan sea salt, lavender and marigold.  After that we work on a face therapy using the same theories of chakra and marma points, and finish by pouring a scented oil over the scalp using a shirodhara bowl, completed with a head massage.

Where does it come from?

The founder of the ilā brand who designed the treatment, works with yogic science and chakra points which have been around for thousands of years and have their roots in India.  It operates on the principle that only one third of our being is physical and a large part is subtle energy, so this treatment is designed to bring healing to those subtle energy fields of a person through the physical body, via the lymphatic system and marma massage.

What is it supposed to do?

It is our introduction to chakras and the ilā spa concept.  It looks at energy fields and re-balancing them after the strains of everyday life - It is simply very relaxing and restorative in all its different elements - for example, the Himalayan salt emits negative ions which counter the positive ions the body picks up from electrical appliances in order to balance the body, and we use the purest essential oils which have vibrational energy that resonates with the body on a subtle level.

Is there anything you do to enhance the effectiveness of the treatment?

Chakras resonate to different sounds, so we do the massage in time with an ilā CD which features the singing of the brand’s founder.  We also use heated beds for the treatment to make guests more comfortable, all oils are warmed, and after the treatment we also recommend home care products to suit the client.  We also offer a Couples Connect treatment which is similar to Chakra Wellbeing but designed to help bring couples together.

Is there anything you recommend clients to do pre or post-treatment to get the most out of it?

Try to enter the treatment with as little stress as possible - don’t rush into it after work, have a little time in the spa, and drink lots of water afterwards.

Is there anyone you particularly recommend the treatment for?

It is particularly good for fatigue, insomnia, headaches and anyone with a very active lifestyle or who is interested in chakras and yogic science as there are definitely spiritual elements to it.

Is there anyone who shouldn’t have this treatment and why?

It isn’t really suitable for anyone who is pregnant as you lie on your stomach and the products can be problematic.  It is also unsuitable for anyone having chemotherapy or with burns, sores or contagious skin conditions.

To visit Ockenden Manor go to Spabreaks.com or contact the team on 0800 043 6600.