Hooked--Massage Again

by Valerie Gladstone — September 28, 2007

All I knew was that deep in my soul, body, and heart that it felt like time for another massage. It had been at least 3 weeks since the Roland Davis experience and I was beginning to feel entitled, like one of those pampered women who regularly get massages. I once thought that if I ever became very rich that my first indulgence would be to have a limousine and driver at my disposal (probably more a NYC kind of fantasy, since most of us don't have cars) but massage now tops my list. My reasoning: if I'm always relaxed from massage, I won't mind taking the subway at midnight, trudging through snowstorms, or walking 30 blocks in high heels.

I'd asked three friends for their recommendations--little did I know how many of them get massages--and now was ready for Tim Chambers, who Sylvie and her husband have been using for several years. He makes house visits but more commonly, his clients come to his beautiful new location in Little Italy called Sage Medispa (medispa is the name for spas that also do medical procedures) with anti-aging solutions. (Tim Chambers can be reached at: 646.465.1356. Price: $125 at Sage Medispa and $175 at your home. Sage Medispa, 133 Mulberry St., New York. 212.334.8213.)

Besides his tranquil chamber, the recently redone medispa boasts rooms for laser hair removal, hydrotherapy, and wrinkle reduction with lasers. It is owned and operated by the very lively Dr. Pushpa Chauhan, who has been a podiatrist and skin specialist for over 20 years. So, there you can become simply perfect all in one place. (They also offer medical pedicure, reflexology, dermabrasion and many other services--more later) And then drop into one of the great Italian restaurants in the neighborhood afterwards.

Soft-spoken and warm, Tim first trained in Swedish massage at the prestigious Swedish Institute (Roland is also a graduate), and then decided to add to his education by studying Reiki, Rolfing (see definitions below) and acupuncture. Thus, he brings more than one technique to bear when giving a massage. Surprisingly he started out in Washington D.C. as a jazz saxophonist. When he moved to New York, he found the music scene less than lively (not like it is today) and already interested in healing techniques, decided to become a massage therapist.

Tim's massage was quite as relaxing and soothing as the one I received from Roland - the main difference being that he employed some Reiki. After not vast experience, I've come to the conclusion that the success - if that's the word - of a massage lays not so much in the technique but in the massage therapist. Which figures, you can't help but feel something of who they are in their touch.

The Tui Na massage felt great but anonymous, then too, it is less than half the price of a massage from Tim or Roland. If I had the money, I'd always choose them, for their massages made my body feel realigned and stronger and I was altogether much calmer. Even the subway ride home didn't break the spell.

Reiki is a Japanese technique for stress reduction and relaxation that also promotes healing. It is administered by "laying on hands" and is based on the idea that an unseen "life force energy" flows through us and is what causes us to be alive. If one's "life force energy" is low, then we are more likely to get sick or feel stress, and if it is high, we are more capable of being happy and healthy

Rolfing is a system of soft tissue manipulation, similar to deep tissue massage that has as its objective realigning the body structurally and harmonizing its fundamental movement patterns in relation to gravity. Practitioners believe it enhances vitality and well being, and claim that after sessions, clients stand up straighter, gain in height, and that soft-tissue bodily asymmetries tend to disappear.