Serenity Day Spa http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog Guiding your journey to relaxation and wellbeing. Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:41:22 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v= STRESS: What It Is, What To Do About It http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/10/36/ http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/10/36/#comments Tue, 04 Oct 2011 13:41:22 +0000 Jen http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/?p=36  

Cortisol overproduction converts our other hormones to cortisol to maintain the high levels. This results in a hormonal imbalance within the body. This triggers the body to fight back with the immune system. While this is going on, the immune system can not repair damage to our body’s DNA or function properly with digestion. Damage, illness, dis-ease and aging are the result.  
The conversion of other hormones to cortisol drops the level of good, happy hormones such as 
  • serotonin
  • estrogen
  • dopamine
  • testosterone
  • epinephrine 
  • and other hormones
An increase occurs in 
  • blood pressure
  • blood sugar
  • muscle readiness or tension 
  • breathing 

Instead of emergency use, this response is continuous, wearing on our systems and resulting in premature aging and poor immune system performance.

So what can we do about this?  
Balance our lives, and find stress relief in ways that are joyous and don’t feel like one more chore on our lists of things we MUST do.  Here are a few ideas to try:
  • Buy yourself a beautiful mug and a box of specialty tea to treat yourself to every day.  
  • Have soft, comfortable pajamas to wear while you’re at home in the evening.  
  • Light candles. 
  • Take leisurely baths and tend to yourself with care. 
  • Use your good china every day. and enjoy it.  
  • Take a moment each morning and each evening to marvel at the gift of the sunrise and the sunset.  
  • Remember what the moon and stars look like.  
  • Listen to the songbirds in the morning.  
  • Sing, really loudly, in your car…off-key if you must, but definitely loudly.  
  • Come to Zumba! to dance where there are no mirrors and feel your body move to the music.  
  • Appreciate the strength and beauty you possess.  
  • Schedule a massage: Human touch causes your body to produce and release all those good, happy hormones…n large quantities.  
  • Come meditate with us: Re-set your thoughts and learn to breathe again.  
  • Get a pedicure and actually LOVE your feet.  
  • Schedule a makeup consult: Bring out YOUR individual beauty and feel pretty.  
  • Believe all of the good things your friends tell you about yourself.  
  • Put yourself and your happiness first. 
  • Smile at a stranger and see what happens!  
  • Book a body scrub and find out that you CAN have smooth baby smooth skin again…all over!
Let us help guide your journey to wellbeing, because when we do, you’ll find 
  • your stress level is a lot lower
  • your happiness level skyrockets 
  • you get to enjoy — not endure — your life!

Hoping to see you soon,

Jennifer
]]> http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/10/36/feed/ 0 Those Symptoms: Are They From Illness…Or Something Else? http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/09/those-symptoms-are-they-from-illness%e2%80%a6or-something-else/ http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/09/those-symptoms-are-they-from-illness%e2%80%a6or-something-else/#comments Sun, 11 Sep 2011 13:32:43 +0000 Jen http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/?p=32 We are constantly inundated with information about illness and medications, but we often don’t stop to consider that some symptoms may not be about illness at all. Some are sneaky and can take us by surprise. Look over the following list of symptoms, and see which ones you tend to experience:

  • Back and shoulder stiffness and pain
  • muscle spasms
  • headache
  • blurry vision
  • diarrhea
  • stomachache
  • excessive eating or loss of appetite
  • IBS
  • insomnia
  • anger
  • nail biting
  • itching
  • dizziness
  • fatigue
  • feeling rushed
  • irregular menstruation
  • vaginal discharge
  • loss of or diminished sexual desire
  • loss of or reduced intensity in orgasms
  • rapid heart rate
  • anxiety
  • hyperventilation
  • grinding teeth
  • excessive sweating
  • acne
  • psoriasis
  • eczema and Herpes flare-ups
  • high blood pressure
  • frequent infection such as sinus, bronchial, yeast, urinary tract and/or kidney
  • slow wound healing

Do you know what they ALL share as a common cause? (Hint: It’s NOT an illness or disease.)

It’s stress.

We use the word stress for so many reasons. Wear and tear, genetic issues, waste accumulation, free radicals, rate of living (this doesn’t make sense — you need another phrase for it) caloric restriction, and conflicts with work, family, money, health, relationships, childhood trauma, fears, beliefs and values all contribute to our stress level. And stress levels affect our immune systems and our rate of aging. So, stress itself is not an illness, but a cause of it: 80% of chronic illness is due to stress.

Give this some thought, and read my next post to understand how it happens and what you can do about it.

Looking forward to seeing you soon -

Jennifer

]]> http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/09/those-symptoms-are-they-from-illness%e2%80%a6or-something-else/feed/ 0 A Dozen Years, a Thousand Memories and a Million Thanks http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/07/a-million-thanks/ http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/07/a-million-thanks/#comments Fri, 01 Jul 2011 07:17:53 +0000 Jen http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/?p=1 I’m so excited to be writing Serenity Day Spa’s very first blog post.  We’re so proud that Serenity was one of the first spas in our area to have a website, and even prouder to have just launched our beautiful new, more highly interactive site, coinciding with our 12-year anniversary.

The idea of Serenity was born in 1991, as I was completing my massage training. I dreamed of a place where people from all walks of life could come to relax and leave the cares of their regular busy lives behind for awhile. But I wanted this special place to be more. I wanted Serenity to be more than a place, but also a concept and a state of being. I wanted it to be somewhere that helped empower guests to take control of their health and wellbeing through nutrition, exercise, meditation and holistic practices that fit them individually, and that would become healthy, new lifestyle habits.

Serenity’s doors opened in 1999 with our core group of staff, and a selection of holistic spa services and classes that, even then, was the most progressive and diverse in Bucks County. Since then, we’ve outgrown our space and expanded twice, into the beautiful facility we now call home. Our menu of services has also expanded, to include:

  • our informed interpretation of traditional treatments from around the world
  • advanced skin care and anti-aging treatments
  • holistic detoxification
  • and a schedule of varied and interesting classes for the development of mind and body.

We also

  • hold engaging and relevant workshops
  • host special events each month, and
  • offer a variety of seasonal treatments to keep your experience with us fresh and new.

Our Unique Boutique has grown as well, offering

  • a variety of spa products
  • organic cotton clothing for adults
  • baby clothes
  • jewelry
  • housewares

We’re really proud of the nurturing environment we’ve created here at Serenity, and are excited about the new connections we’ll be able to keep with you through our new website. I hope you’ll take a few minutes to peruse our new site, and check out the user-friendly features and functionality. We put a lot of thought into designing it to help you make the most of your Serenity experience. For example:

  • Our Google Events Calendar will show you at a glance all the classes and events awaiting your participation at Serenity. See something that strikes your interest? Just click on the event listing for a full description. Then use Google’s interactive features to add the event to your personal calendar or to share with friends.
  • Our Specials page lets you know of any new or featured services for each month and season, so you can visit any time of day that’s convenient for you to figure out which ones you’d like to take advantage of. Full descriptions of all services are given, but as always, please call us if you have questions or would like help deciding on a service. Just because we’ve moved into the 21st century doesn’t mean we’ve forgotten the pleasure of personal service.

It has been a pleasure and a privilege to provide our community with the quality-enriching experience that is Serenity, and as you can see, we’ve geared up to improve on that experience in the future.

I’m so looking forward to keeping in touch with you through this blog, and hope that it will provide you with interesting, fun and useful information.  As I write, I like to think we’ll share a cup of tea on both sides of our computers; me on my side, letting you know what’s new and giving you timely tips and information, you on your side, learning something that makes your day just that much better.

Please remember that this blog, like all our relationships at Serenity, is a two-way conversation. I invite you to use the comment feature to express your interests, what you’d like to see Serenity add to our offerings, and to contribute your own knowledge to the conversation. I welcome your participation, and will look forward to hearing from you.

Until then, I’m pleased to continue helping guide your journey to wellbeing.

Jennifer

]]> http://serenity-dayspa.com/blog/2011/07/a-million-thanks/feed/ 3