By Paola Bassanese
I should be so lucky, lucky, lucky, lucky… And indeed I am lucky because I had the privilege of experiencing Ben Barnett’s Hydrotherm massage.
And let me tell you, he got the thumbs up from Kylie – when it comes to massage she knows which one is truly “Wow”. But enough of the Kylie Minogue puns, let’s get down to business: I booked a massage with Ben at triyoga Chelsea and he explained his unique approach using a heated water pillow and combining guided meditation and visualisation, remedial and holistic massage, myofascial release and Reiki healing.
Pros and Cons of Having Celebrity Clients
My US colleagues mostly agreed that having celebrity clients did not make a huge difference to their practice: these therapists treated celebrities just like any other client, and having a celebrity on their books did not necessarily cause an influx of new clients.
None of my American colleagues was proactively looking for celebrity clients and those who were treating famous clients did so because of word of mouth or because they worked at a spa/resort where you get a mix of different people at all levels. In fact, hotels, spas and holiday resorts are frequented by actors, musicians, dancers etc so for a massage therapist this type of venue is probably the best option for meeting celebrities.
Of course asking for an endorsement for a good massage is common practice for massage therapist. Getting a celebrity endorsement is simply more bureaucratic but colleagues agreed it was more a “nice to have” than a “must have”.
About Hydrotherm Massage
16 years of experience show in Ben’s every movement and gesture: from the way he worked on my scoliotic back to the approach he took to loosen up my stiff joints, expertise and confidence simply shone through.
Ben talked me through a guided meditation while working on my sore muscles and while my body wobbled and rocked fully supported over the heated water bed.1 He was spot on in matching the right visualisation message to each body part: for example, when working on my arms he was talking about giving and receiving, letting go and opening up.
He also reminded me of staying in the present: during a massage you simply exist, you breathe in and out, you don’t need to run anywhere, impress anyone or think about anything. You are a body on a massage table and this should be celebrated.
While giving me some Reiki healing on my forehead, I could see a nice purple light behind my eyelids which symbolises our spiritual side. When rushing around going from client to client, meeting to meeting, place to place, our ego and our rational mind tend to prevail and other dimensions like our spirituality may suffer. Focusing on the present moment is the best way to exist because it is such a liberating experience to be free from stress, anger, anxiety and worry.
On request, Ben can record the personalised guided meditation to listen back at home, at work or on the train (not while driving or operating heavy machinery please!) to go back into that lovely state of relaxation you achieved during his massage sessions.
I literally floated like a happy cloud from Ben’s session feeling reconnected with myself, the Universe and fellow human beings. I am deeply grateful to Ben for his fantastic healing abilities.
You can listen to sample guided meditations from Ben on his Facebook page
Follow Ben Barnett on twitter: @thedarkhealer
If you are a massage therapist and you are interested in using it, check out http://www.hydrotherm.co.uk/ Ben is also a Hydrotherm trainer and instructed many spa and massage therapists.