My Life Abroad: The Chiangmai Chronicles - Vol 1 _ Thai Massages and Self-Love

Hello, hello, beautiful Steemian!

I hope you are having a glorious day thus far! Just being alive, and able to be here on the Internet right now is already so much to be grateful for. Thank you for stopping by to share some of your valuable time with me!

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Since starting my blog here on Steemit, I have spent a lot of time reflecting on my past life back in the USA, and my journey to getting where I am today. Because of all that reflecting, I’ve realized just how much has changed over the past few years, and how many things in my current life I often take for granted. Many of my day-to-day experiences, which were once so amazing and unbelievable to me, have now become so “normal” to me. But they are actually so vastly different than my life back in the USA, and I want to take some time to reflect and appreciate these aspects of my current life.

Also, one one of my goals for this blog is to share more of my life here in Chiangmai with my family and friends who live elsewhere, all over the globe, so I’ve decided to start a new “series” of blogs, to share some of the stories and journeys I experience in my daily life, here in Chiangmai, Thailand.

So in this first volume of “The Chiangmai Chronicles” I will be discussing the healing powers of massage and body work.

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These past couple of weeks have been pretty go-go-go. Me and my partner @yinyangmichael travelled from the Thai island paradise of Koh Phangan to the busy hustle-and-bustle of Bangkok, and then back to our home here in Chiangmai, where we have been away for 3 months. So when we did finally make it back home, it wasn’t really full of those “home sweet home” vibes. For me, it was more like a slap in the face wake up call to the realization that there was lots of work to be done before it would feel like home again.

It’s not that the house was incredibly dirty or destroyed.. Things were out of place, yes, and things needed to be cleaned and reorganized, yes, but mostly it was just this feeling that there were so many different people’s energies circling and moving around the house and it did not feel like home. While we were gone, we had 7 different people subleasing the 3 different rooms in the house, all at different times. So me and Michael both felt some chaotic energy all around the house for a few days while we settled back in. It took days to clean and reorganize things, throw lots of things away that had been left by the previous tenants, do lots and lots of laundry, and decorate and settle into our new bedrooms. Then I spent lots of time burning sage and incense and Palo Santo to clear out the old stagnant energy, and to make space for, and call in light beings and guardians and spirit guides to watch over us and the space. Finally, after about 5 days or so, it felt like home again.

_{Our home, The Lighthouse, here in Chiangmai}

But from all of that hard work, we also worked up an abundance of sore muscles in our feet, legs, backs, and all over! Thankfully, living in Thailand gives us the opportunity to get a full body massage at essentially any time of the day, for less than $10.

Before moving to Thailand, I had never had a massage, apart from friends and lovers rubbing my back a few times throughout my life. But a professional massage?! It was so far from my reality that I never even thought to want one!

In fact, on my first visit to Thailand 5 years ago, once we had finally arrived into Bangkok and dropped our things at the hotel, we went for a little stroll in the city to find dinner. While walking we came upon many massage parlors and my friends stopped and suggested we get a foot massage. I remember not having a strong desire to get one, and just wanting to go get dinner. But since my friends insisted, we all sat down and 4 lovely Thai women began rubbing our feet.

And holy shit!!!

It was INCREDIBLE! With each and every touch I was healed more and more. I didn’t realize how much pain my feet and calves were in until she began relieving me of some of that pain and pressure. I was transported away from the stresses of travel (and the stress of having lost my luggage) and transported to a state of pure bliss.

I think one of the best parts of a foot or leg massage is when they complete the first leg, and are moving onto the second leg. In those few moments in between, you can fully feel how much difference there is between the two, and how much healing and relaxation has been created in the first leg. Plus, you can relax even deeper into the knowing that all the magic that just happened on leg 1 gets to happen AGAIN on leg 2!

They used a cooling balm on our calves, and put so much loving energy into each little muscle and every individual toe. And all for only $5. I can’t think of a better way to spend my money.

That was the moment my relationship with massage and bodywork changed. The moment I came to realize the full power and healing potential in massages.

So this past week, after working our butts off to get the house back into a state of “home”, we treated ourselves to another massage, and this time, a full body Thai massage.

What is a Traditional Thai Massage?

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In a Traditional Thai massage, you begin lying on your back, and they begin with your feet and legs. Spending about 15 minutes on each leg; the calves, thighs, hips, ankles, feet, toes, and even buttocks. They also move your legs, releasing tension in the hip sockets and physically stretching and folding and squishing your body into all sorts of shapes. Then they move up to your hands and arms; the forearms, biceps, armpits, the palms, the wrists, and each finger. You then flip onto your front side, where they massage the backs of your legs and butt and continue to squish and squeeze you in all sorts of delightful ways. As well as massaging your upper and lower back and shoulders.

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The massage continues with you flipping back around, and laying down onto a pillow on the therapists lap. From this position they finish by massaging your neck and upper back and shoulders. Your hairline and temples and often a small face and head massage too.

Finally you are asked to sit up, and they use their feet and entire bodies to bend and fold and crack your spine and back in ways you didn’t know where possible. And finally, the massage finishes, and you’ve hopefully entered into a state of peace and relaxation beyond your wildest dreams.

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Once you’ve dressed and returned to the lobby, there is almost always a warm cup of tea waiting for you to help replenish and hydrate you, and back out into the world you go.

Typical prices for a Thai massage are around 300-400 baht in many places in Thailand (Bangkok, the islands), but here in Chiang mai, you can get a top quality massage for only 200 baht ($6.23 USD).

Not all massage therapists or massage parlors are made equal though,

and I have walked away from a massage feeling worse. There are also times I’ve went for a massage and the therapist barely noticed me while the massage was going on. Spending the majority of the time talking to the other employees, simply going through the motions and barely noticing when I call out in pain or squirm away under her hands.

So before you go, it might be worth it to check out Google reviews, or get a recommendation from a friend.

My recommendation: If you find yourself in Chiangmai, I HIGHLY, HIGHLY, HIGHLY recommend checking out Somphet Massage on the East side of the moat. Each of the therapists there are true healers and they all receive very good training. The facility is absolutely beautiful and it has a very nice energy. There is always relaxing music, professional therapists, and I’ve walked away each time happy to support their business. If you’re here in Chiangmai, TREAT YO SELF!

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I know that in many other parts of the world massages are not so easy to come by. They can be incredibly expensive, and at most places you need to plan ahead and set up an appointment, unlike in Chiangmai where you can just walk in to one of the hundreds of shops all around the city.

A typical massage in America is around $50-$100, or maybe $30-$40 if you get a coupon or discount code through Groupon or something. But this is still much more expensive than here in Thailand.

But when you really think about what you’re paying for, you may realize that it is totally worth it! Treating yourself to something as lovely and healing as a massage is a way to tell the Universe that YOU ARE WORTH IT! And YOU ARE! Massages are a great way to show yourself some self-love, which is something we ALL need more of.

Sadly, in today’s society, so many people are letting self-love fall to the wayside. But creating more love for yourself -- more peace, more relaxation, less stress, less discomfort --this is one of the most efficient ways to create more joy, more happiness, and more space and time in your life to show OTHERS more love too. We cannot truly help anyone else until we help ourselves. Just as we cannot truly love another until we love ourselves. This is the importance of self-love.

While $40-$60 may be a lot of money for you, I am willing to bet that most of us have spent that amount of money out on a night out with friends, or a night out for dinner and a movie, or maybe even on a single pair of pants! So if that is the case, I suggest you instead start treating yourself to one luxurious massage day per month. Something to look forward to. Something you can treat YOURSELF to for all the hard work you do day in and day out. Life is meant to be JOYFUL, and this is one simple way to create more joy in your life. And you absolutely deserve it.

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Or, you can spend time giving YOURSELF a massage. Lighting a candle in your bedroom after an evening shower, and taking some time to lovingly moisturize and massage some coconut oil or lotion onto your skin. Pausing in places that feel really juicy or like they need extra love.

Or do a massage-trade with a loved one or friend. Set the timer for 30 minutes and take turns giving each other a nice, loving massage. You may find that the giving is just as great at the receiving! Or if you have multiple friends around, start a massage train or circle!

In a massage train, everyone wins!
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I will leave you with this interesting and eye-opening fact:

In the 1950s, psychologist Harry Harlow conducted an experiment using Rhesus monkeys to learn more about the importance of physical contact. In this experiment:

Harlow put rhesus monkey babies in a cage and left them alone for a little while (without their parents or peers around). Once he took them out of the cage, he confronted them with two 'mothers' in order for them to decide between the two. Both 'mothers' were actually not monkeys, but objects. The first one was made of wire, and was holding a bottle of milk. The second one consisted of a soft and fluffy material, but did not carry a bottle of milk. Which one would the little baby monkeys choose? Would they choose the milk-carrying mother - essential for their survival - or the cuddly fluffy mother?


To Harlow's amazement, the majority of the monkey babies chose the fluffy mother. Apparently, the cuddly feeling of body contact and closeness was more important to them than being fed with milk.
-Excerpt from https://www.neuronation.com/science/human-touch-neglected-feeling

The take away?

Physical contact is extremely important for our overall well-being and overall happiness. We are physical creatures. We are hard-wired to desire and yearn for physical touch. Not sexual touch, just simply TOUCH! And massages are a great way to get a good dose of this. Also, spending more time hugging your loved ones and holding hands is another great way.

So don’t forget to treat yourself to some form of physical touch. Don’t forget to spend time showing your friends and family some love by hugging them. Hug them even longer. Take a few breaths while in the embrace of the hug. Breathe together, and really FEEL each other’s presence. You have no idea how much you need it! And how much healing will be taking place in the process.

Don’t forget to give yourself LOVE. You ARE worth it. And you deserve to be happy!

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Thank you for taking the time to stop by my blog and check out this post! I appreciate your time and support.

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Until next time, I hope you have a beautiful and magical day! I love you!
🌈 Rachel

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