Pamper Day

It is 11 May and I am up early. Together with four other masseurs we are making the final preparations for our Pamper Day at the Business Center on Stephensonstraat in Zoetermeer. Visitors can enjoy a variety of massages in a warm, homely atmosphere. We create a relaxing setting with coffee, tea, cake and other treats.

The afternoon before a colleague and I prepare the massage room. We want to create inviting spaces for four massage tables and a massage chair. We will be treating our visitors in the same room, using several privacy screens to provide as much privacy as possible. A little later, everything is ready, including our small gifts for the visitors and we leave the room feeling satisfied.

On Pamper Day the weather is beautiful, with the sun streaming into our massage room. Today people having been able to register in advance, each massage therapist will provide an average of 13 massages, and we hope to make many people happy. Our visitors can choose from various types of massage, including a back massage, foot or hand massage, energy massage or chair massage. Some have even booked several massages, as this is a perfect opportunity to try them out. And with the help of a digital schedule anyone who wishes can also have massages one after another.

The massage day runs like clockwork and is a tremendous success, accompanied by some wonderful comments: ‘I can feel that I am calm again’, ‘I loved it’, ‘I still have to cook for a large group later, but my body feels so wonderfully sleepy now’, ‘Wow,’ one woman says as she turns her head from side to side, ‘my neck feels the way it should again’, and even, ‘When are you going to do this again?’

And although today’s massages are relatively short everyone still has the opportunity to share their story. There is a man who has only recently lost his partner; a woman who is here with her son and says she will ‘definitely continue with this’; a young adult woman dealing with many major changes in her life all at once; someone who encouraged five other people to come along because she felt they could really benefit from a massage; and a woman who cannot lie down or stand for very long and asks for an energy treatment. Afterwards, she tells me that she experienced every movement intensely and was able to manage the entire treatment. I can also immediately tell from someone’s muscles when I am working with an athlete, and I treat a former triathlete who has never had a massage before. ‘Yes, it really feels very warm on the muscles, and it feels good,’ he tells me.

Later that afternoon I get into my car feeling fulfilled and notice a missed call. Someone with cancer who has been admitted to a nursing home is trying to get in touch. And so, after this Pamper Day, I turn my attention once again to my speciality as an oncology masseur (www.cares4cancer.nl).

Author: Paula Beekhuizen Certified oncology masseur, member of the 'Netwerk Massage bij Kanker' Quality Register | Certified NGS relaxation masseur | Qualified social worker