In this interview, Robin talks with Peggy Horan, a renowned expert with over 50 years of experience in Esalen®️ massage. Peggy highlights the significance of personal growth and continuous learning, both within and outside the field of massage. She also recounts her early days at Esalen and the transformative power of touch. She even touches on some of her trade secrets in this interview, including establishing healthy boundaries, preventing burnout, and prioritizing self-care.

The practice of taking a cold shower after using a far infrared sauna is gaining popularity, and for good reason. This seemingly uncomfortable ritual actually provides a host of health benefits that can significantly improve your overall wellbeing. In this post, we'll explore the science behind why taking a cold shower after using a far infrared sauna is beneficial and some of the advantages that you can expect to experience.

An hour in a float chamber is unequivocally different than an hour anywhere else. When all you have to do is breathe, time appears to pass more slowly. Of course, this is only perception because 60 minutes is a quantifiable slice of existence that “passes” regardless of the activity filling it.

As I stepped into the float tank, I felt a rush of elation as my body floated right on top of the water, something I’d not experienced before. The moment that I closed the door, I laid back in absolute darkness and only a millisecond had passed before I jolted up, panicking mildly at the feeling of free floating through space and the sensation of being completely unaffected by gravity. I gathered myself (and what little I could feel of my senses) and breathed into it. Okay, so I feel like I’m floating through space. I am on a giant rock floating in space after all, aren’t I? Reaffirming my safety, I accepted my sensations, and found that simply observing was just the ticket—I imagined myself among the cosmos, mirrored a million times by the light of stars from ancient futures and distant pasts. As it turns out, this would be the vision I would return to again and again in each float for years to come. 

I gently lifted his hand off the massage table and placed it in both of mine. I felt tears start to swell inside me.  His hands were those of my father's. I mean the same size, the same muscular and bone structure, his skin was smooth yet aging with the same strawberry blond hair on the back of his hand and knuckles of his fingers.  I wanted to just stare at his hands but instead found myself massaging the inside of them in the same way my father did to me as a small child to put me to sleep…the same way I lovingly touch and massage my three year-old son's hand to put him to sleep. That is the one thing my son connects deeply with to identify with his grandfather he has never known.  

Here's to a year of new discoveries, childlike wonder and gratitude for all the things that make us smile. If you still need a new year's resolution, borrow one from us!