In the winter when the temperatures begin to drop, it can be easy for us to unwittingly steer away from getting the required daily water intake, and this can have a direct impact on our general health and well-being. Did you know?
Symptoms of mild or moderate dehydration may include:
• Thirst
• Dry or sticky mouth or mucus membranes
• Reduced urination/peeing
• Dark yellow urine/pee
• Dry/flaky, cool, or itchy skin
• Headache
• Muscle cramps/spasms
• Digestive troubles
• Constipation
Symptoms of severe dehydration may include:
• Significantly reduced or absence of urination/peeing
• Having very dark yellow, red or brown urine/pee
• Very dry, flaky, burning or itching skin
• Feeling of dizziness or light-headedness
• Rapid or irregular heartbeat
• Rapid breathing
• Sunken eyes
• Sleepiness, lack of energy, confusion or irritability
• Fainting
If you have difficulty drinking your daily dose of water, try:
• Drinking 50% in the morning and 50% in the afternoon. (Avoid drinking during, 30 minutes before, or 2 hours after eating to reduce digestive upset.)
• Drink it warm. Even slightly increasing the temperature of your water before consuming can help those who tend to get cold after consuming water.
• Drinking other hot or cold beverages does not count! Other liquids contain solids or other nutrients that require water to digest. If you have issues with dehydration, particularly avoid diuretics such as tea, coffee, soda, chocolate, or anything else that contains caffeine, such as energy drinks.
• Add a hint of lemon, mint, or cucumber to make it more refreshing.
MINIMUM DAILY WATER GOAL:
Body Weight (lbs) ÷ 2 = Bare Minimum Ounces Required Daily
[A person weighing 200 lbs should drink a minimum of 100 ounces of pure water daily. Requirement increases during extremely hot or cold weather, illness, physical activity, or detoxification programs, etc.]
*All information provided herein is for educational purposes only and is not intended to diagnose, prescribe or cure. Use at the own discretion, and see your primary care provider as necessary.

In our 27 year history, we have seen a lot happen and we find that we have a whole lot to be especially grateful for. First we'd like to mention that it has been through thousands of outstanding clients like you that we feel we have been especially blessed. You have kept us going all this time. We've shared tears, laughter, and smiles. You've allowed us the great privilege of being part of your journey towards health and wellness. And in hard times many of you have been there to encourage and stand behind us. For all of this we could never express enough thanks! 

We are also humbled and absolutely grateful to God for our being in this profession for so long! The question is often posed to us, "don't your hands ever hurt?" The answer is "yes," from time to time our hands have hurt, which is likely true for any genuinely honest massage therapist. The average career length of a professional massage therapist is said to be between 5-7 years, and if you've ever given a pain relieving massage to anyone, you'll know that it's not easy work. Yet, even after all this time, we believe God has, and will continue to sustain us.  We can honestly say that we still love, and happily practice our work. He has indeed blessed, and we are so thankful to Him for this! 💕
And last but not least, we want to offer special thanks to our family! With five massage therapists in our midst, and a wealth of other family here to support us, we anticipate many more years of humbly serving others (at 85, Florence is still blessing others with her gifted hands, and sharing her experiential wisdom with us)!! 

WE HAVE A GIFT FOR YOU, TO SAY THANK YOU!!
To all our long-standing clients, for the next seven weeks (starting October 19 and ending December 11, 2020), we are offering $1.00 off for every year you have been with us!! Discount applies to any 60 or 90 minute massage service. Be sure to schedule soon to ensure your appointment time is reserved. Call 308-432-4558 or send us a message on Facebook, and be sure to mention the "DOLLAR FOR A YEAR DISCOUNT" when scheduling! 👍😁
NOTE: Some scheduling restrictions may apply; all appointments must be scheduled during regular business hours, and scheduling is subject to availability. Offer good towards the purchase of one massage per client; discount may not be applied to sessions for other family members, or with other specials or discounts. Terms subject to change without notice. Cash or check payment only (with valid ID). Discount is based on client intake history, for inactive clients some records are disposed of periodically; if you have proof of purchase for a previous date than our records indicate, we'll be happy to honor it (a marked receipt or official bank statement necessary). Remember active illness is contraindicated for massage therapy. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask.

Psychoneuroimmunoendocrinology — yes it's a mouthful!! More simply, it's the science of how the mind, nervous system, immune system, and endocrine system all interact and affect the health of the body.
You've probably heard the phrase, "as a man therefore thinks in his heart, so is he" -- the underlying principle in this case being the power of the mind over the physiology (the quote also having other applications as well). Years ago while doing some studies I came across a claim which said, "nine-tenths (9/10) of all disease begins in the mind," which appears to align with the aforementioned theory. But I wondered, "how is this possible?" Well, in a nutshell, and after much more reading I discovered, "the body's primary stress management system is the HPA axis. The HPA axis responds to physical and mental challenge to maintain homeostasis in part by controlling the body's cortisol level. Dysregulation of the HPA axis is implicated in numerous stress-related diseases, with evidence from meta-analyses indicating that different types/duration of stressors and unique personal variables can shape the HPA response" (https://bit.ly/2Fm5yDm). And otherwise noted, "the hypothalamus receives feelings from the amygdala. The hypothalamus then uses the endocrine system to convert feelings into emotions through powerful chemicals, called hormones" (https://bit.ly/3jvjytz). 🤓‼️
So what does this actually mean? It means that the power of the mind in thinking can have a significant impact on the production of hormones. The hormones affected can be almost anything, from the growth and repair hormones , the stress response hormones , and even the "destruction" or "death" hormones. How serious can this influence of human thought on the body get? Well, there are astounding stories of individuals, both women and men, who SO believed they were pregnant that they began to experience physical symptoms within the body, swollen bellies and even breast swelling, only to find out later that they were not actually pregnant (not surprising for the men in these scenarios). It is a condition called "pseudocyesis" (aka: false pregnancy). It stands to reason then, that the impact the mind and thoughts have on the body can be nothing short of extraordinary! 
If the above is true, think how much of an impact can be made by simply thinking, "I am fine and healthy," or the converse, "I am ill and dying". Whatever the thoughts may be, the hypothalamus, will cause the body to come into line with the thinking!! That's not just opinion, that is verified science speaking.
So the next time a negative thought comes to the mind, it may be especially beneficial to stop the thought in its tracks and think a positive thought instead!!  [IMPORTANT NOTE: This of course doesn't mean that if an individual is bitten by a deadly snake, they should simply think themselves well, (although it certainly wouldn't hurt, I'm sure)! So, in addition to positive thinking, reason also says to use common sense too. ]

They taught us in school about "emotional release", the potential for the body to elicit emotional response due to emotion having deep ties to physical pain. If one has ever been in a treatment session and experienced the apparently random onset of tears, or memories that they hadn't thought of in years, this "emotional release" phenomenon is the reason why. Another phrase that was offered us in school is that of "muscle memory", which, when referring to emotions or past trauma, is essentially the same thing. Although scientists do not fully understand how it works yet, our bodies (or perhaps more accurately our nervous system), has the potential to "hold" or "store" memories.

One of the most incredible things we do as massage therapists, is help bridge the healing gap between the physical and mental human being, even so far as to help foster a release of "stuck" or pent up neurological energies by relaxing surrounding muscles, tendons, ligaments, or other soft tissues. Yes, the body has the capacity to do this too -- to have an "emotional release" or to express "muscle memories" -- even if one has never before experienced such a thing. Perhaps it is an uncomfortable thought to finally face parts of the past that have consciously or unconsciously been buried many months or years before. Yet, those memories that have been buried so carefully may be the key to unlocking a pain free life. One can imagine what it would be like to not have pain anymore!!

And what of rejection? We've ALL experienced it from time to time. Maybe someone reading this is experiencing it now. Manifesting itself in headache, jaw pain, neck pain, heartache, stomach ache, low back or hip pain... or one of many other ways it settles into the body. Instead of stifling, stuffing, covering over, or shoving these feelings deep down within, perhaps it's time to schedule regular massage, and let the (drug-free) healing begin? ​