The Essence Center

Center for Massage & Natural Health® Retreat Center

Asheville, NC

Spa Services

At The Essence Center, we are pleased to offer the following services to our guests while on personal retreat or in addition to what is already included in one of one of our health retreat programs.

Please let us know upon making reservations that you wish to receive these additional services so that we can make proper arrangements.

For the body, we offer these very important therapies:

Massage Therapy

Enjoy the many benefits of therapeutic massage during your stay. From relaxation to pain relief or detoxification, adding a massage is a great way to unwind and enjoy our beautiful surroundings.

One Hour (50-Minute) Massage: $85
One and One Half (75-Minute) Massage: $127.50
Two Hour (100-Minute) Massage: $170

Acupuncture

Traditional Chinese Medicine uses tiny needles to treat any type of illness or disorder. An acupuncture treatment may be just the thing you need to feel better.

Initial Consultation and Treatment: $240
Subsequent Treatments: $120

Nutritional Consultation & Supplementation

Meet with our Holistic Nutritionist to discuss health issues and find the right combination of supplements, herbs, and dietary recommendations to help you to eliminate symptoms of ill-health, and feel healthy and whole.

Nutritional Consultation: $120
Nutritional Supplements prepared and dosed throughout the day: $30 per day

For the mind, we offer these very important therapies:

Equine Therapy

Equine Assisted Therapy is perhaps one of the most unique and powerful forms of therapy currently available to the mental health community. In combining horses with psychotherapy, the predator prey relationship that is inherent in this partnership lends itself to instant and accurate biofeedback of the client. Horses provide the emotional mirror to the client as client and horse work together in completing tasks based on a relationship founded in trust and respect. Traditional psychotherapy relies on rapport, self-report, and application of skill sets to be considered succesful.

Through the modality of equine therapy, these elements are eliminated, thus giving way to the client experiencing their patterns of communication and behvior immediately. Through this therapy, the client sees their issues for themselves, and once again becomes the expert in taking control of their own life.

Our horses are all rescued animals, and are the most loving and grateful creatures you can imagine. Your experience with them will be highly rewarding and tremendously healing, for both you and our animals. Please visit our staff page for their individual photos and bios.

Equine Therapy: $150 per person, offered in small group setting.

Art Therapy

The creative arts therapies can be very helpful in the process of recovery from any form of addiction or health affliction. They can provide time to get in touch with the inner self and with the higher power and can provide a form of expression for feelings that cannot be easily identified or put into words.

Through helping one connect with his/her more authentic self, the expressive therapies can help raise self-esteem and provide an opportunity to create new experiences beyond habitual and painful emotional patterns. The creative arts foster a renewed ability to relax without drugs, alcohol and other harmful substances.

Art Therapy: At Essence Recovery Center, we include this valuable healing arts modality every week in a group setting. Art therapy is based on the belief that the creative process involved in the making of art is healing and life-enhancing. Through creating art and talking about art and the process of art making with an art therapist, one can increase awareness of self, cope with symptoms, stress, and traumatic experiences, enhance cognitive abilities, and enjoy the life-affirming pleasures of artistic creativity.

Art therapists are professionals trained in both art and therapy and hold a masters degree in art therapy or a related field. Art therapists work with children, adolescents, and adults and provide services to individuals, couples, families, groups, and communities. They often work as part of clinical teams, in settings that include mental health, rehabilitation, medical and forensic institutions; community outreach programs; wellness centers; schools; nursing homes; corporate structures; art studios; and independent practices. Art therapists are skilled in the application of a variety of art modalities (drawing, painting, clay, and other mediums) for treatment and assessment and conduct research as well as provide consultations to allied professionals.

Art Therapy: $120 per person, offered in small group setting.

Music Therapy-Drumming

We believe in the healing power of the arts. Every week, we include powerful drumming circles where clients can experience the benefits listed in the below study.

The following is an excerpt from an abstract by Michael Winkelman from the Department of Anthropology, Arizona State University, Tempe 85287-2402, USA.

Complementary therapy for addiction: "drumming out drugs".

OBJECTIVES: This article examines drumming activities as complementary addiction treatments and discusses their reported effects. METHODS: I observed drumming circles for substance abuse (as a participant), interviewed counselors and Internet mailing list participants, initiated a pilot program, and reviewed literature on the effects of drumming. RESULTS: Research reviews indicate that drumming enhances recovery through inducing relaxation and enhancing theta-wave production and brain-wave synchronization. Drumming produces pleasurable experiences, enhanced awareness of preconscious dynamics, release of emotional trauma, and reintegration of self. Drumming alleviates self-centeredness, isolation, and alienation, creating a sense of connectedness with self and others. Drumming provides a secular approach to accessing a higher power and applying spiritual perspectives. CONCLUSIONS: Drumming circles have applications as complementary addiction therapy, particularly for repeated relapse and when other counseling modalities have failed.

Music Therapy: $120 per person, offered in small group setting.

EcoTherapy

Ecotherapy is an approach rooted in ecopsychology, which recognizes the important need of humans to be in contact with the natural world.

Disconnection from the natural world can exacerbate or even cause mental,

emotional and spiritual ills. As humans we long to be in contact with our home, the earth.

Opening up again to our love of nature and its insights offers opportunities for reconnecting and loving our world and ourselves, as we are nature. Ecotherapy sees reciprocity between healing the person and the natural world. Reconnection with the natural environment offers healing to humans and their surroundings through increasing awareness of the natural processes happening within and around us.

Through ecotherapy clients discover new ways to perceive themselves and return to listening to their own inner nature.

EcoTherapy: $85 per person, offered in small group setting.

Hypnosis/Hypnotherapy

Have you ever been totally absorbed while reading a book, cooking or watching a movie? Did you zone out to the point where you didn't notice what else was going on around you? If so, you've experienced a type of trance-like state or focused attention that's similar to what happens to you during hypnosis.

Although its medical uses aren't entirely understood, hypnosis, when provided by a certified hypnotherapist or other qualified clinician, appears to help with a variety of health conditions. These range from helping to control pain to easing the symptoms of asthma.

What is hypnosis?

Hypnosis, also referred to as hypnotherapy or hypnotic suggestion, is an altered state of consciousness. This state of consciousness is usually achieved with the help of a hypnotherapist and is different from your everyday awareness. When you're under hypnosis:

The purpose of hypnosis as a therapeutic technique is to help you gain more control over your behavior, emotions or physical well-being.

It's not clear how hypnosis works. However, it appears to affect how your brain communicates with your body through nerve impulses, hormones and body chemicals, such as neuropeptides. Hypnotherapists say that hypnosis creates a state of deep relaxation and quiets the mind. When you're hypnotized, you can concentrate intensely on a specific thought, memory, feeling or sensation while blocking out distractions. You're more open than usual to suggestions, and this can be used to change your behavior and thereby improve your health and well-being.

Hypnotherapy: $120 per person, offered in a private setting.

For the soul, we offer these very important therapies:

Guided Meditation

There are many different types of meditation which all work to slow down the chatter of the mind and promote relaxation and mental clarity.

At The Essence Center, we offer daily guided meditation sessions in a group setting. Our special meditation sessions quiet the mind, body and soul, and promotes relief from stress, anxiety, depression and withdrawal symptoms.

RESEARCH: Taub E, Steiner SS, Weingarten E, Walton KG. “Effectiveness of broad spectrum approaches to relapse prevention in severe alcoholism: a long-term, randomized, controlled trial of Transcendental Meditation, EMG biofeedback and electronic neurotherapy.” Alcoholism Treatment Quarterly. 11(1-2): 187-220, 1994. Large improvements in relapse prevention were seen with the addition of Transcendental Meditation (TM) or EMG biofeedback to the routine treatment program in an alcohol residential treatment facility. Complete abstinence 18 months after leaving the center was reported by 65% of the TM group and 55% of the biofeedback group compared to 25% of the standard care group and 28% for the neurotherapy group.

The long-term positive effects of TM, in particular, seem to be correlated with a reduced relapse rate. TM may not only reduce tension and anxiety, but also enhance a sense of control in anxiety-provoking situations that strengthens the long-term resistance to stress.

It should also be noted that there are many ways to achieve a meditative state of mind. For those who have trouble sitting quietly for periods of time, various movement practices and martial arts, such as t’ai chi, qigong, and karate, can also focus and calm the mind and enhance feelings of self-confidence and self-worth.

Guided Meditation: $85 per person, offered in a small group setting.

Chakra Balancing & Vibrational Healing

"A chakra is a center of activity that receives, assimilates, and expresses life force energy. The word chakra literally translates as wheel or disk and refers to a spinning sphere of bioenergetic activity emanating from the major nerve ganglia branching forward from the spinal column. There are six of these wheels stacked in a column of energy that spans from the base of the spine to the middle of the forehead. And the seventh which is beyond the physical region. It is the six major chakras that correlate with basic states of consciousness..."      Anodea Judith

Chakra are commonly described, as above, as energy centers in the body located at major branchings of the human nervous system, beginning at the base of the spinal column and moving upward to the top of the skull. Chakras are considered to be a point or nexus of metaphysical and/or biophysical energy of the human body.

The concept of Chakra are often treated in different ways, depending on the cultural context. In Chinese medicine, traditional chakra locations correspond to acupuncture points. In some Eastern thought, chakras are considered to be gradations of consciousness and reflect states of the soul--these systems rely less on proof than on experience (under the assumption that 'proving' the existence of chakras is asking to 'prove' the existence of the thought process). A mystic may deal with chakra as a model for their internal and external experience, and when talking about 'energy centers', may be talking about subtle electromagnetic forces which connect to the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual aspects of a person.

Chakra Balancing sessions are Powerful since they go directly to the Root Cause of The Issue or Disruption that is misleading a person's Life.  Clients can expect to Gain Valuable Insights into their own Healing Process while Transforming Themselves at a Fundamental Level.  True Healing and Transformation can Happen at this Level which occurs deep in the subtle Energy Matrix Where these Disruptions have Originated.

Chakra Rebalancing & Vibrational Healing: $240 per person, offered in a private, 2-hour session.

Plant Spirit Medicine

Description TBA Shortly!

Plant Spirit Medicine : Initial Consultation & Treatment: (2 Hours) $200
Subsequent Treatments: $120 (1 Hour)

We also offer these great therapies:

Spa Therapies

Custom Blended Organic Facial – Deep pore penetrating cleanse  combined with exfoliation, lymphatic facial massage & nutrient replenishing mask-to rejuvenate the skin for a smooth, radiant  & glowing complexion!    $160

Ultra therapy– Custom blended face & back treatment begins with aroma-therapy, rejuvenating the mind & body, back exfoliation and hot oil massage for eliminating stress  and quieting the mind. $250 

Manly Man Maintenance Plan-his skin looks dull, he says “huh” a lot and he has wild hairs growing...well, you get the idea. .  . Deep pore purity skin cleanse, ear coning & brow trim- make him feel great & look handsome. $270

Ear Coning

READERS DIGEST refers to ear coning as one of the oldest NATURAL remedies…
Ear coning is beneficial for

An ear candle is inserted into your ear creating a light massage on the ear drum, as a chimney effect creates a slight suction to balance pressure in the ear, sinus & forehead while stimulating reflex zones and energy points in the ear canal.  It stimulates peripheral blood circulation draining toxins in the sinuses and lymphatic system along with intensifying the immune system.

Ear Coning with lymphatic facial massage $130
With Steam Clean Facial: $180

Ion Cleansing

Cleansing our body of natural waste residue and toxins is essential for good health and the first step for rebuilding our body to rejuvenate our health.

Here are some mild symptoms your body is in need of cleansing...

allergies, headaches, constipation, skin conditions, difficulty reducing weight and cellulite.
Here are some more severe symptoms-high blood pressure, obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes and arthritis.
.
Ion Cleansing is beneficial for

Ion cleansing is through a foot bath treatment.  Ion cleansing is capable of generating a magnetic bio-field similar to living organism.  Our feet have  4000 pores and major pressure points that connect to all of our major organs, through reverse osmosis waste products are secreted through the feet to restore our body’s natural ability to heal itself.

Ion cleansing: $90
With Foot Treatment: $150

Private Yoga Instruction: $85
Private Pilates Instruction: $85
Private Tai Chi Instruction: $85

Astrology Readings: $120
Sweat Lodge Experience: $60 per person (based on availability

 

FAR Infrared Sauna

The Center for Massage & Natural Health offers its guests complimentary use of their powerfully detoxifying FAR Infrared Sauna. Our sanua is made from hypo-allergetic beech wood, and is ideal for drawing toxins out through the skin.

 

 

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