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Massage moves you towards wellness: That’s the message from APOGEE massage therapist Lauren Brandstadter, who sees clients leave her massage table closer to their health and fitness goals. Whether you want to move beyond soft tissue pain from an injury or reduce the effects of stress at work—massage will help.

Studies show that massage creates physical changes: it can lower blood pressure and boost immune cell function.  That’s why massage is often used in therapeutic settings. But it’s also useful when you’re not ill, just trying to achieve a higher level of wellness. “Massage optimizes everything you’re doing,” says Lauren.

When she first meets a client, Lauren does a visual and physical evaluation. “I look at how bright someone’s eyes and skin are, how positive their attitude is, what their gait is like, and what they look like structurally,” she says. “And I’ll ask about diet, medications, injuries, aches and pains and trauma.” She’ll also talk about stress and emotional health. “Nothing happens on a physical level that doesn’t have an emotional or spiritual root,” she says. “For example, physical injuries are aggravated by the stress someone is under.”

Then the Westchester native begins to palpate, adding information to what the client tells her. “As I work it’s like peeling an onion, each layer comes away to reveal the root of what they’re dealing with,” says Lauren, who has been a massage therapist for 20 years.

Problems at work or in relationships, struggles with diet and exercise—all can manifest physically in the body. “Massage brings everything right up to the surface—whether it’s emotional or physical—so it can be dealt with and you can move on,” says Lauren. She uses the common cold as an example: “If someone comes in with a cold, the massage will kick up the virus and maybe the next day they’ll feel worse, but the day after that, they will be 100 percent better—the duration is cut in half. I speeded up that process.”

This is why top executives and athletes have regular massages: They know that massage keeps them moving forward. Says Lauren,  “I help people evolve and get closer to what they want.”

• Until May 31, buy one massage and get a second for half-price.
• Learn more about APOGEE’s massage services.
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