Massage Studio in London: Masaj Marleybone
On a daily basis, my shoulders and lower back are tasked with carrying the weight of a small army across my chest. Therefore, despite all my attempts at holding myself with correct posture, I am left with rather a lot of chronic pain.
Enter, Masaj Marleybone.
When employed, I treat myself to a 60-minute Deep Tissue massage with Simona and her magical hands, monthly. However, as it costs £105 per session, plus optional gratuity (as I am immensely grateful to her, I have never considered it optional) it’s rather taxing on the wallet. When employed, this feels like a justifiable spend. Especially, since I am someone who will always have to allocate a budget towards a therapist in some form and as I am delaying the more traditional sense of therapy, currently my therapist just has ‘massage’ as a prefix in her title.
Sadly, when (f)un-employed a monthly massage is a luxury that cannot be rationalised.
Thankfully, my gorgeous sister and brother in law kindly gifted me a session with Simona as my birthday present. Today was my first time back at Masaj in a few months and needless to say, I was reminded of just how worthwhile of an experience it is.
Whether you are someone who suffers with chronic pain or are looking for a little self-care treat, I recommend you look into booking yourself a treatment at one of the Masaj Studios: there’s branches in Shoreditch, Marleybone and Fitzrovia. They have a range of treatment options which can be found on their website.
What I love most about Masaj is that it feels like a totally tailored experience. Upon arrival, you are given a board where you can select the playlist and massage oil of your choosing, as well as your preferred level of communication with your massage therapist. When I first started going, I felt like an awful human being for selecting the ‘quiet’ option, but seeing as Simona and I’s relationship has managed to flourish despite this, I think it’s safe to say that your therapist will not care if you choose this option also. There’s no shame in fully unwinding, so do not let politeness impede your relaxation.
Before your session begins, you will have the opportunity to chat with your therapist to give them a better understanding of what areas of tension you would like them to target. I always opt for a full-body massage but with special attention given to my shoulders.
Tips/things to note:
You will be asked to strip down to only your lower underwear.
You will have to remove all jewellery.
If you have long hair, this will need to be tied up. There’s always hairbands there but I prefer to bring my own.
Make sure you have eaten at least 2 hours before your appointment as the relaxing nature of the massage will lower your blood pressure quite dramatically and if you aren’t nourished/hydrated, you can end up feeling a little dizzy and light-headed after the treatment.
Try some of their delicious tea.
I’m super ticklish in some areas and always declare this in my pre-treatment chat so that the therapist knows to work around these areas/forgive my laughter.
Wear soft, comfortable clothing if possible- putting jeans on after you’re all zen and oiled up feels like a crime.
