Why Pampering Is The Best Present You Can Give | Fibromyalgia Care

Pampering – it’s one of the best presents you can give YOURSELF or your loved ones!

It might sound a bit ridiculous for the owner of a Hair & Beauty Salon and Spa to say this: But I hadn’t understand HOW important it is until recently.

Now Danny Smith at Radio Verulam is a big fan of a pamper, so I thought I’d chat with him about it, about how under-estimated it is. People think of it as a treat – whereas, I’m beginning to understand that it’s essential.

If you missed us, you can listen again for a week here.

What is a pamper?

Cup Of Tea and a chat is good for the soul

A Pamper is time.

Time for yourself.

Often considered a treat.

Normally associated with something relaxing or revitalising.

Misconstrued as expensive and something that only happens sometimes unless you are really rich.

Many people only think of a pamper as a beauty treatment or Spa service, however, I think of it as anything that makes you feel special and wonderful. It’s something that brings joy to your life; but you need to be fully present with it and fully ‘in the moment’ if you are going to get all the benefits.

It’s more like a special moment, that can be anything from 5 mins to a whole day.

Why is it important?

Life Is Not Measured by the number of breaths we take …

I know we have busy lives, so you might have a pamper one day, but still have to go back to reality and the stresses of every day. I used to think that therefore it wasn’t that important. Especially when I was focussed on the therapies I used that clear out old hurts and traumas; I often forgot about daily life.

But I’m convinced that if I’d spent more time thinking about myself on a daily basis I wouldn’t have got Fibromyalgia and now be faced with all the struggles physically, emotionally and mentally that limit me. (I might have got my head around them, but still, I could have missed that whole learning and gone straight to the winning line!).

A pamper will reduce your stress and cortisol levels.

Why bother you might think? Because stress increases your cortisol levels, which affects your sleep, your quality of living and attacks your immune system.

A strong healthy body means that you can make the most of the good days and sail through the bad days.

So to me, that is a great investment – we never know how long we have here on this earth, so every day is important.

How often?

6 Steps To A Sparkling You

So many people I know think that having a yearly pamper is enough. Or maybe a quarterly one. Some go as far as making it monthly.

But with some recent huge stresses in my life, I realised that I need it DAILY.

Do you think that is really greedy?

Maybe it is.

But being faced with panic attacks, heart palpitations and constant sugary feelings, I realised that I didn’t have much choice.

So over the past 6 weeks, I’ve been coming up with different options for pampering.

Self Pamper

Books, books, books …

Remember that it’s about bringing a moment to your life, with some joy, and a feeling of happiness or calm.

Often it’s about adding something to make the moment more special.

What works for me is:

A 15 min walk in nature.
Popping to a coffee shop with Little Dimples.
A bath with a lovely bath oil, candles and calming music for 30mins.
Going to Pilates
A massage/manicure – I know it’s a bit obvious, but it can’t be beaten.
Watching a rubbish catchup TV program in bed (I don’t get to watch TV very often, so it’s a treat for me)
A catchup with a friend without kids
Reading a book, snuggled up, with a smelly candle and lovely music
Doing a meditation

Pampers you give

I think that our houses are pretty full of STUFF! So if you can give a ‘pamper’ or something that your loved one can use to self-pamper, then you are not just giving them a short moment of relaxation. You are also giving them the opportunity to have a healthier, happier life for a period of time.

So they make a great Birthday or Christmas present. Or maybe a spontaneous present to show how much your appreciate them!

Here are some ideas:

AromaWorks Candle

Candles: but be careful to get them ones that will keep them healthy – I prefer beeswax candles, because Paraffin wax candles are the ones that make all that black smoke. Think about the black marks they leave on a wall, and then think about your lungs. We sell Aroma-works candles at Espiritu, and because they are beeswax, they smell all the way to the bottom of the jar.

Gift vouchers: most beauty salons or Spas will let you choose a gift voucher for something specific, but let the person in question swap them if needed. I recommend that you choose a specific one; if you are unsure the girls at the salon will be able to guide you as to what is ideal.

Pamper parcels: I was sent THE MOST AMAZING box a couple of months ago from this lovely new company. It had every thing you need for a pamper: a bath oil, candle, body moisturiser and of course chocolate! The great thing about a ready made box like this is that there is no way that you could put it together yourself for the price. Plus, if you aren’t artistically skilled, they have put it together with such cute little touches, that it adds to the whole experience. So I can really recommend them!

Make your own pamper box

Make a gift box yourself: However if you are artistically skilled, then hows about putting together your own box? Rachel’s Organics sent me a lovely treat about 2 months ago. It had a pair of warm wooly socks, 3 of their gorgeous mousses, tea lights to put in the glass jars when I’d eaten the yummy desserts, a lovely silver spoon engraved with my blog name, and the cutest little Prossecco bottle.

Maybe the biggest gift we can give or receive is time and a moment?

I’d love to know what your favourite pampers are?