Dharma Studios on the edge of downtown Calgary has quickly established itself as the place to go for a relaxing massage from qualified professionals.

But word is also getting around about the facility’s wide range of other services that go well beyond therapeutic manipulation of muscles, as enjoyable and soothing as that is.

Contractors on the premises – in the historic, beautifully restored Lorraine Building – offer an array of culturally inspired body treatments that include acupuncture, acupressure, reiki, craniosacral therapy, ayurveda, steam, yoga, stone therapy, thai yoga massage, herbal body scrubs and more.

Two women who have joined the Dharma team are Selena Murillo and Martha Hunter. Each offers therapies that take different forms, but which achieve an amazing level of relaxation and a feeling of well-being in the client.

Selena Murillo, left, and Martha Hunter help clients reduce their stress and improve their health.

Selena is a practitioner of usui reiki, and also huna kane massage, which is a Hawaiian form of massage.

Martha does craniosacral work – sometimes on its own, sometimes in conjunction with massage.

Selena explains that reiki is a very old, Tibetan form of hands-on healing that was rediscovered by a Japanese doctor in the late 19th century.

“It’s energy work,” Selena says. “It works with the main energy system of the body, the seven main chakras of the body. The purpose of it is to clear and balance the energy system that affects all levels of being – physical, mental and emotional, as well as spiritual being.”

She works through her hands, but to the client relaxing under a sheet at the studio, her touch is barely noticeable. Yet the sense of pure repose is undeniable.

“During a treatment, I will go through each chakra, determine whether or not it’s open, closed, blocked or clear, and do energy work. I also use a lot of intuitive work with it, determining what’s there, how much blockage might be there and why it might be there.

“It can be stress of everyday life, it can be childhood trauma, or even a trauma from conception,” says Selena. “The premise behind energy work is that over time you’re continually stuffing away emotion. It could be in the solar plexus, a common area for people to stuff emotion, and your body can only hold so much. It’ll eventually spill over and manifest itself in a physical way, whether it’s a chronic digestive issue, for example, or ulcers.”

Martha’s work is somewhat more hands-on, but still less forceful than a standard massage.

“With craniosacral therapy,” she explains, “I’m really interested in the connective tissues of the body and where a person might be holding restrictions there. For example, many people have restrictions due to old scar tissue, injuries and repetitive strain.”

Subtle pressures are used to interrupt cycles of pain and tension, allowing restrictions to release and healing to occur.

Neither therapist claims to be a replacement for doctors or other health professionals. They are simply adhering to a principle that has been embraced by ancient cultures around the world – that the human body is a complex entity that requires an open- minded and thorough approach to its well-being and healing.

Clients who have booked either with Selena or Martha, or both, have found the sessions simultaneously invigorating and relaxing. Soothing music plays at a soft level in the background, and the therapist occasionally asks questions or makes comments, but in some cases says little for long stretches.

The therapies’ calming effects last well beyond the time slot in which they’re scheduled. The experience appeals especially to business people, in and around Calgary’s downtown, who can use an antidote for the stresses of daily life.

“Each of us has a responsibility to ourselves to achieve clarity,” says Martha. “These types of treatments are an investment in your health that ultimately improves all aspects of your life.

“If you’re walking around in pain or you’re walking around with a lot of stored emotions, it really gets in the way of making the most out of life.

“The release and openness that clients experience following a treatment can function as a window. We have clients who were having a terrible time with chronic pain. When they experienced a pain-free day, suddenly it opened up the possibility of a vastly improved quality of life.”

“With craniosacral, people tend to go into this place where they are not asleep but are extremely relaxed, similar to a meditative state,” Martha says.

Selena says: “That’s where my work and Martha’s work really coincide. On an energetic level, it allows people to go to that place where the majority of us don’t go on a daily basis.”

Regular clients are grateful for the mental, emotional and spiritual results of such sessions, even those who first gave it a try armed with a little old-fashioned, healthy western skepticism.

“I encounter some skepticism, but the majority of clientele I get are open,” Selena says. “I have a lot of people who have never experienced a reiki treatment before, or any kind of energy healing, but once they’ve experienced it they can feel its benefits.”

To book a session, or to get more information, drop by Dharma Studios at 104, 620 12th Ave. S.W.; phone 403.508.9921; e-mail info@dharmastudios.ca; or go to www.dharmastudios.ca.