Shout up if you‘ve heard this before, I’ll quickly skim through because I want you to stay with me on this:

Drag yourself out of bed, wake up the children, get the kids washed and dressed, sort out breakfast, organise out lunches, throw on some coats, shoes and hats, herd them into the car, drop them off at school… and then make your way to work.

After work, you collect the children, sort out homework, make dinner, adopt the role of entertainer or taxi driver, put them to bed, stagger to the armchair, eventually head off to bed yourself, get some sleep.

Get up… start all over again.

Sad as this whole routine sounds, I‘m certain it‘s more of a reality than you might think.

It scares me to think that not so long ago, that description was me in every detail.

The lifestyle I once had, allowed absolutely no time for me, or me time to be specific. I’m not being selfish at all when I say that not just me, but everyone needs time for themselves. If you don’t, you’ll not only lose your identity, but you’ll actually lose the respect of those around you.

My life was a constant merry-go-round. Sure, my better half helped out, but if I entertained any thought of putting myself first, it was very quickly replaced by the next immediate task in a very full and hectic timetable that revolved around everyone but me.

I just couldn’t contemplate anything different.

What set me straight was an unexpected gift from a friend of mine. The gift was a facial massage and a manicure.

My friend knew only too well that there was no way I would organise this for myself, it was just too much of an luxury at least as I understood it then.

Besides, even if the notion ever entered my head, when was I going to find the opportunity to step out of my routine and do something purely for me.

Well thankfully my friend made the gift specific to me and made sure that it could only be enjoyed by me, and I’ve never been so grateful.

In accepting that gift, I had no clue as to the lasting effects it would have.

If nobody had made me aware, I would never have been exposed to the life changing benefits that massage and massage therapy can and doe bring to milliond of people around the globe.

In terms of the range of benefits that massage therapy brings , they can be as basic as feeling a whole lot better (special) for a short period of time to transforming your life completely, for as long or as little as you want.

Without sounding too dramatic, massage therapy can be and often is life changing for anyone experiencing it for the first time.

Just because massage and massage therapy sounds like a luxury and an indulgence, doesn’t mean it is, in fact the opposite is true.

Massage and massage therapy should be an integral element in your health and wellness plan. It can have an astounding impact on the quality of your life, and as such, it should never be considered a luxury, and it is certainly not the preserve of the wealthy.

Simply being aware that you should be spending more time on your health and wellness and that it should be part of your everyday routine may be an awkward concept, but please consider this as an idea that you must develop.

There is no maybe here, it is a must.

Maybe you’re the person I described above, and you just can’t see it because you just aren’t aware that there’s a differentYou never know, but one of your friends may recognise the need to give you just such a gift and your life could be about to change forever, you just never know what‘s around the corner.

In truth, if you‘ve read this far, you don’t need any further encouragement.

My message is absolutely clear: Schedule some time for your own health and wellbeing as a matter of the utmost urgency. You are that important

Whether you start small or really go for it, just make sure that you start at all you owe it to yourself and those who depend on you.

To your continued, outstanding health.