Making self a priority

IF YOU were one of the many people who joined a gym this year, you are not alone. According to Sport Singapore, more than 238,000 people made use of its 26 ActiveSG gyms in May 2022 – a 6 per cent rise compared to the same month in 2019.

If 2022 was the year of getting physically fit, then 2023 is likely to be the year for mind and body recovery.

Kathy Gabriel, co-founder of wellness centre Soma Haus, says: “Since the pandemic, there has definitely been a bigger focus on self-care and mental health.

“People are more ready to seek help and invest in themselves beyond just talk therapy. There is reduced stigma around mental health issues; more conversations are being had and continue to raise the visibility of mental health issues that people are facing.”

Soma Haus has been seeing an increase in the uptake for its psychology, psychotherapy and counselling services. 

“Our mental health workshops are seeing more people ready to engage in these conversations too,” says Gabriel.

“Different practices, such as craniosacral therapy and somatic experiencing, are gaining more popularity as people dive deeper into the meaning of health and well-being.”

Craniosacral therapy is a gentle hands-on technique that relieves tension in the central nervous system to eliminate pain and boost immunity, while somatic experiencing is an alternative therapy to treat trauma- and stressor-related disorders.

Gabriel says: “Somatic health will be a primary narrative for healthcare as people are more aware of the intimate connections of the body and mind, and how they are not separate from each other.”

SEE ALSO

Get a head start on fitness

The brain and body systems that process emotions are intimately connected with the hormonal apparatus, the nervous system, and in particular the immune system. 

“People are slowly realising how our thoughts and our feelings become physical manifestations and/or are stored in the body,” says Gabriel.

“More and more people are also realising that there is a strong correlation of emotional stress with physical illness, from cancer to autoimmune conditions and many other chronic diseases we face.” 

Bowen You, co-founder of fitness and recovery studio Sphere, has noticed a paradigm shift on what constitutes personal optimisation.

“Individuals are on the search for new experiences, to integrate fitness and wellness as a lifestyle marker, rather than solely weight training.”

Apart from a fitness space where personal training and semi-private sessions are conducted, Sphere also offers hot and cold therapies.

You says that hot and cold solutions are also readily available at traditional spa establishments, but in his view, “true self-optimisation lies in the knowledge and know-how on why we use specific recovery modalities, the dosage of said recovery modality, and the timing on when to recover to maximise our performance”.

He adds: “The next step for wellness will be for providers to delve into integrating new technology and procedures for clients seeking to further optimise their performance and recovery regimen, incorporating cryotherapy, hyperbaric chambers and more into their recovery programme.”