2019 Gumbo final - Book - Page 37
Vida Pura Spa
Spa treatment without a gimmick
an acupuncturist that introduced her to the newly popular, ancient form
of therapy that has been used by the Chinese, Aztecs, Egyptians and
Mayans.
“The acupuncturist did cupping on me and I thought ‘This is strange,’”
Brumfield said. “It kind of feels like being hugged by an octopus. It's tight
and it feels awkward, but it doesn't hurt. After he did cupping on me … I
didn't have any pain after that.”
Not only does Brumfield offer the service in her spa, she travels around
the city and the country to teach others how to practice cupping therapy.
Brumfield said she finds it important to go out and educate people of the
public about what cupping therapy is because it’s not painful, it doesn’t
hurt and it is actually good for you.
While anyone could benefit from Vida’s services, Brumfield said students
and athletes are two of the largest groups of people that could really
benefit from the spa’s stress-relieving techniques.
“Students are the most stressed out people that we see,” Brumfield
said. “They're bent over a desk all day, or their postures aren’t good and
they're always on their phone or on a computer or writing something. I've
seen students with more muscle tension than I have in people who are
Engineers or athletes. I really love working on them because when your
body is not holding all this weight, stress and tension, it just feels like a
sigh of relief.”
Vida Pura Spa is a great treat for people who want a break from stress
and want to better their body. Brumfield thinks people should really take
the time out of their day to take care of themselves because it’s what any
overworked, overstressed person deserves.
“Taking care of yourself as a full-time job and one thing I tell my clients all
the time is self-care is not selfish,” Brumfield said. “It's OK to take care of
yourself.”
Rebecca Brumfield the
owner of Vida Pura Spa off of
Sherwood Forest practices
cupping therapy on Thursday,
Aug. 30, 2018.
ida Pura Spa offers customers a full-body release without the
gimmicks. The workers at the spa gear their treatments toward
bettering the body and not succumbing to the latest fads and
trends you see in the media for the sake of business.
The owner of Vida Pura Spa, Rebecca Brumfield, has been a massage
therapist since 2008 and has legally worked for herself under Vida
Pura Spa since 2011. The spa now offers facials, body wax, scrubs and
specializes in cupping therapy. Brumfield describes cupping as an inverse
massage, meaning that instead of pushing down on the muscles, the
cups provide a suction like a vacuum and pull up the muscle. This in turn
loosens the muscles and promotes the body’s healing.
Vida Pura Spa offers not only massage therapy but also natural skin care.
There are a lot of things that are legal to use in skincare products that
Brumfield doesn’t feel comfortable using, and in using these products,
Brumfield is able to label her practice as a “holistic spa.”
By putting the “holistic” stamp on its services, the spa shows that they are
taking the steps needed to bring something pure to the Baton Rouge area
and stressed out students searching for a healthy release.
“The holistic definition would really be ‘whole body approach,’” Brumfield
said. “A natural approach from the earth using natural ingredients. I
don't try to sell people on gimmicks or scams or the new fads. I've been
doing cupping therapy since I started doing massage –– I didn't do it just
because Michael Phelps was doing it. I've been doing cupping therapy for
almost 10 years now because I love it and it works.”
Brumfield had firsthand experience to show her the lasting benefits of
cupping therapy. When she suffered from an injury, she was referred to
Story // Amaya Lynch
Photo // Aurianna Cordero
Design // Dakota Baños
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