Choices: ayurvedic massage, aromatherapy Popular among: youngsters, office-goers, housewives Oils used: olive, lavender, basil, apple, rose, chamomile Helps rid: stress, circulatory, respiratory, digestive and neuromuscular complaints Available at: Mayfair, New Leaf, Presidency, Swosti Premium Price range: starts from Rs 800 per session

Bhubaneswar, July 6: People in the city are taking an aromatic escape from stress at home and work.

Deadlines at work and tension at home do not seem to bother people of the city anymore. From corporate employees to college students and housewives, everyone seems to be heading for spas.

The usual choice is an ayurvedic massage or an aromatherapy session. After an at least an hour or two of a rejuvenating massage followed by a steam bath, people seem to forget their troubles.

The therapy sessions have become popular among youths and office-goers. The specific oils used in the massages are supposed to have calming, uplifting, energising, cleansing and decongesting effects. Experts believe they suit the hectic city lifestyle.

The therapy has become an easy way to pamper oneself even on a busy day.

“When very tired I love to get a massage with olive oil. It that hardly takes 20 minutes, but makes you feel light and energised. My skin gets cleansed, especially after a steam bath taken after the massage,” says young actor and a spa fan Archita.

Aromatherapy is what 36-year-old IT professional Prasad trusts when it comes dealing with stress.

“An hour’s massage and you feel you are like lying on the beach,” he says.

“Most of our clients belong to the corporate sector and prefer the de-stressing, relaxing and reviving massages. We use olive oil, lavender, basil and apple extracts,” says Nijo, a therapist from Kerala at the New Leaf beauty centre.

“Massages with rose, chamomile, lavender also help greatly to recover from emotional stresses”, he adds. “Aromatherapy, like herbal therapy, uses plant substances but unlike herbal therapy it uses highly concentrated, volatile, and expensive aromatic essential oils extracted from plants. These are often massaged into the skin, or inhaled or added to the bath water. Sometimes they are also prescribed for internal consumption,” says Shailendra Pattnaik of Hotel Presidency Spa.

Aromatherapy treats a wide range of circulatory, respiratory, digestive and neuromuscular complaints. “Remedies are always tailored to meet the specific needs of the patient. The aroma’s effect on the mind is such that it is capable of curing mental as well as physical ills,” adds Pattnaik.

The essential oils are the distilled vital essence of a plant with complex hydrocarbons, and are present in flowers, leaves, grass, roots, barks, seeds and the rinds of fruit. A single drop of such essential oils, equivalent to an ounce of living plant, is potent.

Therapists use a small measure of the oil and rub it in using various circular patterns. The patterns of massage depend on the healing required. While certain oils, like rosemary or lavender, are used for rubbing the feet, there are others like eucalyptus and pine that are used for decongestion: these are massaged into the spinal area.

Therapists not only prescribe these massages for relaxation and de-stressing but also as a cure for skin problems, beauty care, relief from muscular pain and arthritis, weight loss and so on.

Starting from Rs 800 per session, the price per session varies at different spa centres.

Some also provide a monthly package with multiple massages starting at Rs 3,500. Spas at Mayfair, New Leaf, Presidency, Swosti Premium and some ayurvedic massage centres provide the therapy sessions.