Handling holiday stress

TOLEDO, Ohio (WTVG) - We’re stepping into the holiday season, which can cause stress from shopping to travel. It can take a toll on our bodies.

Holiday stress can affect people in more ways than one and we all have different ways of handling stress. Some may get a massage but what about a hands-off approach?

Darryl Robinson carries the stress of running a food truck and getting ready for the holidays in his body.

Robinson said, “I get headaches and things but I just power through it and just keep going. One day Monica that spot worked on it, and worked on it, and worked on it.”

Robinson is taking advantage of an unconventional kind of stress relief…getting a weekend massage but not with someone’s hands.

Marcy Bowman, co-owner of Remedy Barefoot Massage Studio, said, “People says that “oh I want a deep tissue massage” the therapist is using their elbow their knuckles to kind of get in deep but that’s really jabby and pokey and it can be quite uncomfortable.”

She says when she uses the ball of her foot it’s more gentle, controlling the pressure by the weight of their body and removing stress from the body.

US News Health says that 31% of Americans anticipate holiday stress with the highest concern being shopping for gifts and meals.

Robinson said, “Speaking for myself for me to get away from the craziness because as soon as I get out there it’s like GO!”

Bowman say there’s many health benefits to foot massages alone. Bowman said, “And it helps people with sleep, stress, cortisol, impulse control, blood pressure all that stuff.”

Robinson is footing the bill for this visit walking away feeling like he can put his best foot forward.

“Do you whatever you have to do to get the root of all evil out of my body okay because there’s big rooting knot to get all that stuff out,” Robinson said.

If you’re thinking about booking an appointment at this location you might have to wait until next holiday season they say they’re booked until January.

See a spelling or grammar error in our story? Please include the title when you click here to report it.

Copyright 2023 WTVG. All rights reserved.