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Some brides-to-be battle pre-wedding stress and jitters through working out. For others, it’s a full-on spa day devoted to relaxation inside and out. While the ideal scenario would include endless green juice and acai bowls with yoga on the beach in Bali, you can snag the next best thing to inspire this same trance-like state. These five holistic forms of healing are just what the doctor ordered, both for brides with New Age leanings, as well as ones who would rather crystals be the kind she wears on her fingers in diamond form.
For your body
The first South American-inspired spa in Miami, Tierra Santa Spa at the new Faena Hotel, weaves ancient healing techniques into treatments that start with purifying scrubs and move into healing clays and detoxifying hammam sessions. Ingredients are sourced straight from the Amazon and incorporated into oils for tension-relieving treatments. Try the Tree of Life Vibrations, which works with sound, Brazilian Rose stones and oils massaged into tension points starting from the spine and moving into the body’s “tree of life,” from the “roots” on the lower back to the “branches” in the neck and upper shoulders.
For your head and neck
Poultice treatments have a long history in the spa world, starting in the 14th century in Thailand to relieve soldiers’ muscle pains post-battle. Now these warm bags of herbs are used in modern-day massages in a medicinal way, like with NYC’s Haven Spa’s head and neck recovery treatment, designed to relieve tension from the tip of your head down your back, neck and shoulders so you’ll be standing tall (and pain-free) for the Big Day.
For your face
Just stepping in to the soothing steam room and Turkish hamam at The Standard Spa, Miami Beach is enough to feel stress slipping away. There is a reason why yoga superstar Tara Stiles holds her retreats at this spa sanctuary, after all. Get your skin instantly glowing with the help of the Balancing Crystal Facial. Ask for Maria (she’s legendary there!) who’ll spend the next hour fine-tuning your facial features with the help of a gemstone exfoliation and crystal mask, hydrating in all the right places leaving you fresh and photo-ready for wedding day pics (a little energy healing doesn’t hurt, either!).
For your mind
Speaking of Tara Stiles, if you want to take part in one of her practices but can’t make it out to a far-flung retreat, go just far enough without actually leaving U.S. soil at W Retreat and Spa on Vieques Island. This little piece of Puerto Rican paradise is idyllic for a pre-wedding getaway, whether it’s solo or with girlfriends. Guests get access to complimentary daily Strala Yoga classes that were designed by Stiles herself. In between yoga sessions, continue the theme of utter relaxation out on the terrace of your own little Tropical Oasis room, surrounded by gardens.
For your mood
Mind is one thing, but mood is another. Unwind and get into the pre-wedding mindset with a session inside Himalayan Salt Walls at Acqualina Spa by ESPA. The new glowing pink walls span the 20,000-square-foot Relaxation Lounge, filled with 84 trace minerals that are said to hum happily with human cells. These good vibrations unlock an ancient wisdom within that’s said to provide inner peace, stress relief and a boost in positive energy that will hopefully last from this moment until the one on the aisle.
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