THE journalist’s notebook lay on the table, a pen next to it, but talking — let alone conducting an interview— seemed too much of an effort.  After a 90-minute ayurvedic massage I was as limp as a biscuit dipped in tea, and as blissfully oily as an otter.

Ayurveda was practised on the sub-continent 5000 years ago and it’s not just a feel-good massage, Hamilton Hill therapist Karin Gunthor says.

“Not just for beauty or to relax, it’s a medicinal treatment.

“Western medicine doesn’t always have the answers, there is a place for Ayurveda [which] looks for the root cause not just putting a bandaid on…it looks for balance.”

Oils used during the massage depend on a treatment plan determined following a short consultation.

Coconut is predominately used in summer because it’s more cooling, but I also detected the distinctive aroma of apricot kernel. Oils and massage combine to release toxins, Ms Gunthor says: “Each limb is massaged for five minutes for the oil to penetrate through.”

Ayurvedic massage can be used to treat a number of disorders, including insomnia and anxiety: “[And] it’s good for the scalp, good for the hair and for psoriasis,” Ms Gunthor says.

It’s also a wonderful for hydrating the skin: “Perth is very dry and a lot of people have dry skin.”

For those who can take the heat, a sauna follows the massage: “Heat helps to penetrate further and water soluble toxins are leached out through the skin.”

Despite cool water and a spray of rose water on my exposed head I managed a very ordinary two minutes, the sweat pouring off me, hopefully removing some of the Christmas/New Year excesses.

A clinical nurse, Ms Gunthor studied Ayurveda in her native Germany, furthering her studies in India.

She travelled extensively before settling down in Hamilton Hill, working in hospitals and other health-related fields in Africa, the UK, India and Nepal.

For more visit Lakshmiayurveda or call Karin on 0406 810 547.

by JENNY D’ANGER