Learning to be happy
TRIA is an urban health retreat for those who wish to embrace wellness as a lifestyle.Turn off the phone. Leave the computer at home. Go to the spa. You would think relaxing would be as simple, and as natural, as that.
But during a recent aromatherapy massage, half the time all I could think about was my kids, chores, work and what I would have for my next meal. The other half I spent worrying about how I hadn’t shaved my legs in some time and how the therapist would gossip with the other staff about how the prickles irritated her palms.
So when I heard about all the cool services at Bangkok’s TRIA Integrative Wellness center, naturally I was intrigued. The clinic, a separate unit of Bangkok's Piyavate International Hospital, is becoming popular among the city's health conscious set thanks to its very unique emotional, structural and elemental treatments and programs, many of which aren't available anywhere else in Bangkok. There are floating pools, detox programs, acupuncture sessions, spa cuisine, Thai massages, Vichy showers, Shirodhara sessions, chi nei tsung masseuses, fitness facilities and a pile of other fancy-sounding offerings I had never heard of.
But first I needed to teach my mind to relax and chill out, so the doctors recommended I start with the biofeedback system, part of the clinic's stress management program that tells you just how stressed out you really are and sends you on the sometimes rocky road to relaxation.
Free your mind, the rest will follow
Dr Piyanuj Ruckpanich, general manager of TRIA, explained the system to me in easy-to-understand terms. “Basically, biofeedback means your body tells something to the machine, which the machine shows in a graph," she said. "In healthcare or medicine we use this a lot because sometimes it’s very difficult for the patient to understand what we are trying to say to them about their body. The machine sees the correlation between the heart and your brain and your endocrine system. It’s all connected."
So essentially, biofeedback measures the variable of your heart rate, which will in turn be able to tell the therapist about some of your underlying health issues. "If you are stressed, your heart rate variability is regular," says Dr. Piyanuj. "When you are in a state of relaxation, your heart rate variability increases. The amazing thing is that scientific research has proved that stress reduction reduces ailments like hypertension. Most of the chronic diseases we have right now are related to stress.”
I'll be honest, I was a bit frightened. I just wanted to learn how to relax, not find out about underlying stress-related health issues that would lead to my death. The therapist attached a simple device to my finger, linked to a computer. Then she began to school me in the art of relaxation and stress-free living.
Think happy thoughts
“This is your stress level, this is your happiness level,” my therapist said, pointing to the graphs that appeared on the computer. “We will try to reduce your stress and increase your happiness, through simple breathing techniques. Right now, I would like you to close your eyes, relax your body. Focus your attention on your heart, breathing in and breathing out. It’s really clear in your mind."
Believe me, I tried. But clearing your mind at will isn’t as easy as it sounds.
“Oh no…She’s going to know I’m not concentrating. It’s all coming through on the monitor. She's reading me like a book. Ok. Starting, right, now. Relax! Focus, you idiot!”
Next I was told to think pleasant thoughts while continuing to breathe in a steady pace. Again, failure. Sensing my mental battle -– it was right there on that damn computer screen for her to see -- she told me to slowly open my eyes, sit up, and look at the monitor. My happiness levels had increased a bit, stress lowered slightly, but clearly not enough.
My wandering mind meant it was time for the 'coherence coach,' a short cut that teaches you to clear your mind by breathing in when the ball on the screen goes up, and breathing out when it goes down. Simple.
This was the ticket. I laid back on the bed, kept thinking about the ball. Happiness levels went up, stress levels down. When we started, my stress level was 55, happiness level 28. Out of 100. Not that good. She even said something along the lines of "you're not a very happy person right now, are you." It wasn't a question.
By the end, after thinking about the ball, stress level was down to 22, happiness level up to 72. Not bad at all for a few short minutes of breathing.
Further treatment options
Dr Piyanuj recommended I do this three minutes a day to keep my stress levels low and stave off potential health fallout in the future, adding that this is also why meditation is a useful tool for
leading a healthy life, regardless of your religious bent.
She said that many Buddhists don't even know how to properly meditate, "which is why this technique is very good, as you just go
right to the action.”
Though it was easy enough for me to alter my stress levels by concentrating on my breathing, Dr Piyanuj noted that some people require more intensive treatment. "Maybe they will practise every day, then come back in a week. This can correspond with other treatments, like acupuncture. We also have psychologists, hypnotherapists, yoga, tai chi and meditation. We even have a monk who comes in every month to the hospital to teach meditation."
After our chat, I decided to reward my less stressed out self by trying one of their fabulous aromatherapy massages, where I tested out my newfound concentration skills. It was probably the most enjoyable massage I’ve ever had in my life, simply because I didn’t allow my mind to wander all over the place and actually just relaxed and enjoyed the moment. Though I did have one work related query as she was kneading away at my cleanly shaven legs: "I wonder if I can expense this stuff?"
Getting there
TRIA Integrative Wellness
998 Rimklongsamsen Road, Bangkapi, Huay Kwang
Behind the Piyavate Hospital
Reservation Hotline: +66 (0)2 660 2602
