Body and Soul Healing with Heart
Walking up the stairs to the hidden nook of Cape Cod Center for Body & Soul, it immediately smells great. An oil called “Abundance” wafts through the chilly mid-spring air as I enter the waiting room, admiring a Maxfield Parrish painting of Grecian goddesses. The candlelit, “meditation man” fountain, lush plants and living room feel of the place win me over. I exhale and let go of my agenda.
A contrast to the urban setting of central Dennisport, Cape Cod Center for Body & Soul’s sanctuary-like space feels alive with energy. Gentle, impish even. The whimsy of a wicker love seat, butterflies, wind chimes and a little, gold, resting angel remind me that I really don’t have to take myself so seriously all the time! Books on the side table: Marianne Williamson’s Everyday Grace; Angel Wisdom and Healing After Loss are a comfort to me, as I sip from my cup of spring water.
Still Waters Run Deep. Lifting the Veil. Appearances are only half the Truth. Diamonds in the Rough. These are phrases which come to mind when I learn about Kabbalistic Healing. I believe it is Linda Preston’s desire to facilitate dramatic growth to ultimate freedom, and the fourteenth-generation Cape Codder’s passion comes through loud and clear. “I feel a reverence when I work with people; in massage, Kabbalistic healing, and in Reiki sessions. I see it all as sacred territory. I want to help people re-wire and heal.”
The unique and powerful Kabbalistic Healing is centered on the Tree of Life*, and is known as the “path with heart.” Linda Preston, the Center’s Director – whose specialty is Kabbalistic Healing – is all heart. Linda is also a Reiki Master and licensed and practicing Massage Therapist for over 25 years. One look into her compassionate, beautiful eyes, and you know in your bones you are in good hands.
Preston loves her Kabbalistic work, which is non-religious, by-the-way. Just in case you had visions of little red strings or Madonna wandering around a temple. It actually blends Kabbalah with Zen Buddhism, Psychology and Energetic Healing. Linda studied at the esteemed A Society of Souls in Princeton, New Jersey – for over 10 years – where she was also an assistant supervisor. The Tree of Life is considered a blueprint of someone’s universe – Linda works with the blueprint of your psyche. In a non-judgmental and safe environment, Linda helps you negotiate with your past psycho-dynamics; Kabbalistic principles and Preston’s own sharp intuitive gifts enable you to work through your psychological history and recognize trigger points, facilitating an emotional detox and release of old blockages. This digging can be extensive, depending on your personal history.
Toward the end of your session, you lay on the massage table fully clothed, while Linda works her energy magic on you. The work is known to be deep, and Linda has experienced this first-hand.“You can only take someone where you’ve gone yourself,” she says. She’s a fan of The Secret; she lets me in on one of her own secrets in manifesting the life abundant. “Part of being a powerful manifester is being grounded in the body. It took me years through my personal healing journey to become integrated, allowing me more authenticity,” she says. Don’t we all, after all, want more for ourselves?
Clarity/Receptivity/Passion/Non-Attachment – Preston speaks from experience. Bonus insider tips: Linda’s a great manifester; she also teaches meditation, does phone healings, and you should ask her about her vast knowledge of electromagnetic fields (and how they impact health) and her therapeutic-grade essential oils. They smell mahvelous! And who knew these oils have the power to transmit electrical frequency, move trauma energy, and oxygenate/nourish your little cells? They do!
If you’ve got some old trauma lying around that is keeping you stuck, Linda is a safe person to guide you through the sometimes painful emotional territory of your wound. “These wounds are the key in to our discovery of who we’re supposed to be,” she offers. “The flipside of the wound is the gift.” Here’s to excavating, allowing and illuminating our shining gifts.
Recently, the Center has added Aqua Chi Ionic Footbath to its offerings, a footbath treatment where a revolutionary hydro-therapy unit is immersed in a basin of water, amplifying your body’s bio-electric field. This cell-enhancing charge detoxifies and alkalizes the body, rebalances the energy field, and repairs the immune system. In the vernacular, it’s a warm foot bath (can anything involving your tender feet be less-than-stellar?) that rearranges your chi in a gentle way, and makes you feel lots better. It seems to give the benefits of a natural hot spring, only way amped up. Many people swear by their increased energy; some have reversed kidney function, eliminated skin and sleep disorders, and more. It’s a little miracle worker; I can’t wait to try it!
The Center offers many massage modalities, spa services, energy healing sessions, counseling; Classes in meditation, aromatherapy, yoga and Chi Gong (Qigong).
Patti DesJardins, one of the Center’s licensed massage therapists, is also a polarity practitioner and Reiki master. DesJardins echoes Cape Cod Body & Soul’s mission: that they are down-to-earth, accessible and heart-centered. She enjoys many clients who are in the health care industry, and folks dealing with fibromyalgia; she also teaches at the Cape Cod Technical School. With her background in everything from Chakra Balancing, Ethics, Reflexology, Medical Massage to Clinical Psychology, Patti brings a lot to her table (pun intended).
All of the massage therapists at Cape Cod Center for Body & Soul have extensive training in energy healing; it is lovingly woven into each session, providing a depth and breadth beyond the massage norm. Everything offered here is top-notch medicine for body and soul, with an unmistakable heart energy that leaves you feeling the love. CHA
Please call 508-760-5667 or visit www.capecodbodyandsoul.com to schedule reservations.
*“The Tree of Life is an arrangement of ten interconnected spheres (called sephiroth, Hebrew for spheres), which represent the central organizational system of the Jewish Kabbalistic tradition. The Tree of life is considered to be a map of the universe and the psyche, the order of the creation of the cosmos, and a path to spiritual illumination. The ten spheres represent the ten archetypal numbers of the Pythagorean system; they are connected by paths assigned to the twenty two letter-numbers of the Hebrew alphabet.” (www.altreligion.about.com)
Cape Cod Center for Body & Soul
Linda Preston, Director, Kabbalistic Healer, Reiki Master, Licensed Massage Therapist
Patti DesJardins, Licensed Massage Therapist, Polarity Practitioner, Reiki Master, Yoga Teacher
Anja Sweetland, Licensed Massage Therapist, NCTMB, Reiki III
David Silver, Certified Teacher of Chi Gong
Kathy Gullotta, Certified Kripalu Yoga Teacher & Massage Therapist
Maureen Hammett, Yoga Teacher
Dottie Dings, LMT, NCTMB, Thai Massage
Victoria Pursley, Psychiatric Nurse, Nurse Practitioner
Anita Koonz, Assistant Office Manager
Photos by Beth Draper
By Cheryl Kain, Summer 2007
Cheryl Kain writes about alternative healing, music, food, travel and pop culture for various regional and national magazines. She is an accomplished singer/teacher and coaches voice privately. Please contact her through www.cherylkain.com
