“Masahe at Akyu” at the New JaimEliza

As a proponent of social entrepreneurship in Bicol, I am now experimenting with one unique social enterprise that started and gained traction among our community members, primarily women, in the last quarter of the two-year Social Enterprise Development Project of Mariners-CHEd with TBM and CBSUA. It is entrepreneurship in the health and wellness industry: massage and acupuncture.
The Ilaw ng Hilot Association (IHA), organized under the auspices of the SEDP, participates as the managers, workers, planners, and implementors of the business plan in tandem with the New JaimEliza management, in the true spirit of the social entrepreneurship framework of people-oriented enterprises for poverty reduction and disaster resilience. The combined Massage and acupuncture services will now be available at the cool Hardin Wellness hideaway of the New JaimEliza along Baras highway in Canaman, Camarines Sur.
With the SED project’s exit last December 21, the project’s success continues. The massage combined with akyu as a wellness social enterprise joins the “negosyo na may puso” enterprises at the store and borrows from Dr. Norby Salonga’s talk on social entrepreneurship during the Regional Social Entrepreneurship Summit last year at the Naga City Vista Mall, there is nothing like a business that operates with a heart. Sen Loren Legarda was the Summit’s keynote speaker, along with scholar Dr. Lisa Dacanay as expert resource lecturer.
Next week, on the occasion of the Chinese New Year, I start to prepare for the opening of the Masahe/Akyu, a unique feature of the New JaimEliza, the store with a mission in Canaman, Camarines Sur that showcases social enterprises of community organizations of disaster survivors marketing their services and products made in Camarines Sur and Albay. What an auspicious way to celebrate and open a new enterprise!
Pain and stress are universal human experiences, and emotional pain can be a distressing sensory and emotional experience. For many, a gentle massage can quickly soothe one’s body and emotional pain. After the severe storm Kristine, I saw myself, friends, and family rushing to our favorite massage parlors to unwind and relax. It is an antidote to distress.
Massage therapy as a livelihood skill came late for the SED project. However, it is one of the leading short courses of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) available for low-income people who wish to acquire technical skills for a living. It shows it is a viable social enterprise. It attracted a relatively large number of members of the community.
The Massage and Acupuncture
Massage and Wellness Therapy consists of competencies for the persons to serve, like doctors who care for their patients to reduce their pain. Some of the core techniques of massage range from Swedish, Shiatsu, Thai massage, and Hilot, the Filipino traditional massage for the trainees to eventually become professional massage therapists. Last August, the first SED massage training began, with 22 successful new massage therapists after intensive training. They support the Philippine Institute of Traditional and Alternative Health Care (PITAHC) mandate to help develop traditional and alternative health care and its integration into the national health care to serve more Filipinos better. Nearby Canaman, is the municipality of Magarao, famous for its traditional Hilot practitioners.
My interest in massage began to heighten with the stressful turn of disastrous occurrences happening almost frequently in Bicol. My husband and I would visit Trangkilo twice a month, where my ESense anti-stress citronella-kalamansi-tangled and pili oils in roller bottles are readily available for the tired and weary. The soothing touch of the massage therapists on my tired, tense body inside the privacy of the cubicle is a great comfort that alleviates pain and induces relaxation. At the New JaimEliza, the ESence herbal essential oils massage is at work with the gentle piped-in music that adds to the efficacy of the massage that focuses on the body’s vital energy channels and muscles to relieve spasm and tightness for ultimate relaxation.
I came to know about acupuncture when I was in college when I experienced frequent fainting and intense stomach pains because of missing out on meals and developing ulcers eventually. My friend, a dorm mate who had trained in Chinese acupuncture while studying medicine, was a constant source of support. I saw how she would prick one sterilized needle in the middle between my thumb and point finger, and the pain would instantly go away. The method of acupuncture using the fine, sterile needles along the pathways of the meridians aims to restore “internal balance; it is the internal imbalance which leads to illness.”
In Bicol, trained and licensed acupuncturists are rare. Acupuncture is rooted in traditional Chinese medicine and has been practiced for over 2,500 years. It is built on the foundation of balancing the body’s vital life force, known as “Qi” or “Chi.” Another traditional Chinese tradition regularly practiced is Tai chi and qi gong, which combine movement, meditation, and breathing exercises to improve health and balance.
In a world where stress, pain, and health issues are every day especially during disasters, the search for effective methods to alleviate ailments has led many to explore the realms of acupuncture and massage therapy. Added service is bone alignment helps release “trapped nerves” that cause body pains. These alternative healing practices have been trusted for centuries and have stood the test of time. These are now available at the Hardin of the New JaimEliza, near the Mariner’s campus in Canaman, which showcases other social enterprises.
The New JaimEliza Store is also the home of the popular ESense, tbe natural instant essential oils stress relief in a bottle, Pandesal Marinero, the veggie VitaSisig and KamJus.
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