Why we deserve some pampering

Those of us who belong to the working class should enjoy the fruits of our labor with no guilt, and reward ourselves with such a pampering once in a while, especially when we hit our 50-plus birthday.

I’m not ashamed to admit that I am now 58 years old. I turned a year older on June 29, and have some of the age lines to show for it.

Though there are those who say I don’t look my age, I do experience shortness of breath after climbing three flights of stairs, and I have long chucked away my stiletto heels  in exchange for more comfortable shoes. In fact, my shoe brands are limited to Naturalizer, Rockport, Geox and Aerosoles. When I need to wear heels, I can only use them for less than an hour. In other words, the spirit is willing, but the body is definitely weaker!

In recent years, I’ve learned to be more practical and spend my money on things like renovations and experiential adventures abroad. When I turned 50, I had my bathroom redone, and to this day, I’m still happy and proud of the results.

Last year, I toured the Mediterranean aboard the Celebrity Cruise with good friends Keren Pascual and Leo Katigbak. This year, I am taking my kids Gabbie and Paolo on a trip to Europe since they are both  graduating from college and senior high school, respectively. As for the traditional celebrations, I personally don’t like birthday parties and prefer small, intimate lunches or dinners with family and dear friends.

Now that I’m two years shy of becoming a dual citizen (a Filipino AND a senior citizen), I wanted to give myself a more health-and-wellness-oriented birthday gift. And so, in light of my approaching “seniority,” I scheduled an appointment with EW Villa Medica two days before my birthday for some much-needed healthy pampering.

It was my dear friend Korina Sanchez-Roxas who introduced me to Paolo Lumabao, project manager of EW Villa Medica Manila. According to its website, EW Villa Medica Manila is part of the European Wellness (EW) Villa Medica global healthcare group, which is a center  for holistic wellness, regenerative medicine and rejuvenation.

The group specializes in delivering premium regenerative solutions through integrating cellular therapies, biomedical diagnostic and therapeutic devices with advanced health programs. EW Villa Medica in Germany, for example, is famous for its Fresh Cell Therapy (FCT).

FCT is an alternative, preventive and regenerative medicine that entails the injection of fresh cells derived from the fetus of a lamb into the patient. This procedure is definitely costly but those who have tried it swear that it is effective and worth every peso. The good news is that FCT is now available in Manila and the absence of expenses associated with travelling to another country make it a bit more reasonable.

I didn’t go to EW Villa Medica for the FCT, though. I went for the bio med scan, the Age Reverse Facial, and the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy. The bio med scan is based on the principle of Heart Rate Variability (HRV). HRV is the time interval between one heartbeat and the next, and is a measure of this naturally occurring irregularity in the heart rate. The higher the HRV, the greater your resilience and the lower your stress.

Somewhat expectedly, my results were not very encouraging. My stress factor was a bit high while my level of harmonization was quite low. The worst part was my biological age reading, which revealed that I had the health of a 60-year-old! My therapist tried to console me by saying that when she had her bio med scan, it showed that her biological age was seven years older than her actual age.

After the HRV, I had the Age Reverse Facial, which my therapist said utilized a facial mask containing 24k gold! More importantly though, the treatment itself is an advanced anti-aging facial sequence to tone and tighten the skin to reveal a more youthful glow. This was the best treatment I had that afternoon, and I especially enjoyed it when they covered my face with what they call a “space oxygen” which resembles a glass bubble that comes with built-in music. It was so relaxing that I fell into a deep sleep for 30 minutes. Only when the therapist came back did I wake up from the treatment.

Next and last was the Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy, which administers 100 percent pure medical oxygen to patients in a pressurized chamber. Before you enter the chamber — which can pass off as a playhouse that can accommodate up to four persons — you are asked to surrender your cellphone and other metallic objects like your watch and jewelry because these are not allowed inside. In exchange, they gave me a magazine to while away the time.

The chamber is pressurized at elevated pressures which enhance memory and concentration, prevents aging, and keeps the body balanced. Being in the chamber also helps cure wounds by reviving cells and removing toxic substances from the body. It also helps maintain the body’s optimal condition and stimulates the production of collagen. I realized that this was an effective therapy since I stayed alert the whole hour. Normally, I would fall asleep after reading for just a few minutes, but after 60 minutes in the chamber, I felt recharged and full of energy.

Needless to say, the close to four hours of “me time” I was at EW Villa Medica was time and money well spent. Those of us who belong to the working class should enjoy the fruits of our labor with no guilt, and reward ourselves with such a pampering once in a while, especially when we hit our 50-plus birthday.