We are delighted to welcome Holistic Massage Practitioner Rose Hardman to the Alma Vale Centre
Rose Hardman
Mondays 12:00pm to 8:00pm
Special Offer: Initial Appointment Includes 15-minute Free Consultation
About Rose
Having discovered the power of massage for herself, during a phase of burnout while working in the NHS, Rose decided to train in Holistic Massage. Prior to this, she worked for more than a decade as an NHS diagnostic radiographer.
Rose moved to Bristol in 2025 to complete a diploma in Holistic Massage at the highly regarded Bristol College of Massage and Bodywork (BCMB). Here she discovered how powerful touch can be for creating safety, allowing rest and repair, reducing pain and improving overall wellbeing.
Benefits of Holistic Massage
- Reduce Pain
- Release Tension
- Calm Nervous System
- Promote Deep Relaxation
- Improve Wellbeing
What Is a Holistic Massage?
Rose is proud to offer holistic massage sessions, supporting clients with whatever they bring to their sessions – be that pain and stiffness or just the chance to truly relax.
The beauty of Holistic Massage is that it uses a variety of techniques from many forms of massage and bodywork to meet your needs.
There are no routines, meaning you can get the most out of a tailored massage experience.
Techniques Used
- Energetic Holds: Hands are placed on the body through a drape to bring stillness and awareness to the body and bring the nervous system into a sense of safety.
- Effleurage: Long, generous sweeping strokes that help to warm up the body’s tissues to become more receptive to the massage. It also helps with blood flow and removing toxins.
- Percussion: A fast tapping stroke that brings energy and blood flow to the body, as well as breaking up adhesions to reduce muscle soreness and fatigue.
- Joint mobilisation: Supported, dynamic movement of joints that encourages fluid into the joint space to help reduce pain and stiffness.
- Deeper-tissue work: Use of increased pressure in targeted areas where muscles need more encouragement to let go, used once the muscles have been suitably warmed up.
- Skin Massage: Massage techniques that benefit the skin and fascia by freeing the more superficial layers of tissue. It can involve stretching the skin to free areas that have become ‘sticky’, or skin rolling to bring space and blood flow into the skin.
- Lymphatic Drainage: Activates the lymph nodes with a slow and controlled stroke towards the drainage points. This helps general wellbeing and to reduce fluid retention and swelling. (This is a more general lymphatic drainage technique and not suitable for those with specific medical conditions that require manual lymph drainage.)
- Energetic Work: Scanning the Chakras in a more still and meditative practice to help ground and centre through presence and attention to the body’s more subtle energies.
- Breathwork: Guiding your breath within the massage treatment to bring space to the whole chest area and encourage a switch into the parasympathetic nervous state where rest and repair can take place.
Individually Focused
At your initial consultation, Rose finds out where you are at with your health and wellbeing, and what you are looking for from your massage. She then creates a massage plan that she will discuss with you, and can adjust depending on your preferences.
During the treatment, Rose will check in with you to make any necessary adjustments to help you gain maximum benefit from the massage.
Use of Organic Oils
Rose uses hand-blended, quality organic oils to nourish the skin.
The oils are scent free, so are suitable for those with sensitive skin or senses.
To reduce her environmental impact, she minimises use of disposable products.
Outside of work, Rose enjoys hiking, tending to her allotment and making her own clothes.
Cost: £60 for 60 minutes; £75 for 75 minutes; £90 for 90 minutes. Initial appointment (consultation followed by massage): £60 for £75 minutes