I don’t think it could honestly have come at a better time.

Liz’s fibromyalgia had been particularly bad. Although  her symptoms mean that her body hurts constantly apparently it had been a lot worse than usual. Last week was a killer by all accounts.

And me ….

I recon I was only a couple of days off being whisked away to the funny farm… courtesy of the ‘turps’ mishap on my face only last week and the never-ending house sagar, which is a case of 2 steps forward, 3 steps back

The only 2 things that saved my sanity were:

1.) The installation of my new cooker. Its been a while . 8 months if we are counting. Grilled asparagus you were worth waiting for .

2.) A spa day at Moddershall Oaks !

We were invited to spend a day at the spa, which included drinks on arrival, full use of the spa, including a limited edition massage of our choice and a 2-course lunch.

Having visited once before we were both extremely excited about the prospect of spending some time there. It really is beautiful.

We arrived just after 9.00am which had meant a rather early Sunday morning start for us both. It’s approximately a 2 hour drive from Sheffield to Staffordshire. Poor Liz had to drive even further from Wakefield!

It was well worth it.

Dairy Lea dippers and ‘chit chat’ saw us through.

On arrival along with a fresh glass of orange juice we were handed our schedule which detailed massage and lunch times  and a menu so we could pre-order lunch.

My Swedish back massage was booked for 11.30. Liz’s Gold Honey back massage was booked straight after at 12 noon.

Lunch was 12.30

That gave us a couple of hours to chill in the indoor spa area.

Armed with our complimentary bathrobes and towels we made our way down.

Perfect.

This area includes a swimming pool, steam room, hydrotheraphy pool and reflexology foot baths.

There are several loungers where you can chill, read a book or just reflect.

There are also 3 heated tiled loungers , one of which I am enjoying above!! I fell asleep and at one point thought I may have to be surgically removed.

Sooooo relaxing.

******

Right I have to confess I’ve never had a massage before. Not a professional one anyway. Yep at the ripe old age of 45 I’ve ticked another one-off my ‘to do’ list …

I was eagerly anticipating this.

As I stated earlier I had the Swedish back massage which lasts 25 minutes and costs £35.00.

Swedish massage technique relaxes the body by rubbing the muscles with long gliding strokes. It is extremely beneficial for increasing the level of oxygen in the blood, decreasing muscle toxins , while easing tension.

After popping on my black paper pants (very fetching) I lay face down on the massage table and let the therapist do her work.

From the word go I loved it and  I have to admit that I fell asleep.

It went far too quickly and I was left feeling totally relaxed . I actually felt a-bit dopey in a lovely way…like somebody had removed my ability to think and function normally?

I’m addicted.

Liz had one of the new Winter inspired Treatments in the form of the Gold Honey back massage.

This is a de-stressing massage with extracts of caviar, anti-oxidants, vitamin A, B, D and E and decadent amber scent.

I’ll just pass you over to Liz for a moment  as she runs through her experience:

“After months of suffering aches and pains (I was diagnosed with Fybromyalgia last November), the thought of a gold and caviar massage could be just what the doctor ordered (or didn’t in the case of my GP!!)

Sarah was the unfortunate therapist that had to listen to my list of ailments before deciding which Elemis massage oil (they were out of golden caviar) would best suit my knackered old bones and muscles.

Laid on the bed, face down (with my face poking through a hole), suitably relaxing bird tweeting/water trickling type music and dimmed mood lighting…Sarah got to work.

A 6.30am start to my day had made sure I was already in ‘relax mode’ so as soon as Sarah’s hands started their magic on my back, I was well on my way to Zzzzzz land.

Every brush, roll, knead and rub on my back sent me deeper into some kind of hypnotic trance but all too quickly my time was up.

As much as I could have stayed face planted into that bed for the entire day, I had to muster up enough energy to move.

Sarah warned me to get up slowly as I may feel light headed…boy she wasnt joking!!

I’m not sure what was in that oil or how a half hour back massage could alter my state but after suffering from so many symptoms of Fibro (anxiety, stress, tension, aches, pains to name but a few – I’ll keep all the gory details for a different blog post) and taking many types of medication (most of little or no effect) I was in a place of calm, pain-free, bliss.

It was almost like I’d had a full frontal lobotomy or been drugged (think One Flew Over The Cuckoo’s Nest…now I’m showing my age) but in a nice way – I was in such a relaxed state that continued for the remainder of the day.

I’m hooked.

Wonder if my doc will prescribe me a Moddershall Oaks massage…one to be taken daily!!”

Other new winter limited edition treatments available at the spa include :

• Pumpkin Salted Body Scrub
• Ginger, sweet orange and cocoa bean body wrap
• Shimmering Gold back treat
• Sweet neroli and Mandarin Preganancy back massage.

These treatments will be available from October 2016 at a cost £30.00 for 25 minutes. They all sound delicious!

******

Next stop was lunch in the restaurant which we were both looking forward too .

We were both starving. What can I say …its hard work this spa malarkey!

Like 2 zombies we made our way to the restaurant.

On route…

Grilled asparagus, feta cheese , pea shoots and broad beans. mmm mmm.

Chicken liver pate, garlic baguette, Cumberland sauce and red onion marmalade.

All starters are priced at £5.95 and mains at £12.95

Crab, lime and chilli Linguine. The portion was small but very tasty.

Below Liz opted for a freshly baked baguette with chargrilled rump steak and chips.

I can confirm those chips were good especially dipped in mayo, as I pinched a few.

After lunch we decided to go and explore outside.

The sun had decided to come out and having not seen this area of the spa before we wanted to investigate.

It’s a lovely tranquil area.

We sat and watched the massive fish (my dad would have been by-side himself!) … taking in our surroundings.

******

We ended the day  supping coffee, lounging around , chilling at the outdoor spa courtyard with its heated vitality spa pool and kelo sauna.

We did a previous post on the courtyard when it opened back in 2014, which you can read here.

It’s a beautiful spot especially when you blag the settees next to the fire.

We had to wait a while but they eventually came free and we jumped on.

We visited the spa and experienced the ‘Little Luxury’ package – which includes a 2 course lunch, facial or massage and full use of spa from £99.00 per person.

There are however loads more options to choose from; half day, full day and even overnight packages.

I’d seriously consider staying over next time… We were both that relaxed we agreed it would have been nice to have a room booked that we could crawl over too when the time was right .

Let the ‘chillaxing’ continue a little longer into the night. Glass of Prosecco in hand, dipping in and out of the pool, under the stars and watchful moon.

Click here for further details.

We had a fabulously relaxing day in beautiful surroundings – It’s just what the doctor ordered.

Until next time, Tracey & Liz x

•  The spa day was kindly gifted to us by Moddershall Oak Spa and arranged by The Spa PR Company. All thoughts and opinions are however strictly our own.