Beata Aleksandrowicz: the power of touch

Beata Aleksandrowicz is an international expert on massage, healing and women’s wellbeing, and a vocal advocate on the potent power of touch.

A global educator, she teaches her Beata Aleksandrowicz Spa Training Method in spas globally and will launch the Beata Digital Academy in the coming months.

Here, she shares her expertise on the continued importance of human connection in the wellness industry, despite the advent of touchless wellness technologies.

What makes touch such a powerful sense?

“Touch is the mother of all senses; it helps us to grow physically and emotionally; it makes us human. Touch gives us the deepest connection with each other, bringing comfort and care, and reassuring us we are not alone.

“What sets touch apart from the other senses is its intimacy. Touch requires direct contact with the skin, the sensory organ of tactile sensation, and is fundamental to all human interaction.”

Scientifically speaking, how does touch positively affect us?

“We have around five million touch receptors in our skin, with 20,000 in our hands alone.

“Tiffany Field, a leader in touch research, concluded that when we stimulate these receptors, vagal activity increases. The vagus is one of 12 cranial nerves, with many branches all over the body. When vagal activity increases there is a significant drop in the stress hormone cortisol and an increase in our bonding hormone, oxytocin.

“There is also an increase in serotonin, which is the body’s natural antidepressant and anti-pain chemical.”

Why is touch so important in the spa industry?

“We live in a world where people feel deprived of touch; we physically connect with others less and less. Many people no longer understand how to respond to the intimacy of touch – even a simple hug can be problematic.

“After the years of isolation caused by the pandemic, our chances of receiving touch have increasingly narrowed. We know that touch deprivation leads to loneliness and so often to depression, yet we are afraid to touch others. We simply don’t know how.

“The International Psychological Journal conducted research that showed 72.73 per cent of participants long for touch. That is a staggering number!

“The spa environment has become the only place left for many of us to receive nurturing touch. The core purpose of our industry is to serve society by contributing to the healthy growth of people’s emotional, physical, mental and spiritual wellbeing. We have everything at our disposal to make such a contribution.

“We have the knowledge, facilities and therapists to offer people what they crave the most – human experience – and touch is the essence of our offering.”

With the rise of touchless treatments how can we combine touch and technology?

“There should be no tension between technology and touch. Tech-led treatments still require spa teams to create a journey. Your therapists and medical wellness teams are the conduit between technology and human experience.

“To deliver touch alongside touchless technologies in a meaningful way, therapists need to be coached and empowered. It is not enough to simply expect them to provide it.

“We are talking about developing soft skills: empathy, connection and the ability to relate to people, personalisation beyond the physical and so on.

“This cannot be taught just by creating protocols. Each of these skills must come from within and this requires enhanced training that addresses the emotional wellbeing of your team.”

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