SPA SCENE: MODRN SANCTUARY

By Griffin Miller

When it comes to luxury spas, it’s pointless to go for the gold when there’s platinum in those dimly lit treatment rooms. Velvet massages, aromatherapy, facials that turn depleted skin to radiance, manicures, pedicures, saunas, Jacuzzis, cushy chairs, Prosecco... guilt-free indulgence.

Recently, though, I’ve been on a quest to expand my posh spa horizon by embracing treatments and experiences that straddle the well-being pampering divide. Of Manhattan’s substantial options one of the most intriguing is Modrn Sanctuary, a wellness center in the heart of Manhattan’s NoMad neighborhood.

When you step off the elevator, you find yourself in an attractive reception/waiting area. There are two hallways lined with intriguing works of art and doors leading to rooms occupied by practitioners offering a variety of holistic services and classes. But I had been seduced by two specific offerings: Crystal Light Therapy and Halotherapy.

PEACE & RELAXATION
I should mention that I’ve never been swept up in anything remotely New Age or holistic. So when Alexandra Janelli—Modrn Sanctuary’s creator/owner—introduced me to Crystal Light Therapy, I was a total neophyte. However, as she described the concept, I became increasingly intrigued. Among the treatment’s benefits are reductions in anxiety, panic attacks, stress and migraines; more energy and vitality; feelings of physical healing; and an overall sense of peace and relaxation. To be honest, she had me at stress.

All this takes place in a treatment room dominated by a Quantum Resonance Crystal Bed—roughly the size of a massage table but with Vogel quartz crystals forming a chorus line of multi-colored lights, each radiating above the table. On it was a heated mat that vibrates to a beat designed to complement your chakra and choice of music (kind of an audio simulcast).

As I lay down (in my street clothes… no robes or wraps required), the infrared warmth of the mat was lovely. I selected the color or chakra that spoke to me (light blue) and adjusted the headphones while Alexandra covered my eyes with a soft, lightly scented mask. Then I was alone with nothing to do but de-stress and rejuvenate. And, yes, all the elements involved worked in my favor. Thoughts dissipated altogether. And while I didn’t doze, the half-hour slipped through my consciousness like silk.

THE SALT OF LIFE
As I left the room, for the second half of my Modrn Sanctuary adventure—Halotherapy—I was genuinely relaxed and untroubled. After one session. Interesting.

Halo (or salt) therapy is just a matter of spending quality time in a most remarkable environment: the Salt Room. Uniquely enticing, the 190-square-foot space is comprised of 11,000 tons of 200 million-year-old Himalayan pink salt. The walls are made of salt bricks—both rough and smooth—and thanks to LED lights, they can change color in a range spanning vibrant pink to a calming beige, your choice. And the heated floor is an expanse of salt granules…deliciously dense and lovely to walk barefoot in. Or crawl around in. Of course, crawling is optional as the salt suite features zero-gravity reclining chairs.

The room is tailored to your sound preferences: binaural beats; relaxation music (guided or no). The healing comes mostly vis a vis the Halo-Generator, a state-of-the-art mechanism that crushes up small particles of salt that fill the air of the salt room. You don’t notice the particles at all, but you’re inhaling them as you rest, meditate, or leisurely carve pictures in the salt floor. Namaste.

For more information on Modrn Sanctury, visit modrnsactuary.com.