03/21/2026
There is something sacred about touch…
Something ancient. Something remembered.
Long before we had words for healing, before we had medicines lined neatly on shelves… we had hands.
If you go back through history, you’ll find massage woven into the earliest civilizations.
In ancient China, texts dating back thousands of years describe healing through pressure and movement of energy.
In India, Ayurvedic traditions used oil and rhythmic touch to restore balance to the body.
The Egyptians depicted massage in tomb paintings. The Greeks and Romans used it for athletes, for warriors, for restoration after battle.
Touch was never considered a luxury.
It was considered necessary.
And yet somewhere along the way… we forgot.
We became a world that learned how to function without touch—busy, efficient, productive… but often disconnected.
We shook hands less.
We hugged less.
We sat behind screens more
And without even realizing it, something within us grew quietly hungry.
Because touch is not just physical…
It is psychological.
It is neurological.
It is deeply human.
Touch is the very first sense we develop in the womb.
Before a baby ever sees its mother… before it hears her voice clearly… it feels.
The gentle pressure of the womb. The rhythm. The safety.
And when we are born, what is the very first thing we instinctively need?
To be held.
There is a reason for that.
Science now confirms what our ancestors seemed to understand without needing proof—safe, nurturing touch calms the nervous system.
It lowers cortisol, releases oxytocin, slows the heart rate, and brings the body out of survival mode.
It tells the body…
“You are safe now.”
And isn’t that what we see throughout scripture?
Again and again… healing came through touch.
Jesus didn’t always heal from a distance.
He reached out.
He touched the leper—
“Jesus reached out his hand and touched the man. ‘I am willing,’ he said. ‘Be clean!’” — Matthew 8:3
He took people by the hand—
“He took her by the hand and helped her up…” — Mark 1:31
He allowed others to reach for Him—
“She came up behind him and touched the edge of his cloak… and immediately her bleeding stopped.” — Luke 8:44
There is something powerful in that exchange…
a connection… a transfer… a knowing.
Touch carries intention.
And we’ve all felt it… that quiet, unexpected moment…
When someone gently lays their hand on your shoulder.
No words.
No fixing.
Just presence.
And something inside of you softens almost instantly.
Sometimes your breath catches.
Sometimes your eyes fill with tears before you even understand why.
Because in that simple gesture, the body recognizes something deeply familiar…
“I am not alone.”
“I am safe.”
It bypasses logic and goes straight to the heart… straight to the nervous system… straight to the places we don’t always have words for.
And when that kind of touch is missing?
We see it.
Studies on infants who lacked physical affection showed delayed development, emotional withdrawal, even failure to thrive.
In adults, the absence of touch can quietly show up as anxiety, restlessness, disconnection… even a loneliness that can’t quite be explained.
The body keeps track.
And the body… longs to be remembered.
Maybe that is why, in recent years, we’ve seen such a surge in the popularity of massage.
It’s not just about pampering. It’s not indulgence.
It’s return.
A return to something we were designed for.
As a massage therapist of 27 years, I’ve had the honor of witnessing this over and over again.
Clients come in carrying the weight of their lives—in their shoulders, their jaws, their backs… but also in their nervous systems.
At first, their bodies are guarded. Protective. Unsure.
And then something begins to happen.
Through intentional, therapeutic touch… the body starts to soften.
The breath deepens. Muscles release, yes—but more than that… the person begins to return to themselves.
Sometimes they don’t even realize what they’ve been holding until it lets go.
And in that quiet space… healing begins.
Not because I am doing something to them… but because their body finally feels safe enough to do what it was always designed to do.
Restore.
Reset.
Remember.
I often tell my clients—this is your time.
If you’re too warm, we adjust. Too cool, we add a blanket.
This is a space where your nervous system is allowed to step out of the noise of the world and into stillness.
Because so many of us are living in a constant state of “go”… what we call sympathetic mode—the fight or flight response.
But healing happens in the opposite space.
In the parasympathetic…
the “rest and restore.”
And isn’t that what we are invited into?
“Be still, and know that I am God.” — Psalm 46:10
Sometimes… stillness is found in prayer.
Sometimes… it is found in quiet.
And sometimes… it is found in the gentle, intentional care of another.
There is something profoundly humbling about being trusted in that way—to hold space where healing can occur.
I don’t take that lightly. In fact, I’m deeply honored by it—especially knowing some travel an hour… even two or more… just to rest in that space.
That tells me something.
It tells me people aren’t just seeking relief…
They are seeking connection.
Safety.
Peace.
And maybe, if we’re honest…
We all are.
So if you’ve been feeling tired… restless… a little disconnected…
It may not just be in your mind.
It may be your body… quietly asking…
to be cared for,
to be soothed,
to be held—
even in the simplest, most professional, therapeutic way.
Because touch…
real, safe, intentional touch…
is not a luxury.
It is part of what makes us human.
And perhaps…
part of what helps bring us back home to ourselves.
“He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds.” — Psalm 147:3
Every Soul Needs a Little Mending 🤍
..Ali
Mended Souls Massage Clinic
Marshfield, MO