Lomi Lomi

N.B. Since writing this review I have found an amazing authentic Lomi Lomi massage in London - stay tuned for the full review in my 2015 guide. Zanna is a wonderful healer and she may be also starting to teach Lomi Lomi massage to others soon, so do contact her if you are interested.

Many times you will read that a massage incorporates Lomi Lomi, and as such I have been on the receiving end of this treatment as part of a fusion massage on many occasions. Having said that, as I look deeper into Native American healing I realise that my understanding of this type of massage may have been distorted; as has the practice.

Originally Lomi Lomi was a traditional and spiritual form of healing, using massage, which came to Hawaii from ancient Polynesia, and could also be seen as a religious practice involving praying for the person being treated and even specific herbs being used.

Unfortunately in the 20th Century moves made to legislate massage practices in Hawaii drove traditional practitioners underground and today, what many people consider as Lomi Lomi may be a sanitised, commercial version. (Honestly, why do we do these things to ourselves?)

If you're looking for a traditional Lomi Lomi massage you may well have to go off the beaten track and find local home practitioners (who may not be entirely legal according to regional legislature in the US!)