Shopping. It’s always frantic – whether you’re buying presents or for yourself – so it can be good, when you’re feeling frazzled, to take a break. Now, if you’re doing your shopping in central London, there’s a place where you can give yourself an hour off and set off into the throngs once more, refreshed and ready for the fray.
The HVN (as in haven – or possibly heaven – and that’s precisely what’s needed sometimes) is just up the road from Harrods and Harvey Nicks. Its cream and caramel interior induces calm and there’s a hushed atmosphere inside which is far cry from the traffic and crowds outside. The HVN styles itself as a wellness and longevity clinic and it does have a very wide range of innovative treatments that address a number of health concerns. It does also, though, have more conventional therapies for when you need a quick lift of mood or an hour to reduce your stress levels.
With this in mind, I tried a massage on the HVN’s HydroBed. Now this is the first such bed of its kind that I’ve come across. In my experience, hydrobeds tend to be part of a massage table that melts away leaving you floating, supported by water so that your body assumes a natural and profoundly relaxing curve. These beds are mostly used for wraps and body masks.
This is different. It’s a water mattress on top of the table so that you have a gentler surface to rest on but there is also firmness to it so the massage itself will work. It’s a versatile piece of equipment – there are shower heads above for a Vichy water massage, for instance. And there’s also a range of lighting that surrounds you on the bed as well as from the ceiling that is thought to be therapeutic in different ways, such as promoting healing or awareness.
My therapist, Catya, took me to the treatment room which is sizeable and even comes with its own dressing area, a sofa and a mirror – very handy when you’re going back out into the world. There followed a very pleasant hour of massage with lighting changes and a range of accompanying sounds at various stages – tinkling bells and singing bowls. All very relaxing and it set me up nicely for the rest of the day.
There are many other areas to explore at HVN and they have doctors and nurses on hand to assess your overall health needs, as well as therapists who offer a range of anti-ageing treatments (collagen stimulation, microneedling, polynucleotides and more), as well as body contouring and fat reduction, acupuncture and IV infusions – for this you’ll need more time to explore. But if you’re footsore from tramping through the shops – this is an excellent place for a spot of R&R.
The HVN Wellbeing Ltd, 57-63 Knightsbridge London SW1X 7BF. For more information, including details of the HVN philosophy, treatments and consultations, please visit www.the-hvn.com.
