Guest Journeys
From Eindhoven to Vlodrop — seven days of daily oil massage and stillness
Sanne de Groot had spent years treating tension as background noise. This is the account of her 7-Day Abhyanga programme at MERU — told through her own reflections and her Vaidya's notes, day by day.
Sanne de Groot, 39 · Eindhoven, Netherlands · 7-Day Abhyanga Immersion · Muscular tension, shallow breathing, low resilience to stress
Where She Started
"My shoulders had been up near my ears for so long I'd stopped noticing," Sanne said. A physiotherapist had ruled out anything structural — the tightness was hers to carry, not fix with a single session. She'd tried massage before, but always as a one-off, never as part of something coherent.
"What made MERU different from the start was that my Vaidya didn't just ask where it hurt. She asked how I breathed, how I slept, what I ate when I was stressed — the whole picture."
Her Programme at MERU
Sanne's Vaidya identified an aggravated Vata pattern behind her tension and shallow breathing. Her seven days centred on daily full-body Abhyanga with warm, herb-infused oil chosen for her constitution, paired with Marma point work on her shoulders and neck, gentle Swedana, and a grounding diet with fixed meal times. Nothing was templated — the oil blend and pressure changed twice across the week as her body responded.
Her Journey, Step by Step
Days 1–2 — Settling In. First Abhyanga sessions were slow and observational. "My Vaidya spent as much time noticing where I flinched as she did massaging," Sanne said.
Days 3–4 — Marma Focus. Targeted Marma point work began on her shoulders and neck. "That's when I felt something actually release, not just relax for an hour."
Days 5–6 — Breath Returning. Sessions were paired with quiet breathing practice after each massage. "I noticed my breath had gotten shallow years ago without realising — this was the first time in a while I felt it go deep on its own."
Day 7 — Taking It Home. Her Vaidya taught her a shortened self-Abhyanga routine for mornings at home. "She was clear it wouldn't replace this week — but it would keep me from drifting straight back to where I started."
Her Reflections at Day 7
I didn't come here for a massage. I came here for someone to notice what my body had been carrying for years — and Abhyanga, done daily and with intention, is what finally let it go.
— Sanne de Groot, 7-Day Abhyanga Immersion
Vaidya's Note
Chronic, low-grade tension of the kind Sanne carried is a classic Vata presentation — the body holding stress in the muscles and breath rather than showing it acutely. Daily oil application isn't cosmetic here; it's a direct therapeutic tool for calming Vata. Her Marma work and breath practice were designed to outlast the week itself, which is the real marker of a successful Abhyanga programme.
Your own journey starts with a conversation
A Vaidya consultation is the first step — to understand what your body is carrying before any programme is proposed.
