Stress Reliever

Andrea Leigh believes the treatments offered at A New Spirit Wellness Center & Spa, which she owns and manages, can help alleviate the minor tension and strain most of us suffer. But she also likes a challenge, which is why she's currently staging a contest to find Denver's Most Stressed-Out Person. In her words, "It's fun for me to prove how well what we're doing works."

A New Spirit's techniques revolve around float tanks — shallow pools filled with a saltwater solution that mimic some effects of zero gravity. Leigh notes that people from all walks of life have discovered the tanks' therapeutic benefits, including the winner of the spa's first search for the city's stress champ, staged a few years back. The woman's co-workers entered her in the competition, which currently calls for participants to write a 100-words-or-less personal essay describing why they're under pressure. Since then, Leigh reports that the woman has changed her life for the better. "This can really have an impact on people," she says. "It's a very powerful tool."

Given all the stresses of modern life, it had better be.

A New Spirit, at 4907 West 29th Avenue, is open today from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Essays can be e-mailed to andrea.anew-spirit@gmail.com through midnight on April 14, and results will be announced on April 15 — a stress-inducing date if ever there was one. The winner will receive six months of monthly unlimited flotation sessions, as well as one massage per month during that period. To learn more, surf to www.anewspirit.com or phone 303-477-1652.
March 20-April 14, 2008