One of my core memories from elementary school was riding home on the bus, eagerly awaiting my turn to sit with Tiffany, our fifth-grade neighbor who was good with kids. Tiffany would pretend like she ...

ASMR, or autonomous sensory meridian response, became the most searched term on YouTube in 2023, with a total of 79.5m searches. It’s an online powerhouse, redefining the way people think about ...

Fingers play lightly through your hair. The tantalizing and delicate smell of sweet orange. A soft brush traces across the ears. The prolonged ring of a singing bowl. The skin prickles with each new ...

Julie Luther, founder of Soft Touch ASMR Spa in Pasadena, gives the author an ASMR massage. I've never felt weird about paying strangers to touch me. Massages, facials, martial arts — it's all just ...

It starts with a feather touch. A real feather tail brushes your head and slowly glides down your back. Then cometh the soft bristles moving over your head, your shoulders, and your arms too. There's ...

I’m sitting on a futon in a stranger’s apartment with my friend Ashley. In front of us, Melinda Lauw—a slender, wide-eyed Singaporean woman—is crouched in a squat, holding a small flickering candle, ...

Not only did I not know what to expect from Luxury Escapism: The Oddly Satisfying Spa, but I walked right past its unassuming front door in the Dumbo neighborhood of Brooklyn. The spa, which is ...

Three years ago, an idea from a colleague changed Holly Tanella’s business—and her life—forever. In 2022, Tanella—who owns BOHO Med Spa in Allen, Texas—was speaking with her social media coordinator ...

SINGAPORE — A 25-year-old US-based Singaporean is part of a team that provides unique “audio spa” services that include brushing your hair, crinkling paper and whispering into your ear in the name of ...

“It’s time for your lice check,” a woman who goes by “Ms. K” whispers directly into my ear as she starts running her fingers into my scalp and through each strand of hair. I’m in a dark room, Eastern ...