Being placed in a position of abject fear is an unlikely choice to de-stress.

But one Indonesian centre is now offering snake massages, which they claim help alleviate stress by taking your mind off other day-to-day worries.

While clearly not for everyone, the staff at Jakarta’s Bali Heritage Reflexology and Spa may have a point.

Lying rigid and motionless as several pythons of all shapes, colours and sizes are writhe across your bare back, is quite likely to divert your mind from any concerns to the present moment.

But the science behind the ‘relaxation’ theory goes against their claims.

The centre says the movement of the snakes and the adrenaline triggered by fear is said to have a positive impact on the customer’s metabolism.

However, adrenaline is released when someone is stressed and it has several effects on the body which relaxing spa treatments aim to counter.

 

When faced with a stressful situation, such as being covered in snakes, the body releases the hormone adrenaline, among other chemicals, which increases your heart rate, elevates your blood pressure and boosts energy supplies.

So a ‘therapy’ that aims to have this effect will only serve to make you feel more wired and on edge as opposed to less relaxed – assuming clients are not accustomed to touching snakes.

There is a chance that after being frozen in fear with muscles tensed for up to an hour, that customers may need a full body massage afterwards, to need out some new knots.

 

But for those who have a love of snakes, and feel comfortable in their company, perhaps feeling them slither across your bare body might be genuinely relaxing.

Either way, it’s an interesting, if not slightly bizarre, idea and appears to be attracting some inquisitive clients.

Read more: Daily Mail