A 20-minute healing-salt bath may be all the self-care you need

A 20-minute bath can make all your worries dissipate. Close the curtains, put the phone away, turn on some music and disappear from the world for a while. It’s hardly revolutionary wellness advice, but Beyond Wellness founder Michael Hook reckons people have forgotten how to stop, or even just pause.

“We don’t have enough me time. We don’t have enough downtime,” Hook said. And wellness, he added, does not necessarily have to involve expensive treatments, retreats or elaborate routines. Sometimes it can be as simple as intentionally setting aside a small part of the day for yourself. “Don’t just jump into the bath and jump out. Close the curtains. Preferably, smash your cell phone. Have a glass of wine. Put on some music. Make a bath a 20-minute ritual,” he said.

It is the ritual that makes the difference because, in reality, there is nothing particularly complicated about sitting still for 20 minutes. But deliberately doing nothing has become something many people struggle to do. The Dutch even have a word for it: niksen, which means quite literally doing, well, nothing. Phones follow us everywhere, work creeps into home time, and even relaxation can become another activity that has to be squeezed into a diary. Hook said there is nothing wrong with meditating in the bath either. Close your eyes and switch off for a while.

Bath time meditation

Hook has, of course, turned that philosophy into a business, although it happened almost by accident. Covid put an abrupt end to the corporate quit-smoking programmes he had been running until then. Around the same time, his wife was buying bath salts in bulk, repackaging and selling them, but she did not like the scent of the stuff. So, what to do?

Entrepreneur Michael Hook. Picture: Supplied

Hook suggested they try making their own, and that’s what the family did from their home. He, his wife and their two daughters experimented with fragrances and packaging until they eventually launched three variants. His mission was for the products to offer something beyond scent, and the range developed into what he calls healing salts, combining essential oils, herbal ingredients, and other additives marketed for wellness needs, including sleep, stress, post-sport recovery, and after-sun care.

The three bath salt variants became Beyond Wellness, and the company now manufactures, markets and distributes its products from Craighall, Joburg. It’s been about half a decade, and the brand now has an entire menu of salts and fragrances, while Hook has also managed to get several retailers to stock the products. “I’m the salesman. I’m the delivery guy. I’m new product development. So yes, I’m very hands-on,” said the former advertising executive, who has also restarted his quit-smoking business.

From product development to delivery guy

But there is an irony in selling self-care at a time when simply living has become expensive. Wellness has grown into an industry filled with treatments, products and experiences that can cost serious money, while the people who may need a break the most do not necessarily have spare cash to spend on one. “Our product has become something of a luxury, which is not the intention. I want everyone to enjoy it,” he said.

Bath salts, candles, music or whatever else helps set the scene are extras. The important part is allowing yourself the time to stop. “I think the fact that you go out and buy something to do your body good is a darn good starting point,” Hook said.