Menopause self-care: your menopause MOT for aches, sleep, stress and skin

Oct 16, 2026by PURE Spa UK

New aches in your back and hips. Nights that break up at 3am. A shorter fuse, a foggier head, and skin that suddenly feels drier and looser than it used to.

Perimenopause and menopause bring a lot of change at once, usually in the busiest years of your life. You look after everyone else. Now it is your turn.

Welcome to your menopause MOT: four checkpoints, four ways to feel like yourself again, all bookable online at PURE.

Checkpoint 1: aches and broken sleep

Massage is the cornerstone of your MOT, and the research is on your side. In a pilot study of women past menopause who were sleeping badly, a course of 16 massages helped them fall asleep faster and spend more time in deep sleep.

Imagine it. Warm hands working out the knots in your shoulders. Heated stones melting into your lower back. Your breathing slows, your jaw unclenches, and bed has never looked so inviting.

Deep tissue, sports or hot stone massage: from £72 for 40 minutes, £100 for 60, £140 for 90. At every PURE spa.
Treatments of 60 minutes or longer include 60 minutes of spa and wellness facilities (facilities vary by spa, visit our spa page for details). Your massage becomes a whole afternoon.

Rather stay clothed? BackHug robotic back therapy at PURE Lothian Road, Edinburgh, works 26 robotic fingers along your spine from neck to lower back while you lie fully dressed, with soothing heat and a zero-gravity leg rest. 60 minutes: £75.

Checkpoint 2: running hot

When you feel like a radiator at 3am, cold water feels incredible. A UCL survey of 785 menopausal women who swim in cold water found almost half felt less anxious and three in ten said their hot flushes eased.

You do not need a loch to get that feeling. Try it at PURE:

Cold Water Therapy, 10 minutes: £15. A cool, bracing reset.
Contrast Therapy "Fire & Ice", 60 minutes: £40. Warm up, plunge, repeat, and always finish on a cool, bright high.

Both at PURE Union Square, Aberdeen, and Lothian Road, Edinburgh.

Checkpoint 3: stress and a busy head

Some days you just need to lie down and let the world go quiet. The Zerobody dry float at PURE Union Square, Aberdeen, is made for exactly that. You lie fully clothed on a warm water bed, stay completely dry, and feel your body go weightless. Choose guided mindfulness, breathing or music.

Best of all if you run hot: you set the water temperature, so the bed feels just right for you.

Zerobody dry float: 30 minutes £45, 60 minutes £55.

Prefer to lie back and breathe? An hour of hyperbaric oxygen therapy gives you 60 phone-free minutes in a calm, reclined chamber breathing 90 to 95% oxygen. £85, at Union Square, Lothian Road, West Nile Street and Witney Lakes.

Checkpoint 4: changing skin

Many women notice their skin change faster than ever around menopause: drier, thinner-looking, with lines that seem to arrive overnight. This is where LED shines.

In a trial of 76 people, red and near-infrared LED twice a week for four weeks reduced wrinkles by up to 36% and lifted skin elasticity by up to 19%. Skin samples showed more collagen, the protein that keeps skin springy.

At PURE you lie back under the Dermalux LED panel, goggles on, warm red light washing over your face. Thirty minutes later your skin looks fresher and you feel completely relaxed. Smoother, firmer-looking skin, without a single needle.

LED Light Therapy (Face), 30 minutes: £45.
LED course of six sessions: £225.
Deluxe Facial + LED, 60 minutes: £75. Cleanse, facial, then 30 minutes under the light.

LED is at Cults, Union Square, Rose Street, Lothian Road, West Nile Street, Witney Lakes and Coventry.

Feeling heavy? Try lymphatic drainage massage

If you feel heavy and sluggish, a lymphatic drainage massage at PURE Witney Lakes is a gentle, rhythmic, light-pressure massage that leaves you feeling lighter and deeply relaxed. 40 minutes £82, 60 minutes £110, 90 minutes £140.

Book your full menopause MOT

Do the whole MOT in one visit:

The Sleep & Skin MOT: a 60-minute massage (£100) followed by a 30-minute LED session (£45). £145 for aches, sleep and skin in one afternoon, with 60 minutes of spa facilities included. Available at every spa that offers LED.
The Cool-Down MOT: Fire & Ice (£40) plus 30 minutes of LED (£45) at Union Square or Lothian Road. £85 to leave cool, calm and glowing.
The Monthly MOT: start an LED course (£225) and book a 60-minute massage alongside each month. Your skin and your evenings both get a regular reset.

You have spent years looking after everyone else. Book your massage, your LED session or your Fire & Ice online today, and start your menopause MOT this week.

Pregnant or under medical care? Have a quick word with your GP before you book.

A wellness experience, not a medical treatment.

Frequently asked questions

Is massage good during menopause?

It is one of the best things you can book. In a pilot study, women past menopause who were sleeping badly fell asleep faster and got more deep sleep after a course of 16 massages. At PURE, deep tissue, sports and hot stone massage start from £72, and 60 minutes or longer includes an hour of spa and wellness facilities.

Does cold water help with hot flushes?

Cold water feels amazing when you run hot. In a UCL survey of 785 menopausal women who swim in cold water, three in ten said their hot flushes eased and almost half felt less anxious. At PURE you can try a 10-minute Cold Water Therapy session for £15, or Contrast Therapy "Fire & Ice" for £40, in Aberdeen and Edinburgh.

Can LED help menopause skin?

LED is a brilliant choice for smoother, firmer-looking skin without needles. In a trial of 76 people, red and near-infrared LED twice a week for four weeks reduced wrinkles by up to 36% and lifted elasticity by up to 19%. At PURE a 30-minute session is £45 and a course of six is £225.

What is a menopause MOT at PURE?

It is a visit built around the four things that change most: aches, sleep, stress and skin. Our favourite is the Sleep & Skin MOT, a 60-minute massage followed by a 30-minute LED session, £145 with 60 minutes of spa facilities included. Add Fire & Ice at Union Square or Lothian Road to cool right down.

What is the best spa day for menopause if I run hot?

Choose sessions that keep you cool and calm. Cold Water Therapy and Fire & Ice let you finish on a cool high. On the Zerobody dry float at Union Square, Aberdeen, you set the water temperature yourself, so the warm bed feels just right. Pair it with LED for skin that looks fresh too.

Is lymphatic drainage massage good for feeling heavy?

It is gentle, rhythmic and wonderfully relaxing, and you leave feeling lighter. Lymphatic drainage massage is available at PURE Witney Lakes in 40, 60 and 90-minute sessions, from £82. The 60-minute session includes an hour of spa and wellness facilities, so you can stay and unwind afterwards.

Sources

Massage Magazine, reporting a pilot study in Clinics (c. 2011). Therapeutic massage and sleep in postmenopausal women with insomnia. https://www.massagemag.com/massage-therapy-reduces-insomnia-in-postmenopausal-women-9475/
Harper J et al., UCL news release (2024). Cold water swimming improves menopause symptoms. Post Reproductive Health. https://www.ucl.ac.uk/news/2024/jan/cold-water-swimming-improves-menopause-symptoms
Lee SY et al. (2007). A prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, and split-face clinical study on LED phototherapy for skin rejuvenation. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B 88(1):51-67. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/17566756/