Shirodhara notes for therapists

Room and turnaround

The limiting factor in a commercial setting is rarely the session; it is the turnaround. Plan for:

• 10 minutes setup and oil warming before the client arrives, done in parallel with the previous client’s rest period if the space allows.
• 30 to 45 minutes of pour.
• 15 to 20 minutes rest, during which the room is occupied but you are not.
• 15 minutes strip-down, straining and surface cleaning.

A realistic slot is 90 minutes end to end for a 40-minute pour.

Oil economics

Oil is the recurring cost and the one most often mis-modelled. The variables:

• Volume in circulation per session, typically half a litre to a litre.
• Loss per session, what soaks into hair, cloth and the basin, rather than what is poured.
• Reuse policy. Whether oil is carried between clients is the single biggest driver of cost per session, and it is a hygiene and consent decision before it is a financial one. Decide it explicitly, write it down, and tell clients what your policy is.
• Reheat cycles before oil is retired.

Model these before pricing the treatment. A session priced on the assumption of full reuse and delivered on a single-use policy loses money quietly.

Hygiene

• Strain through fine mesh after every session, without exception.
• Fresh cloth, eye covering and forehead band per client.
• Wash the catch basin and any tubing between clients, not at the end of the day.
• Document your oil policy where clients can see it. In a market where most competitors do not, this is a differentiator as well as good practice.

Single-operator working

Traditional Shirodhara assumes two people: one at the head, one managing oil. If you work alone, the constraint is that you cannot leave the client to reheat and return oil mid-session.

The options are to warm to the top of the appropriate range and accept a drift downward across the session, to use a closed-loop apparatus so returned oil re-enters the vessel still warm, or to run shorter sessions. Most solo practitioners end up on some combination of the first two.

Claims and advertising

Shirodhara equipment is sold as general wellness equipment, not as a medical device, and Ayurvedic oils are regulated products. Advertising a session as a treatment for a named condition is a regulatory exposure in most markets, whatever the classical texts say about indications. Describe the practice, describe what people report, and let the tradition speak for itself.