Woman with psoriasis refused massage at Thy Spa Windsor

Rubina Latif, 55, of London, visited Thy Spa, on Windsor High Street, to celebrate one of her friend’s birthday on February 9.

The group of five, all from different areas, planned to go to the town as it was middle ground for them all to meet up.

But little did Ms Latif know that she was going to have a “truly disturbing” experience when she went.

Ms Latif, who has psoriasis, a skin condition which causes red, itchy scaly patches, has been a massage therapist herself for 35 years.

Rubina Latif has been a massage therapist herself for 25 years. Picture: Rubina Latif

She said she has never been refused a massage at previous spas.

“The therapists are always very understanding, and will ask if anything irritates my skin, but oils never do, and in fact are good for the condition,” she said.

When she went into the treatment room, she pulled up her robe to wash her feet and said the "look of distaste" was apparent.

And when the therapist asked what the skin condition was, Ms Latif explained it was psoriasis, which she had informed reception upon arrival.

"It was so embarrassing,” she said.

“Two of my friends could hear the whole conversation and the therapist just told me my skin was sensitive and by now I was starting to feel extremely uncomfortable.”

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The staff member went to speak to another colleague who then asked Ms Latif to remove her towel and show her skin.

She said: “At this point I was so upset with the way I was being treated, I got up in tears, and left the room. I have never ever been treated this way and I was left sobbing in the changing room.”

Ms Latif added her two friends who heard the situation asked their therapists to stop their treatments so they could comfort her.

“This is an appalling way to treat someone,” she said.

“I wonder whether the therapists are adequately trained, but they clearly lack the ability to deal with customer with empathy and compassion. This has had a serious effect on my confidence, and also gave me a huge panic attack.”

Thy Spa on Windsor's High Street

Ms Latif received a response from the spa manager Baz on the same day explaining it would have been difficult to massage the area due to her skin condition.

Thy Spa Windsor told the Observer they regularly treat clients with autoimmune conditions.

Baz said for skin-to-skin contact treatments the therapists are instructed to avoid inflamed areas in order to not cause potential further harm to skin.

This includes the possibility of bleeding or increased inflammation afterwards.

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“Our therapist was trying to politely explain to the lady why she could not perform the treatment, but the lady was not ready to listen to the reasoning, and kept insisting that massage must be performed,” he said.

Baz explained in the case of severe conditions they may not be able to offer treatment for the safety of the client.