At this spa, Dr. Deb introduces the mind to the body

''You'd be surprised at the things your body knows and has been wanting to tell you but you haven't heard it," she says. Ah, good. That's the kind of stuff I want to hear. The Lake Austin Spa Resort has changed, but it hasn't really changed. The resort holds a tender spot in my heart and I wasn't thrilled to learn about its recent multimillion dollar makeover. I find the glitzy excess of America disheartening and didn't want to see my hippy-dippy, crunchy-granola, flower-child spa go all spangly. The new 25,000-square-foot LakeHouse Spa, which opened in April, is spectacular indeed: a massive structure on a hill, surrounded by pools, fountains, and gardens.

The new compound has 30 treatment areas, some located in poolside cabanas with ceiling fans, others in spacious, screened, second-floor porches. Treatment rooms have five channels of piped-in music, including homegrown Austin tunes. The spa includes a salon and pleasant indoor/outdoor cafe.

Much of the design reflects the taste of spa co-owner Mike McAdams of Dallas, past president of Trammell-Crow Design Centers, who selected much of the art and furnishings displayed throughout the property. In the airy, light-filled Blue Room, where guests relax between treatments and snuggle with crocheted afghans on deep lounge chairs, a huge, round coffee table is stacked with books, muslin curtains are hand painted with wildflower designs, and a tin chandelier hangs overhead. Porches are furnished with wicker and wood rockers. On the walls throughout the spa, along with oversize, natural images by Texas photographer Ann Stautberg, are a collection of quilts, all award winners at the State Fair of Texas.