Why I Do This Work...

Everything I have learned has been through self-healing exploration. At thirteen I fractured my sacrum (tailbone), but it wasn’t until about 10 years later that I began to feel the effects. The fascial restrictions hardened over time and began to experience seemingly unrelated symptoms of chronic low back pain, food sensitivities, digestive issues, dysmenorrhea, headaches, and fatigue. The funny thing about symptoms that appear gradually, we tend to accept them as part of our everyday life, inch by inch… Until one day you become overwhelmed.

My saving grace came at 25, at a session with my mother’s massage therapist while visiting in Vancouver. She performed CranioSacral Therapy to release some of the scar tissue surrounding my sacrum. I was skeptical of the light touch she used, but by the time I arrived back at home I realized that I was moving in a different way. The absence of the pain that had been there for so long, was replaced with a lightness and a freedom.

I needed to know more and my Aunt recognized my interest and passed along a book that solidified my passion for understanding my own body - "Your Inner Physician and You - CranioSacral Therapy and SomatoEmotional Release" -John E. Upledger, D.O., O.M.M. Shortly thereafter I began my studies to become a massage therapist and began taking courses to learn CranioSacral Techniques. By that time my chronic pain and headaches were under control, but the other symptoms remained. I stumbled across the Arvigo Techniques for Mayan Abdominal Massage™ and was awestruck by the long list of disorders and issues that it address. It was the missing piece for my healing and maintaining a healthy low back and resolving digestive and menstrual problems.

It has been an interesting journey connecting the dots and "waking the tiger" in my own healing as well as that of my clients. My understanding of Dr. Peter A. Levine's work in somatic experiencing throughout my massage therapy career has given me a strong basis for how I approach the body. Now, I am able to incorporate his teachings into my embodiment therapy to create new neural pathways, allowing people to experience the world around them in a different way, with less fear and more enjoyment.

I am dedicated to continuing my self-care and to sharing my knowledge and expertise with as many people as I can. Like your favorite dish at your favorite restaurant, you want everyone to get the chance to experience it and hope that they love it as much as you do – for me this is bodywork.

In addition to my National Certification in Massage & Bodywork with a strong foundation in Myofascial Release and Swedish Massage, I have completed training in CranioSacral Therapy (CST) and am a Certified Practitioner of Arvigo Techniques of Mayan Abdominal Massage™ (ATMAT). I have studied CranioSacral Therapy with the world-renowned Upledger Institute and traveled to Belize to study under Rosita Arivgo to learn and perfect the sacred strokes of the traditional Mayan healing techniques.(As featured on Oprah.com for it’s fertility benefits.) Most recently, I have completed Beginning and Advanced level courses of Dr. Peter A. Levine's Somatic Experiencing.