Services & Rates

Therapeutic, Wellness, and Holistic Massage

My therapeutic massage sessions are tailored for each individual. Your initial appointment with me will include a thorough intake and assessment of your health history, posture, and body movement so that I can create a plan of care that fits your needs. I use this assessment to identify any areas of caution or contraindication. This helps me to select which massage techniques and applications of techniques will be most appropriate for your needs. The initial intake and assessment can range from 15 to 30 minutes depending on your health history and the goals that you wish to accomplish. I recommend scheduling 90-minutes for this first session. This allows for two very important aspects of a first session:

1. A discussion of all assessment findings and plan for the session so that you can ask questions as well as alert me of any concerns that you may have. I will create a plan that we both can agree on while keeping your best interests as our priority.
2. Providing adequate time to receive a full-body massage which introduces you to my touch and techniques while allowing me the ability to manually assess body's responses to varying pressures and techniques.

The massage will combine relaxation and therapeutic styles of manual therapy. It includes superficial reflex techniques, superficial effleurage, neuromuscular techniques, connective tissue/myofascial techniques, passive movement, and percussive techniques.

Once we have completed your initial appointment, we will schedule your second session for the duration of time and frequency that will align with your specific goals. If needed, I will communicate a plan of care that will include both short-term and long-term goals for up to 4-6 sessions. 

The benefits of this type of massage are wide-ranging and include (yet, not limited to):

• decreased stress responses
• relief from unnecessary muscle tension
• decreases pain perception
• improved mood
• improved muscular performance
• increased range of motion
• increase in overall wellness

Sessions are a set price, no matter what style of massage a client needs, and can include:

Movement Education

Movement Education during any and all aspects of care is an empowering tool. It helps the client to understand different variances within their body and where some attention may need to be paid both in and out of session. Almost all of my clients experience some level of education during their treatment plans. I believe that it is massively important for everyone to understand that, while I may be leading their therapeutic experience, what they do outside of their massage is just as important as what happens within. The more that is understood about the body, the better it is to understand the therapeutic process. A small amount of movement education begins during initial assessment and is then used at the end of a session to measure changes in joint and tissue mobility. The use of full length mirrors while working through movement education helps to support the mind-body connection for improvement in postural awareness, decrease in muscle guarding and holding patterns, and increase in long-term effects of treatment. 

Neuromuscular Therapy

Neuromuscular therapy is a system of massage techniques that were developed in the 1930's by Dr. Stanley Lief in England. It uses a holistic approach towards healing, emphasizing and stimulating the body's natural ability to heal itself. Neuromuscular refers to the connection between the central nervous system's motor and sensory neurons that communicate to and from the muscles. In order for the tissues of the body to remain healthy, especially the nerve and muscle tissue, they need an ongoing supply of oxygen and nutrients while also relying on the removal of carbon dioxide and other metabolic waste. These techniques are known for their mechanical effects to increase circulation, remove sites of entrapment due to unnecessary muscle tension, and increasing healthy communication between the CNS and muscle tissue. The reflexive effects provide an increase in mood, decrease in stress responses, and vasodilation for increase blood flow. Neuromuscular techniques can be found as part of all of my sessions - therapeutic, wellness, and holistic.

Trigger Point Therapy/Myotherapy

Trigger Point Therapy is a style of bodywork that focuses on stimulating and releasing “trigger points” in your body. Trigger points are tender areas of tension found in the belly of the muscle and near tendon sites. These “knots” are specific points of muscle-unit contraction and may develop due to physical, mental, and/or emotional stress. During a session specific to trigger point release, deep moist heat will be added to the affected area to prepare for techniques which help to release the sustained contraction. This style of treatment can create some temporary discomfort. I am skilled in this area and make a point to work within each individuals comfort levels to enhance the experience and create long-lasting relief. After the manual techniques have been applied, I apply passive stretch to the tissues involved and finish the treatment with another round of deep moist heat.

Connective Tissue Techniques (a.k.a. Myofascial Work)

Fascia is a connective tissue in the body which wraps us up in many layers, many sections, and around all structures in a continuous weave. Since fascia completely encases every muscle in the body, imbalances in the fascia can have serious effects on range of motion and comfort level. Myofascial release will address these wrappings at a superficial level in order to increase the effect of other massage techniques. It does this by using massage techniques to stretch the fascia and release the bonds that exist between the fascia, muscles and bones. I use a light to moderate pressure to stretches the fascia, allowing for increased blood circulation and a decreased in resting muscle tension. As the myofascial work moves to the deeper structures within a muscle, the technique evolves into direct fascial release - known as "deep tissue work". Myofascial release is a form of soft tissue therapy intended to eliminate pain, increase range of motion, and rebalance the entire body. Fascia is the connective tissue that connects and covers all muscles, organs, and skeletal structures of the body. Indirect release applies light pressure and gently stretches the fascia; this allows for increased blood circulation and relief from pain. When a muscle tear or deep cut has healed, scar tissue will form. Connective tissue friction can be use to help to realign the fibers of the body to enhance the strength of the tissues involved within and around the scar. When working with these tissues, I begin with an application of deep moist heat before applying the techniques. After treatment, I incorporate some passive movement and passive stretch before apply a second round of heat to the affected area.

Deep Tissue Massage

Deep Tissue Massage is a form of manual therapy that explored all tissue layers withing specific muscles and muscle groups. Deep Tissue Massage is a highly effective method for correcting misalignment due to muscle imbalance, repetitive strain injuries, and chronic soft tissue injuries. This style of massage is not to be confused with "firm/deep pressure". These sessions include, and are not limited to, a series of connective tissue (myofascial) techniques and neuromuscular techniques (petrissage and more). Pressure levels may vary from medium to moderate to firm, depending on the client's comfort level. Working deeply within each muscle means approaching the tissue layers from superficial to deep, allowing for each layer to fully relax before continuing to the next. Working through layers as the body responds positively encourages long-lasting effects. Pushing through layers too quickly can result in "kickback". I try to avoid kickback as much as possible with deep moist heat as preparation for the techniques and open communication during the session. Checking in with comfort levels during these techniques is crucial for the client and the MT to explore pressure sensitivity, specific technique intensity, and the overall sensations of the treatment. Clients are typically coached through deep (diaphragmatic) breathing during some of the more intense sensations. It is normal to feel tender in areas treated for up to 24 hours post-session; however, bruising of any kind and tenderness lasting linger than 24 hours is not normal and indicates that an area was over-treated or address too deeply, too quickly. Similar to trigger point therapy, after deep tissue techniques have been completed, I apply passive stretch to the tissues involved and finish the treatment with another round of deep moist heat.

Orthopedic Massage

Orthopedic Massage is a style of massage therapy focused on treating conditions that affect the fascia, muscles, tendons, ligaments, and joints of the body. There is a variety of techniques which can be utilized to reach specific outcomes for each individual client. Since orthopedic massage is designed to treat medical conditions, it requires extensive training in orthopedic assessment, treatment planning with measurable goals in mind for each session as well as long-term. A maintenance program may be an ongoing part of treatment, depending on the client's specific needs. There may be an added element of remedial exercise and stretches provided as a homecare routine, as long as the MT has training in this area. I have the training and experience necessary to manage many orthopedic conditions. Clients are encouraged to provide copies/results of x-ray, MRI, CT scan and other medical reports related to their condition so that I can better understand all that is involved and create a plan of care for the best possible outcome. In some cases, clients will have other healthcare providers working with them including, but not limited to, a chiropractor, physical therapist, or acupuncturist. I strongly encourage clients to sign a third-party-disclosure agreement to enable to me discuss their other plans of care and create a treatment plan that compliments the client's healing journey.

Perinatal Massage (Prenatal and Postnatal)

Perinatal Massage involves caring for a mom-to-be in all stages of pregnancy and during the postpartum period of recovery. Massage may also be applied while in active labor either at home or in a hospital setting. Pregnancy is a time when a woman's body endures tremendous changes to support fetal growth. With an increase in hormones, blood volume, and cellular metabolism, women endure many physical and emotional changes within each trimester. My training allows me to work with all perinatal scenarios. I have the training necessary for and experience working with uneventful "normal" pregnancies, high-risk pregnancies, during labor, and postpartum. With a keen knowledge of expected physiological changes, positioning for comfort is a must. Special care must be taken and accommodations made as the stages of pregnancy progress. I use thorough intake to understand what the client needs before each and every session to increase comfort and maximize rest. When a mother-to-be has a worrisome time with her gestation, as in high-risk pregnancies, multiples, and/or postpartum depression, I strongly encourage the signing of a third-party-disclosure agreement so that I may be in contact with her healthcare team in order to fully understand the nature of the condition and align my treatment offerings to support the best possible outcomes. The benefit of massage during any and all stages of the perinatal experience include, though are not limited to, emotional support and wellness, relief of unnecessary muscle tone, increased rest, decreased pain perception, decrease in stress responses, and so much more.

Foot Reflexology

Foot Reflexology focuses on applying pressure to the specific nerve zones in the feet. Unlike other foot massages that intend to mostly relieve tension in the muscles of the lower leg and foot, reflexology offers a practice which aims to harmonize your entire body. Reflex points exist all over the body. My training involves focus to those associated with the feet through zone theory and the idea of removing energy blocks to better balance vital energy (qi) by applying specific pressure to respective reflex points. Aside from the theoretical practice, working with the feet has been proven to significantly decrease sympathetic responses within the autonomic nervous system. The areas of the body proven to have to most reflexive effect on the sympathetic responses are the scalp, ears, hands, and feet. With client consent, I like to add an element of reflexology to many of my wellness and holistic sessions. Therapeutic sessions can also benefit from reflexology. 

Proprioceptive Relaxation

Proprioceptive Relaxation is a utilizes the body's natural reflex responses in opposing muscle groups to decrease restrictions in movement and increase muscle length (extensibility/flexibility). This practice involves knowledge in structural integration, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation (PNF), and reciprocal inhibition. Proprioceptors are sensory receptors in muscles, tendons, and joints which send signals to the brain about the body's position and movement. Activating them can promote a sense of calm and well-being. Due to the nature of application, these techniques increase flexibility while also increasing strength - think of the push and pull of yoga postures. The client is an active participant in the execution of proprioceptive relaxation. These techniques may be utilized in orthopedic massage and sports therapy.

Geriatric Massage

Geriatric Massage is provided by practitioners who have been educated in the accommodations that may need to be taken into consideration when providing care for the aging population. The older we become, the longer and more complex our health histories may also become. I am trained and experienced in working with a wide age-range within my client base. Once again, I emphasize importance on intake and assessment, before beginning the initial massage session, in order to fully understand each client's individual needs. Even thought geriatric massage is said to include all persons 65 and over, it is important to note that not every client is going to present in the same way. Some may be fully mobile and physically active well into their 80th/90th year while others may require more specialized care and consideration. I take into consideration all cases of arthritis, orthopedic surgeries, and chronic conditions. I also familiarize myself with medication lists that have an effect on the body systems and may come with side-effects that require care in planning the techniques to use within each session. As with oncology massage, I would recommend for my clients to sign a third-party-disclosure agreement so that I may communicate with other healthcare providers regarding each client. This is a responsible approach to understand every facet to each client's wellness model and improves my ability to apply my skills with the client's best interest in mind.

Pathological/Medical Massage

Pathological/Medical Massage is case specific and requires extensive training in physiology, pathology, pathophysiology, and pharmacology. Each client will present with their own unique presentation of symptoms and potential side effects to medication. A thorough intake, health history review, and physical assessment are not negotiable when it comes to the depth of care that these sessions require. A third-party-disclosure agreement is required in order to communicate will all healthcare providers associated with the client's plan of care. Many pathological/medical clients are seeking massage to improve their quality of life. Critical thinking is massively important as outside treatments, medications, and interventions can change throughout the course of the therapeutic relationship. Health history forms may need to be updated regularly, as well as intake based on the client's response to any and all care which they are receiving. Working around ports and implants such as picc lines, insulin pumps, pace makers, and neuromodulators may be a reality during these sessions. Extra ethical training is obtained to build a professional therapeutic relationship which will benefit both the client and the MT. 

Cancer/Oncology Massage

Oncology Massage is a wonderful gift for those in any phase of their healing journey with cancer. My training and experience allows for confident care of any form, any stage, and any phase of cancer treatment. I have been trained to take a thorough intakes and assessment of clients which incorporates and compliments the healthcare which is inevitable in such cases. I request to have a third-party-disclosure agreement signed with a list of all other healthcare providers. The purpose of this is to be able to gather important specifics to all medical interventions and medications. Remembering everything involved with care can be a daunting task for those placing all of their energy into healing. You can count on me to follow up with your healthcare team and obtain all information which will aid in creating the best therapeutic oncology massage plan of care for you. The symptoms of treatment in each phase can change with the tides. It is my goal to ensure that each session is exactly the correct execution based on your current, and specific needs.