The stats are dire. Up to half of the premature deaths in the United States are based on preventable factors. Smoking used to be the leading cause of preventable death, now poor diet and lack of movement are taking the lead. Alcohol comes in third. None of these is an…

It was once something only rich people did on fancy vacations. Destination resorts would have pristine fluff-and-buff spas where, for a high price tag, one could get rubbed down with expensive aromatic oils and served herbal teas in terrycloth robes and slippers afterward. Self-care for the bourgeois. In the past…

Some aches and pains are a part of life. They come from overusing your body, underusing your body, doing new things, climbing mountains, or not doing enough. Pain is a sign from your body that something isn’t quite right, and that it needs your attention. While popping an Advil might…

“The physician treats, but nature heals.” Hippocrates It’s no secret that people can go into nature to find healing. Our ancestors have been doing it for millennia, perhaps longer. …

The research, the certification process, and my own story. — I’ve always been a believer in what’s unseen. Even as a kid, I had a mystifying interest in psychic phenomena, checking out all the books at the local library on the topic and doing the best self-study my nine-year-old self could muster. A couple of years back, my husband and…

In my years as a massage therapist, there is a consistent theme I notice among clients: People tend to live in their heads, not in their bodies. This lesson became more apparent to me over time as I realized I, too, lived in my head. I tore my body up…

People will often come in for an appointment with me and ask for a deep tissue massage. “What hurts?” I ask. “Oh nothing,” they reply, “I just want a full-body deep tissue.” You see it on spa menus often, usually listed for a few dollars more. “Deep tissue massage.” …

Hamstrings have such a story to tell. Everybody has experienced “tight hamstrings,” at some point or another. You get advice from well-meaning friends, family, or even wellness practitioners to simply stretch them out. You think back to your days of doing the presidential fitness test and remember how the point…

Pectoralis Minor Everybody should have this one massaged. We all know pectoralis major, the big “sexy” muscle of the chest that anybody who benches regularly wants to bulk up. Pectoralis minor is the little asshole that sits behind it and makes your shoulders and neck tight. It starts at your 3rd, 4th…