When I graduated from massage therapy school(2002), my days were a whirlwind—running between clients’ homes and teaching yoga classes. I’d pack up my massage table, sheets, and blankets, cramming them into the trunk of my little Volkswagen Jetta, always on the move.
Then, one day, it happened—the moment every massage therapist dreads. I threw my back out, and my muscles completely seized up.
I couldn’t move. I couldn’t walk. Even breathing was painful. Sitting hurt, standing hurt—everything was a 10 out of 10 on the pain scale for days. I finally went to urgent care, where they gave me muscle relaxers and pain medication to help me through the worst of it.
As the medicine took effect, I started assessing the root cause. What muscles were involved? How could I release them?
Pain—especially extreme pain—can be all-consuming. It narrows our focus, amplifies our fears, and makes us feel completely powerless.
But pain is never just one thing.
It didn’t take long to realize that my body had orchestrated a full-scale lockdown, trying to protect me from myself. My psoas, iliacus, quadratus lumborum, piriformis, glute medius—even my calves—had all seized up. And the more I stretched, the worse it got.
I turned to everything I had learned—yoga, massage therapy, and the techniques I had studied over the years. Slowly, I discovered gentle soft tissue releases and movements that actually worked. Within a week, I was back to work—completely pain-free.
But something else stood out to me during this experience: the fear.
I was terrified that my spine was permanently damaged. That I might never work again. That I wouldn’t be able to support myself. And the more I spiraled into fear and “what-ifs,” the worse my pain became.
That was my aha moment—the undeniable mind-body connection that’s so easy to forget when you’re in the thick of it.
To heal, I had to shift my mindset. I developed my own version of self-talk and affirmations to guide my recovery. I had no choice—I had to get better. And I did.
But healing myself wasn’t enough. I knew I had to use this experience to help others through their own pain—because it is scary.
Over the years, I deepened my studies, exploring somatic therapies that integrate seamlessly with bodywork, yoga, and movement. This journey led me to become trained and certified in Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) and Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT), allowing me to offer a truly holistic approach to mind-body-spirit healing.
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