I am always amazed at the miracle of touch. I never know if what I am doing will make a difference, so it is always nice to receive feedback that I helped to reduce pain. As a massage therapist, I don't do anything "magic" - I simply help the body into the parasympathetic mode, or into a state of relaxation, and the body can begin to heal itself.

One regular client said that he considered me one of his healthcare providers - along with his doctors, physical therapists, and other providers. That was one of the best compliments I have ever received! I would love to work together with other helathcare practitioners in meeting your needs. -Heidi

"I began therapy with Heidi about two months ago, and I have seen good improvement in my flexibility and circulation. I've broken the seventy-year-old barrier and my muscles and joints have gotten stiff and sore from injury and over-use, plus the circulation isn't as efficient as it once was. Heidi has done a lot to improve my overall well-being and lift my spirits in general. She's easy to talk with, listens closely and thinks before speaking. I've worked with several massage therapists for health reasons over the years; my profession was a very physically demanding one and I incurred much injury and tissue damage before retiring. 

Heidi continually adds to her knowledge database, uses her books and the Internet to learn about specific issues pertaining to her clients, is one of the more knowledgeable therapists I've found and is my favorite. I'm sincere when I say I am grateful to her for her innate need to understand the human body, her (ongoing) help, her ability to communicate on a deeper level and her compassion. These are the things I find important in a medical professional, and that is where she excels  Thanks, Heidi!"
-Jim M. (March 2019)

"Heidi came to my  rescue last Friday. . . . I was awakened by severe back pain. . . I received no help from my physician and was left to experience continued severe pain over the weekend. I decided to call Heidi . . . . [She] had family visiting . . . . [yet] was very empathetic and responsive to my needs. . . . She massaged my back for only about 15 minutes.I experienced almost instant pain relief.  I went home from the massage and fell asleep. The pain was gone and hasn’t returned. . . . She is a hero health care provider.
-Russ H. (June 2018) Read the complete testimonial

Below are more testimonials from clients, listed by the type of massage they received - Myofascial Release, Manual Lymph Drainage, Spinal Touch, Shiatsu, Swedish, Thai, or Cranio-Sacral.

Clients often ask how they can maximize the results of their massage. They don't have the time or the money to return for a massage as frequently as they would like.

I think the best is to keep moving. I've also found that stretching and self-massage prolong the benefits of a massage. A few years ago a friend shared a self-massage method with me which I regularly use. It is the "Melt Method." It confirms a lot of what I have learned about the latest research on fascia.

Ancient awkward tree poses.

I would love to receive a daily massage. It's good for your body and your soul. But it isn't happening. The more I learn about fascia, the more I recognize the need to keep it from adhering or becoming stiff. There are many ways to keep our fascia healthy - movement, massage, and yoga among them.

I have always been very stiff and NOT flexible at all. I need to loosen my fascia. I'd love a daily myofascial massage or a Thai massage (basically someone putting you into yoga positions and massaging you - a most delicious massage!). I don't have the time, let alone the money, to receive a daily massage. I've taken a few yoga classes, but am always incredibly self-conscious because my body just doesn't go into those positions. However, my body feels good when I take a gentle yoga class.

Last summer Kira's friend, Heidi, introduced to me "Home Yoga with Adrian." Two or three times a week I have been doing her yoga in the privacy, non-judgmental place of my own home alone or with one of my daughters. Below is Adrian's "Yoga for Beginners" video. She has many other videos at all different levels. She fits my style.

Try some yoga, but then come in for an occasional massage!

I've had many clients with pain between their shoulder blades. They tell me that I can spend the entire hour massaging their upper back. I don't. Don't get me wrong, I try to give each person the massage they want; I just don't give them the massage they tell me to do, rather the one they really want.

They want relief from their pain. Clients regularly ask me, "Do you feel that huge knot?" Uh, no. . .  I used to think that I was horrible at palpation because I couldn't feel the "obvious" knots. But in the last three years of massaging, I have learned a few things. 

"Why didn't anyone mention fascia earlier? Because not many people know that much about it. Fascia's messy stuff. It's hard to study. It's so expansive and intertwined it resists the medical standard of being cut up and named for textbook illustrations. 

. . . .the convention in med-school dissections has been to remove as much of the fascia as possible in order to see what was underneath. . . .

In 2007 the first international Fascia Research Congress, held at Harvard Medical School, brought about a new demand for attention to the fascial system. . . . "

"What exactly does it do? It wraps around each of your individual internal parts, keeping them separate and allowing them to slide easily with your movements. It's strong, slippery and wet. It creates a sheath around each muscle; because it's stiffer, it resists over-stretching and acts like an anatomical emergency break. It connects your organs to your ribs to your muscles and all your bones to each other. It structures your insides in a feat of engineering, balancing stressors and counter-stressors to create a mobile, flexible and resilient body unit. It generally keeps you from being a big, bone-filled blob. . . ."

I wanted to get my hands on her leg and help speed up the recovery with massage, but they lived too far away. A year later they returned to the US and the leg was still swollen and tender. She said the leg felt like a balloon blown up tight, ready to burst and and she couldn't put any pressure on it - just setting a book on her knee was painful. She was also limited in how much she could move her leg, thus hampering how much she could walk. As soon as they visited us, I put her (with a lot of protesting - she is a also a very stubborn Dane!) on my table and gently began to work on her knee.

I am intrigued by fascia, or connective tissue. I use myofascial release in many massages and find that it helps to break adhesion, thus decreasing pain and increasing range of motion. Today I read an article in The Scientist by Dr Helene M. Langevin where she explains her research with connective tissue. I'll highlight some of what she wrote below, but you can read the entire article if you want more information.

The study of connective tissue is shedding light on pain 
and providing new explanations for alternative medicine.

Helene M. Langevin is a visiting professor of medicine and Director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, and a professor of neurological sciences at the University of Vermont.

Connective tissue is one of the most integral components of the human machine. Indeed, one could draw a line between any two points of the body via a path of connective tissue. This network is so extensive and ubiquitous that if we were to lose every organ, muscle, bone, nerve, and blood vessel in our bodies, we would still maintain the same shape: our “connective-tissue body.”

Last fall a client had a second shoulder surgery to remove excess scar tissue in his glenohumeral joint. His first surgery had been only 18 months prior to this surgery. I offered to massage him several times a week for the first two weeks to see if we could prevent scar tissue from adhering. He has visited a me a few times since then. He has given me permission to share our experience with his healing as it relates to massage.

His goal is to avoid the tight scar tissue which caused problems after the first surgery. We don't know how often he will need to continue massage therapy. He is paying attention to his body and coming in whenever he notices the beginning of the deep dull tightness that was constantly present after his first surgery.

I am a breast cancer survivor. During this past year I have been receiving chemo treatments. I also have been receiving massage therapy from Heidi! She gives me a Lymph massage the day before I have the chemo infusion. This activates my lymph system and has helped move the chemo toxins out of my body. I also find that hydrating, drinking plenty of water before and after helps too. I see less of the potential side effects. Less nausea and gastrointestinal issues, less fatigue and "chemo brain." I have also received other kinds of massage which have been so helpful! Energy work seems to help my overall feeling of well being and I find that I seem to heal quickly. Heidi is very intuitive to what kind of massage will benefit me and areas of the body that need attention and the amount of pressure needed. I trust her judgement for what is needed and may be most helpful. I have also received massage therapy for injuries. Heidi is very good at releasing the muscles and promoting healing. Heidi listens to my concerns and allows me to help guide the course of massage for healing. I believe that Heidi has a gift for healing! I highly recommend her massage therapy to my family and friends!!
-Michelle W. (Oct 2014) Died 30 January 2015 - a great loss

Michelle is a dear friend who is going through chemotherapy for the fourth time. While I was in school, she allowed me to practice many techniques on her as soon as I learned them. Together we learned what helped her feel better. She has provided me with much feedback and invaluable advise. She has been one of my most staunch supporters as I studied and learned. I love her and hope that she continues her miraculous comeback!

Several other clients have also had breast reconstruction after a mastectomy. The scars cause back pain, restricted range of motion at the glenohumoral joint (shoulder), and tightness around the scar because there is adhesion. After the first myofascial release massage on the scars, they have all reported less tightness and within a few massages they have more range of motion and less back pain. In addition to doing massage on the scars, I am trained and qualified to do lymph drainage of the entire body, including the breast. However, I am not yet qualified to do lymphadema work or to do rerouting if you have had lymph nodes removed. Someday I hope to be trained in that work.

Scars are fibrous connective tissue and can be formed for many different reasons, including a result of infection, surgery, injury, or inflammation of tissue. The connective tissue are laid down in random patterns. As they develop and mature, they pull on the surrounding tissue, increasing the area that is affected by the wound. 

Not only are scars aesthetically unpleasant and cannot be made to disappear, scars can cause a restriction or decrease in movement, and potentially even affect internal organs. 

I have been amazed at how quickly many scars have responded to massage and clients have found relief from the tightness and discomfort.