Meet Our Massage Therapists
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Bio is coming soon.
Cassandra
Cassie chose massage therapy as a career after first being a client on the receiving side of massage treatment. She recognized that receiving massage therapy made her feel better, and made a positive impact on her overall well-being. Cassie’s experiences as a recipient of massage therapy, led her to realize that she wanted to provide the same kind of care to others.
Cassie recommendations to clients includes, telling your therapist if you need more or less pressure during treatments. A good therapist will welcome the feedback and always wants the client to benefit from and enjoy their treatment. “It is important to listen to my clients and to adapt my technique to the needs of each individual.” She also recommends that for maximum benefits, it is a good idea to adopt a regular schedule for treatments, for example once or twice per month. Finally, Cassie reminds her clients to remember to breathe during treatments, as it will help the mind and muscles to relax.
Cassie offers a blending of both therapeutic and relaxation massage techniques as well as trigger point release. In the future, she would like to add to her career skill set by taking training in reflexology.
Cassie likes to be busy and describes her perfect workday as fully booked without breaks. Of course, Cassie still makes certain to schedule time to receive her own massage therapy treatments from her massage therapist.
Claudia
Claudia comes to her career as a massage therapist, because of the very positive experience of a close family member. After a family member had to have several surgeries, they found that massage therapy treatments were able to provide a significant help with the healing process. Having a very personal experience witnessing the effectiveness of massage therapy provided Claudia with a strong motivation to become a professional massage therapist.
Claudia knows firsthand how beneficial massage therapy is and she advises clients to make it a regularly scheduled part of their personal health care plan. She says that, “consistent follow up appointments are a key to ongoing wellness.” Claudia also promotes the importance of what the client can do at home to support the massage therapy, warmup exercises, and gentle stretching as a stand-alone practice or as the precursor to another fitness or sport activity. Find something that works for you and get professional guidance as needed.
Claudia treats every client as unique and based upon individual issues, she likes to provide options for treatment techniques that suit each client’s specific needs. Additionally, Claudia has recently received her certification for TMJ muscle pain treatment.
Getting regular massages applies to her, as well as to her clients and Claudia’s favourite, is a foot massage with a foot scrub and a foot stone massage.
Claudia has completed additional training in Oncology Massage Therapy as provided by the Network of Professional Massage Therapists of Quebec. This training focuses on massage therapy specialty care that is adapted to the specific needs of people who are dealing with cancer.
Dawn
Part of Dawn’s approach in client care is to address what is concerning her clients the most at each treatment session. Secondly, she believes it is valuable to familiarize her clients on the techniques that she plans to use, and why and how those techniques will benefit them.
Some of the advice she gives her clients is to drink enough water pre and post massage, and to take Epsom salt baths to ease tired, sore muscles. During massage treatments, she advises her clients to ease into relaxation by focusing on slow breathing.
Dawn is happy that more and more people are coming to realize that massage therapy can reduce stress, increase relaxation and improve immune function. She feels that being an RMT is a rewarding career because she can help people feel better and help them to improve their health in the long term.
Dawn likes to integrate cupping into treatments if the client chooses. Additionally, she applies myofascial release, because it is a powerful technique with many benefits to the client. Dawn is also interested in learning additional techniques such as hot bamboo and she plans on looking into training in the near future.
The daily physicality of being an RMT is considerable, and Dawn likes to get a massage every three weeks and enjoys the feeling of post treatment rejuvenation.
Jalene
Jalene chose her career as a massage therapist because she is interested in health, healing and helping people. She loves to see the before and after changes in her clients after one or more treatments. “It is very rewarding to be able to make a difference in someone’s health, well being and quality of life”.
Jalene shows up to her clients with a calm energy and a readiness to give her 100 percent best effort. One of her areas of focus in working with her clients is to choose the most beneficial techniques and approach, to create the most effective treatment plan that is tailored to each individuals needs. She also recognizes the importance of the mind/body relationship and is mindful of how that connection can have a very strong influence on therapeutic massage treatments. As an athlete, Jalene has an interest in sports massage techniques and is also interested in expanding her knowledge and skills with advanced training for TMJD and other jaw problems.
Jalene’s advice to her clients
• Communication will help to achieve the best outcomes for treatment. Let your RMT know your likes and dislikes and if there are areas where you would like more attention.
• Stay hydrated especially leading up to and after your treatment.
• Allow your mind to be calm during treatment. A calm relaxed mind will help your muscles to relax.
• If part of your treatment plan includes targeted deep tissue work, you may experience some soreness before feeling better. No cause for alarm in this type of scenario. Keep the lines of communication open during treatment if you would like more, or less pressure applied in any given area.
When Jalene goes for her massage treatments (usually 2-4 times per month), one of her preferences is to include the hot stone package with the massage. She finds that the hot stone treatment brings a very comforting warmth, relaxation and calmness that lingers with her after the massage treatment is finished. She also especially appreciates some focused massage treatment on her neck area and on her hands, because as she says, “a massage therapist’s hands are our most important tool”.
Jennifer
Jennifer was attracted to a career as a massage therapist out of a desire to help people. She finds it very gratifying to provide relaxation and pain relief to her clients.
One of the things that Jennifer would like people to know about massage therapy is that sometimes work activities and lifestyle habits contribute to body pain, and massage can certainly provide relief. If some habits or activities can be altered, it can be very helpful in the long term. For example, paying more attention to correct posture while sitting or standing can be very helpful to alleviate muscle tension.
Jennifer offers the following advice to people who want to maximize the benefits of their massage therapy. Seek professional advice about a good warmup and stretching program that you can do daily. Over time, doing daily warmups/stretching, and getting regular massage treatments will have a noticeably positive impact on overall health and well-being.
Merle
Like many of the best massage therapists, Merle cares about helping people. Some of the benefits of a good massage treatment is that people experience calmness, relaxation and rejuvenation and this is the kind of experience that Merle intends for each client.
She is happy to offer a variety of treatments including, Relaxation, Deep Tissue, Cupping, Lymphatic Drainage, MVA Treatments, Orthopedic and Prenatal Massage. Whichever type of massage technique, or combination of techniques that you need, Merle’s goal remains the same, that during treatment and post treatment you feel fortified in your body, mind and spirit.
Merle experienced the benefits of massage therapy in her own life, and this drew her to massage therapy as career. Her caring nature and desire to help people combined with her training at Makami College has prepared her for a fulfilling career in health care. She says that the art of asking good questions, patience and good listening skills are also an important part helping her clients.
Merle feels that massage therapy is essential care that can help people in their daily lives regardless of the challenges that they face. If you make massage therapy a regular part of your self care, you will feel good.
Naomi
Naomi understands that massage therapy helps on mental/emotional levels as well as on the physical level and this is one of the reasons that she finds her profession very rewarding. Her perfect workday is filled with happy clients who feel improvement, with less pain and more mobility after their treatment.
Naomi offers this important counsel to clients, not every pain may be permanently erased in one treatment; rather, it could take several treatments plus ongoing maintenance, especially if the causes of the stress, pain, and tension are ongoing. She advises that massage therapy is a part of the solution and that a daily relaxation and stretching practice at home may be an important part of the process.
Naomi encourages clients to communicate with their therapist about the treatment (in terms of likes/dislikes, pain, tension) and reminds them that "we are here to help".
She uses a variety of techniques including trigger points while providing massage therapy in various styles including relaxation massage. A part of her professional development plan includes expanding her skill set into Thai massage.
Yamilek
Yamilek has been able to record treatment success for her clients dealing with headaches, neck and shoulder pain, lower back pain due to pelvic imbalance, and quadratus lumborum tightness. Her clients seeking treatment for sciatic pain have noticed a reduction in pain levels after massage. She has also worked with clients to reduce scar tissue caused by muscle strains. Yamilek also helps runners who are experiencing tight IT bands.
Neuromuscular therapy is one technique that Yamilek uses, and her clients benefit from it noticeably. In addition to her current training in multiple massage techniques, she is interested in ongoing professional development and training in the future.
She cultivates and puts into practice the qualities of patience, empathy, effective communication and listening skills; and she values and encourages feedback from her clients. It is important to her that her clients let her know if anything feels tender or uncomfortable; and/or if they would like lighter or firmer pressure.
Yamilek would like her clients to know that massage does not have to hurt in order to provide beneficial results. She states for clarity, “there is an enormous difference between pain being inflicted and pain being released”. She advocates that, scheduling treatment every 3-4 weeks is a healthful habit, because regular massage is good for maintenance of the body, prevents injury and reduces stress and headaches.
Yamilek is motivated by a strong desire to help her clients by alleviating their pain, stress and discomfort. Seeing their smiles when they notice that the pain has been eliminated or reduced, is gratifying and contributes to a fulfilling workday.
What does Yamilek say about receiving a massage? “Afterwards, I feel like myself again”. 😊
