Archive for the massage Category

Fifteen years ago, I was in the middle of attending a year-long massage school program in Vancouver, WA. During my year at massage school, I worked part time at a chiropractor’s office. One technique that I learned in my massage theory class and also had the experience

WHO’S GOT YOUR BACK? BY: Ambrosia Brown As we begin to enjoy long summer days, spending any chance we get outside, even more important than remembering that sunscreen is regularly examining your skin. One in five Americans will develop some form of skin cancer. As a practicing

Massage Methodologies 101 Alessandra Nisco Jacobson What flavor massage would treat you best? Like a smorgasbord full of delectable treats, it can be a bit confusing for people with all of the different massage techniques advertised to select the proper bodywork provider for their particular needs. Some

“Namu Amida Butsu”, We are one with infinite light. This was the mantra given to my dad during his last days. Caretaking for him was challenging, letting go even more challenging. While attending an energy workshop after his initial diagnosis of Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia, and over the

Challenging this Massage Therapist’s Mind Alessandra Nisco Jacobson Off-season in resort towns such as ours is a time for locals to slow down,  regenerate and do things we otherwise can’t find time for in our increasingly boisterous fast-paced community. This fall I never slowed down, but I

Womblifting Some of you may already be familiar with women’s health concerns and the relationship with the alignment of the uterus. I hadn’t ever heard about this until my studies brought me to my Thai massage school in Chiang Mai, Thailand where I studied in 2015 and

Sciatica Syndrome and Massage By Alessandra Nisco Jacobson Perhaps due to extreme summer sports, long hours sitting, or the average age cohort of my clients, I have had a wave of massage clients this summer experiencing sciatica-type symptoms, which can be alarming and unbearable. Sciatica is not

“Peace is every step,” by Thich Nhat Hanh was a book that inspired me when beginning to hike El Camino de Santiago de Compostela, for the first time, in the spring of 2001. I had spent a week at Plum Village, his retreat center in France practicing

The psoas, a dynamic 16-inch-long involuntary hip-flexing, core muscle which connects the upper and lower body, providing structure, stabilization, and locomotion, can also contribute to healthy digestive, emotional and sexual function. This miraculous muscle, with a myriad of interrelationships, lives on the front of either side of

The massage school I attended in 2004 (in Vancouver, WA) introduced us to abdominal massage as a way to aid in healthy digestion. Over the years, in my massage practice, I have integrated these techniques mostly upon request as well as for friends’ babies who have tummy

Greetings to all of you beautiful smiling friends, family, clients, those of you I see day in and day out but don’t know your names and people I haven’t met yet at all. I am writing you from Chiang Mai, Thailand, where I have been studying Thai

Correct! The rotator cuff is not a muscle. Clients often complain of pain or surgery on their rotator cuff, yet they do not know which muscle is affected. The rotator cuff is a mechanism controlling the stability and motion of the shoulder joint, made up of four

Sternocleidomastoid, “What did you call me?”. The sternocleidomastoid (SCM) is a muscle in the front of the neck that attaches the sternum, clavicle up to the jaw. You can feel it pop out when turning your head to one side. When you turn your head to the

The delight of a new baby! A love deep enough to sustain humanity cultivates during the first few days, weeks, and months of togetherness. Before the body has started to recover from pregnancy and childbirth, new mothers are launched into a series of novel repetitive activities that

Musculature of Skiing, and Soothing Skier Massage Alessandra Jacobson Spend a few days skiing hard on the mountain, and you will agree; it’s is a total body workout, and can leave you feeling tight all over, and in need of an effective, relieving post-ski massage. Skiing requires

Home Remedies We all have aches, pains and hopefully, only occasionally, injuries. Even our old injuries can create tension in our muscles that we are unaware of. Whether you deal with chronic pain or are suffering from something more acute, try a natural home remedy to ease

Massage Cupping: An Innovative Approach to a Traditional Technique Cupping, and the signature dark marks left on recipients of its treatments, is gaining steam in western culture. This form of bodywork has been receiving mainstream attention with the media’s exposure of marks on Olympian athletes in Rio,