Yes, I’m a Registered Massage Therapist and a member in good standing of the Canadian Massage & Manual Osteopathic Therapists Association (CMMOTA). I graduated from massage school with 3000 hours of training, and since then have done several hundred hours of continuing education training.

Yes, all treatments I provide as an RMT are eligible for insurance coverage. Clients will be provided with a receipt they may submit to their insurance provider for reimbursement.

The free phone consultation is an opportunity for us to get to know each other a little bit before you make your first appointment. I’ll ask about your reasons for seeking massage and about other (previous or concurrent) therapies you have undertaken. Your responses will help me determine if I am the right therapist for you to be seeing, or if another therapist might be better suited to address your current issues. At the same time, you will hopefully get a good sense of who I am and be able to decide whether you would like to have me as your therapist. After we’ve gotten to know each other a little, if we both decide we’re a good fit, we will book you in for an appointment. If I’m not the right therapist for you, I may be able to refer you to another RMT who might be better able to address your concerns.

Great question! Massage therapy education programs across Canada are all roughly the same length (minimum of 2200 hours) and they all cover very similar basic curriculum. However, the continuing education RMTs take after graduation is what really shapes their practice. Some veer toward working with certain types of conditions or injuries, or they work with certain populations. For example, some RMTs work mainly with pregnant or postpartum clients, or with elite athletes, or people with chronic pain. During our consultation, I want to make sure I’m the right therapist to be able to help you; if not, I want to help you find the therapist who is.

Massage for grief uses many of the same techniques used in regular therapeutic massage. The difference is found in the therapist and the client. A grief massage client is seeking grief support through massage. This is different in intention from a client who is seeking massage to address post-workout soreness, injury rehabilitation, or even to promote general wellness.

As a grief-informed RMT, I have taken continuing education to gain an understanding of grief and how it affects the body and the nervous system. I understand how stressful grief can be and I have designed the grief massage experience to be sensitive to that, and to be a safe and nurturing experience where the client is able to drop their social mask and just be their authentic self, no matter what emotions they’re experiencing or how their grief is presenting that day.

Grief massage provides support to the griever’s physical body in the form of assisted relaxation (therapeutic massage). Grief massage is not grief counselling or grief therapy. As an RMT, helping grievers to process their thoughts or emotions around the loss is not within my scope of practice. However, I can provide contact information for trained grief counsellors and therapists who can help you with that.

I respect that. Please let me know prior to your appointment or during the intake at the beginning of the session, and I’ll accommodate you. Having said that, know that my treatment room is a space in which it’s safe to let your grief show in whatever form it takes that day. There is plenty of room in my treatment space for you AND your emotions, and I’m completely comfortable to stay and keep massaging when the emotions come to the surface. My room is well-stocked with tissues. You are in the driver’s seat; just let me know what you need.

The treatment space is in a private home in the neighbourhood of Dalhousie, in NW Calgary, Alberta. The address will be sent to you when your booking is confirmed.

There is plenty of free parking on the street. Please park directly in front of the house (not across the street). The steps up to the house are a bit steep, so if that doesn’t work for you, please let me know prior to your appointment, and you may park in the driveway. From there, the steps up to the house are on a more gradual incline.

There are several steps up from the street to the house. Once inside, there is a set of stairs leading down to the treatment room.

A credit card (Visa or Mastercard) is required to be on file prior to booking your appointment. After your massage and before you leave the treatment room, your appointment will be charged to that credit card. Or if you prefer, you can pay with debit card or e-transfer (must be received before you leave the treatment room). And for those of you who still use cash, I will also accept that!

No, thank you! The cost of your session is all-inclusive, and monetary gratuities are gratefully declined. If you’d like to show your appreciation, please leave me a 5-star Google review and/or refer a friend to see me. When you refer someone to see me, I’ll thank you by giving you an extra 15 minutes free added onto your next treatment.

If you cancel or reschedule an appointment within 24 hours of the scheduled start time, your credit card on file will be charged for 50% of the booked appointment. If you are more than 30 minutes late for an appointment, your appointment is considered cancelled and 50% of the booked appointment fee will be charged. This policy protects my time, and I also have a policy to protect yours: if I ever have to cancel your appointment within the 24-hour window, your next massage of the same length will be discounted by 50%.

Treatment sessions range in length from 60 minutes to 2 hours. The most popular session lengths are 75 and 90 minutes.

Your session includes an intake interview and any necessary assessments, the massage itself, and any homecare (stretches, strengthening exercises, etc.) recommended by the therapist. Please allow up to 15 minutes of your session for intake and exit. If you’d like more hands-on time, I recommend booking 75 or 90 minutes.

It’s ideal if you can arrive wearing comfortable clothing that you can easily move in, like leggings or joggers and a t-shirt. That way, we have a bit of flexibility if we decide to do some movement-based work during the session, like assisted stretching. If it’s not possible to wear comfortable clothing (if you’re coming directly from the office, for example), that’s perfectly fine.

Remove any jewellery from areas we’ll be working on, like earrings and necklaces if we’re doing shoulder and neck work. There’s a little dish next to the seat where you’ll put your clothing, that you can place small items like your jewellery and phone.

Not if you don’t want to. You are free to disrobe to your level of comfort; whether that’s completely, not at all, or somewhere in between. Typically, clients remove any undergarments they are wearing on the top half of their body, and leave their bottom underwear on. I use large sheets and blankets to drape securely, so the only part of your body exposed is the one I’m currently working on. I will work with you to accommodate your comfort level, so if you prefer to keep your clothing on, that’s completely fine.

I create my own blend from high-quality, pure jojoba and apricot kernel oil. It’s ideal for me to work with, and a little goes a long way. It’s nourishing for your skin and won’t clog your pores or leave you feeling greasy. I also use a locally made lotion that is nut-free, gluten-free, and vegan. Please let me know about any allergies or sensitivities prior to your appointment so I can accommodate your needs.

Absolutely not! That’s a common misconception that goes hand-in-hand with the old “no pain no gain” philosophy that once permeated the fitness landscape. If the pressure given during massage is painful, there’s a good chance that the client is tensing up their muscles to guard the area being worked on, which means the client and therapist are working against each other. As a therapist, I prefer a more gentle approach. I work on the superficial muscles and then, as they gradually relax, I can work through them to access the deeper layers of muscle beneath. I find this approach to be easier on the patient and on myself, and it’s extremely effective.

That depends on what you mean by “deep tissue massage.” If you’re wondering whether I address deeper muscles or only the more superficial muscles, the answer is most definitely yes, I work on both superficial and deep muscles! To do that, I use a gentle approach and moderate pressure. I work first on the superficial muscles and then, as they gradually relax, I can work through them to access the deeper layers of muscle beneath. I find this approach to be easier on the patient and on myself, and it’s extremely effective.

If by asking if I do “deep tissue massage” you are really asking whether I use very heavy pressure, the answer is no. If you’re the type of person who likes their massage to feel like their body is being ironed out by a steamroller, I’m probably not the therapist for you.

If you are sick, you MUST cancel your appointment. If you arrive to your appointment sick, you will be refused treatment and will be responsible for the full cost of the booked session. Having a massage can exacerbate symptoms of illness, so you could feel much worse after your massage. You don’t need that. And you could spread your illness to your therapist. I don’t need that. Besides, you’ll enjoy the massage much more once you’re feeling better.

You are welcome to bring a family member or to book back-to-back treatments. However, you must arrive separately for your appointments; there is no waiting room. There are two shopping centres (Dalhousie Station and Market Mall) and several coffee shops within a 5-minute drive from my home.

If you’re more than 5 minutes early, please don’t knock or ring the doorbell as I may not be ready for you quite yet. Arriving 3-5 minutes early is plenty, and will give you time to remove your shoes and sanitize your hands before we head into the treatment space.