Hello, My name is Rachel and I am honored that you are thinking about getting a massage from me. Let's just dive right in shall we! I have been a Certified Massage Therapist (CMT) since 2006 and licensed for the past 6. When I think back on my long journey through this career, Waddhams Senior Living will always be home to one of my greatest experiences in this profession. It was my start, and luckily for me I had a great partner to share the experience with. Each day had it's own challenge, both physically and mentally. When we reach our senior years, Mother Time isn't always kind or forgiving to our body and/or mind. Debilitating diseases can ravage our total well-being without so much as a millimeter of forgiveness. Thus, leaving us frail or even forgotten about. Dementia, Alzheimer's, and Parkinson's are just a few that my partner and I had the pleasure to work with. When I use the word pleasure, I do mean pleasure. It's not a word most would use to describe a debilitating disease and if my parent were to experience any one of these, I most definitely would not use that word. However, for us it was a pleasure because the people were a pleasure and we gained SO MUCH from the experience. It was truly eye opening, the challenges we faced. With some people we had to reintroduce ourselves everyday for the past 3 months because they had no recollection of receiving massage or even meeting us for that matter. It was a challenge and often times frustrating because we wanted to help them so badly and couldn't. Largely due to starting from scratch with them each session. Another difficult task was convincing the skeptics in the senior facility that massage therapy was extremely beneficial! This type of service isn’t perceived the most welcoming for certain generations. We had to chip away at these particular people little by little each day to gain their trust. We informed them of how massage worked and how beneficial it was, answering every question that came our way. Much of the time we listened to war stories and heard about family members . We realized that all they really wanted was someone to talk to, to feel special because some people had felt so forgotten over time, so lonely. It took a few weeks but we managed to break down a barrier with several of the resident's. They trusted us enough to finally accept therapeutic touch. Once that happened it was a flood gate of volunteers to be first up when we walked in the door each day! It was amazing to see the turn around! Trust and intention are main keys to the doors of our world. One skeptical man in particular, after about 2 sessions twice per week over the course of a month, actually ended up ditching the walker and mowing the front lawn of the establishment! I will never forget the proud look on his face when he told us all about it after we walked in the door that day and how the tremors from his Parkinson's seem to dwindle a little each time. He was so happy. Massage isn't just about bodywork. It's also about intent, trust, and a bond between client and therapist. Without those things there would be no work for me to do. When a client lies on my table they are trusting me to not only behave professionally but, to help them with whatever is ailing them. As humans, it can be extremely difficult to let down our walls. Intent is everything in the massage field. It's what defines a good therapist, an effective therapist, period. I will never regret those difficult days for a single second. I also don't recommend working in an assisted living home as a first job for any new massage therapist, but it did better prepare me for my next venture. After graduating in 2007 I already had a job. I was shocked! I was shocked because I really and honestly wasn't very good at it. I had the people skills but, I only practiced at school. My skills didn't come until a couple of years later. That's the thing about experience, the more you do something and the longer, the better you become at it. This particular place was a great first job for me. I was very over worked, sometimes taking up to 9 clients per day at almost 5 days a week. I became good at massage with the more client's they loaded on my schedule. I gained so much knowledge with each client because the facility was a multi-specialty clinic, a one stop shop for health. I got to work with all kinds of ailments. I didn't just do massage though, I was also trained as a CT (Chiropractic Technician). That means working the front desk when I wasn't massaging and taking x-rays for the clients getting adjusted by the chiropractor. I am thankful for the over-done experience because I learned so much working with client's and alongside other health professionals. I worked with anything from tendinitis to a pinched nerve, even the aftermath from the occasional auto accident. Also most importantly, I learned how I didn't want to practice. Over working yourself, or being over worked in general is not the way to go in this field. The aftermath will be early burnout accompanied by chronic fatigue, pain, or even injury. No amount of money is worth your health or sanity. I am most grateful to these lessons because it means I am that much better at working on the next client. I've seen first hand what a wonderful benefit it is for anyone whose insurance will cover it. After 3.5 years I left and decided working as an MT at my own pace would be most beneficial for me. I was right! I loved the easy-going-laid-back atmosphere of a private practice. I answered to one person and she took care of all the appointments. My only job was to provide massage and rebook. However, I soon discovered I craved more than that. I wanted more purpose, guidance, a staff to work along side, stability, and an opportunity to move forward in my career. So I left this particular private practice after 2.5 years and moved to an independent practice. It too was another learning experience, but I craved even more, AGAIN. I craved TRUE independence, running my own show and sharing space with other talented, but independent therapists. So here I am, part of the Independent Massage Professionals team. I have come to the conclusion that at this point in my life all of these experiences have better prepared me for this very moment, like climbing a pyramid to the top. I now have 13 total years under my hands at this point and I know I've got so much more left in me. The best part about being solo is that my dreams are even bigger now and the skies the limit, which means I am capable of completely changing how people view this industry. It's not just a luxury to most, it's a way of life. It’s an even bigger curve ball learning the ins and outs of business, and I am enjoying it. I have so many ideas, goals, and dreams for my practice! I'm grateful for the new challenge's that I have faced as well as the one's that await me. I look forward to all of the new client's that I'll have the pleasure of working with, helping to build their own pyramid of health and wellness. I will also be taking continuing education classes to better myself and care of the client. I’ve become Certified in kinesiology taping as well as cupping and I work on the side for an insurance company providing bodywork to auto accident victims. I am a huge animal lover, so naturally I have also taken canine massage as well as equestrian . Horses are much more intuitive than we give them credit for! Something that completely intrigues me in the massage world is Sport's Massage in relation to injury prevention as well as pain management for all. I was an avid runner, completing around 5-7 races in a year and 30-50 miles/week, but I switched my fitness goals up and almost five years ago and moved in the direction of strength training. Now recently, bodybuilding. I've had the pleasure of working with trainers as well as a nutrition coach. So naturally, I am well aware of how hard training can be on the body for an athlete at any level. That being said, now I prefer a more clinical approach to massage with preferring bodywork that is specifically focused. Nobody wants to be out of work or off training due to an injury or illness, we lose so much during that down time. So if I can help someone recuperate and speed up the recovery process I am all about it. The goal is to maintain the body before there is an issue, not solely when one occurs. My sincerest apologies for this novel of a bio and a big thank you for reading it. I feel it is most important to let a potential client know exactly what they are getting when trusting me to work with them. W e owe it to our health, our well-being, our soul, our mind, our family and our friends to take proper care of ourselves. It must be an intended purpose for each of us to take proper care of ourselves. We are important so we need to treat self care, any style of self care, as a purpose. Massage Therapy has helped to ingrain that in myself on a level I never thought possible. I learn so much from all of my client's. Massage offers a reset button, don't be afraid to push it while taking a deep breath, and remember to exhale. Stress less and live happier, Rachel Baumann, LMT
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