Sara Newberry is a Licensed Massage Therapist in Missouri joining me as part of an ongoing effort to interview a fellow massage therapist from all 50 states. Sara practices ashiatsu at her practice Somatic Sole Barefoot Massage, and she is a barefoot massage educator with Midwest Massage Training Center. She also provides business coaching for other bodyworkers. And she does all of this, amazingly, while raising three young children!

So what did we talk about?

• Sara’s massage origin story and what lead in to ashiatsu
• Massage for young people
• The basics of becoming a massage therapist in Missouri
• Maintaining a license in MO
• Impact of Covid in Missouri
• Reopening concerns
• Keeping busy during the shutdown
• Thinking around pivoting a wellness practice
• What her virtual sessions look like
• How this crisis changes massage therapy
• Suggestions for longevity in the field
• Thoughts for a startup massage practice

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

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Rebecca Tamm is on the Massage Hodgepodgcast to talk about Michigan in my ongoing series to interview a massage practitioner in every state. She is the founder of Michigan Massage & Wellness, where she specializes in Fascial Stretch Therapy, Lokte Method, MPS Therapy, and more.

Here is what we covered:

• Rebecca’s massage therapy origin story
• The basics of becoming a massage therapist in Michigan
• Maintaining a license in MI
• The state of Michigan during covid
• The trauma of having your business closed during the shut down
• How does this crisis change massage therapy?
• Longevity as a massage therapist
• Fascial Stretching
• The value of the therapeutic relationship

https://michiganmassageandwellness.com/

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

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Sharon Bryant is a Licensed Massage Therapist with Harvest Moon Massage Therapy & Reflexology in Alabama. She joins me as part of the ongoing series to interview a fellow therapist in all 50 states. Sharon is also an educator with the Alabama Barefoot Massage Training Center.

A Quick Conversation Rundown

• Massage origin story and the path to barefoot massage
• The basics of becoming a massage therapist in Alabama
• Maintaining a license in AL
• The unfolding of the covid crisis
• Keeping busy during the shutdown
• Contact tracing
• How does this crisis change massage therapy?
• Community vs. competition
• Therapeutic relationship
• Longevity as a massage therapist
• Ashiatsu post covid
• Reflexology

http://www.harvestmoonmassage.com

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library

Rebecca Brumfield joins me on The Massage Hodgepodgcast to talk about Louisiana! Yes, the video is a bit choppy, but the audio is clean. This continues my series to chat with a massage therapist from all 50 States. Rebecca’s practice in Baton Rouge is called Vida Pura Spa where she specializes in fire cupping. She also runs a coaching program for other spa and wellness business owners called Badass Bodyworkers. I would highly recommend checking out that site for some great free resources.

Here is a quick conversation overview.

• Massage origin story
• The basics of becoming a massage therapist in Louisiana
• Maintaining a license in your state
• The state of LA right now
• Reopening
• Changes coming to massage post covid
• Where she has been focused during the shutdown
• Converting clients to 90 minutes
• Pivoting a massage practice to a more broad wellness center
• Longevity as a massage therapist
• Fire Cupping

Find Vida Pura on IG @vidapuraspa

Find Badass Bodyworkers on IG @badassbodyworkers

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library

Melinda Loo is on the podcast! She is here representing Connecticut in my series to interview a fellow practitioner from all 50 states. In addition to her private practice at Essential Bodywork and Wellness, she also offers business coaching for other practitioners at MelindaLoo.com.

An overview of our conversation…

• Melinda’s origin story
• The basics of becoming a massage therapist in CT
• The state of CT during the shutdown
• Lessons from the lockdown
• Ideas for LMTs to create other revenue streams
• How does this crisis change massage therapy?
• Longevity as a bodyworker
• The use of CBD oil in massage practice===

Find Melinda on Instagram @essentialbodyworkandwellness

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library

Abby Meyers joined me on the Massage Hodgepodgcast to talk about massage therapy in Illinois. This is part of the interview series 50 Massage Therapists | 50 States. Abby has over 16 years of experience, so I was excited for the chance to chat about a range of topics.

We dive into…

• Abby’s massage origin story
• Massage & bodywork for youth
• The basics of becoming a massage therapist in Illinois
• Maintaining a license in IL
• The covid crisis
• Grappling with re-opening
• Industry changes post covid
• Longevity as a massage therapist
• Headache interventions 

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library

Shawn Kitzman was on the podcast to talk about massage therapy in the state of Minnesota. He is a manual therapist, movement coach, and wellness practitioner coach.  This is part of my 50 Therapists 50 States series, and it marks the first time I have encountered a state without a regulated licensing program. Shawn presents some compelling ideas that might run against the grain of the status quo. There might also be some slightly stronger language. I really enjoyed this wide ranging and thought provoking conversation.

We talk about…

• Shawn’s origin story
• Practicing massage in Minnesota
• The absence of licensure and regulation
• Juicy Lucy and Hot Dish
• The unfolding of the covid crisis in Minnesota
• Pivoting during the shutdown
• Longevity as a therapist
• Motivating clients to take their self care seriously
• Giving clients homework
• How does the shutdown affect the massage field

Find Shawn online at ShawnKitzman.com.

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library

Gretchen Hannsz Witzgall is on the podcast! She is here to chat about her home state of Maryland as part of my ongoing endeavor to interview a fellow massage therapist from all 50 states. Her practice Leading Light Massage is located in Cambridge, Maryland.

Beth Petersen is on the Massage Hodgepodgcast! Apologies for the audio quality this time! This is part of the 50 Massage Therapists | 50 States series. She practices Thai massage at her private practice Unwind Bodywork in South Dakota. She is also an instructor at Stewart School.

We talked about…

• Origin story into massage and the transition to Thai massage
• Licensure in South Dakota
• How the crisis unfolded in SD
• Re-opening
• What she has observed in clients
• Considerations for a Thai Massage pertaining to re-opening
• How does this crisis change massage therapy
• Post cover considerations for Thai massage
• How the school where she teaches is approaching re-opening

Find Beth on IG @unwindbodywork

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library

Happy to welcome Bailey Maddox to represent South Carolina on The Massage Hodgepodgcast in my ongoing series to interview a fellow massage therapist in every state. She is the founder of The Supine Studio in Columbia, South Carolina.

So what did we talk about?

• Bailey’s massage origin story
• Getting a massage license in South Carolina
• Maintaining a license
• The state of SC during the comic crisis
• Re-opening in SC
• What she has observed in clients resulting from the stress of this crisis
• How does this crisis change massage therapy?
• The Supine Studio
• Migraines 

Find Bailey on Instagram @thesupinestudio

Listen / Watch! You can listen right here, or with a podcast app of your choice. You can also scroll a bit and watch the video.

You can browse all previous episodes on Libsyn and Youtube!

**Music** "Swing House" by RKVC via Youtube Audio Library