How it began…

A woman taking a selfie in a desert landscape with red rock formations and a clear blue sky.

“Wow, I feel so much better. Thank you.”

“There are only three people I can completely melt under—my husband, his highly experienced brother, and you. You’ve got to go to massage school.”

From walking on my uncle’s back as a seven-year-old to helping friends through migraines years later, I’ve heard versions of the same thing again and again:

“You have a gift with your hands.”

For years, I smiled, thanked them… and kept doing something else.

I genuinely loved creating beautiful spaces. Through cleaning, painting, gardening, and redesigning homes, I learned how deeply our surroundings influence the way we feel. I still love enhancing atmospheres—but over time I began to recognize that being able to influence someone’s internal atmosphere was what called to me most deeply.

The more I paid attention to what felt natural, meaningful, and alive in me, the clearer it became: bodywork belonged in my life.

A woman in a camouflage beanie and overalls appears to be helping an elderly man in a white cap and plaid shirt sit on a stone ledge overlooking a mountainous landscape with water and islands in the distance.
A woman in a camouflage beanie and overalls appears to be helping an elderly man in a white cap and plaid shirt sit on a stone ledge overlooking a mountainous landscape with water and islands in the distance.

Discovering Body-Memory Release

Close-up of smiling man and woman wearing hats, in a desert landscape with red rock formations and cloudy sky.

I first met Jonathan Tripodi through mutual friends. What began as a few meaningful conversations eventually led me to experience Body-Memory Release both as a recipient and as a student learning to offer the work during one of his biannual Sedona Unwinding Retreat.

What stayed with me wasn’t simply the technique. It was the philosophy behind it: curiosity instead of force, listening instead of fixing, and deep respect for the intelligence already present within the body.

That approach felt immediately familiar.

I’m now a few months into this path and actively building a practice that brings together two forms of work that feel naturally connected:

Soma Touch — restorative and therapeutic massage, with Body-Memory Release techniques woven in as my training continues.

Soma Reflection — hands-off reflective sessions using conversation, inquiry, body awareness, and careful listening to help you notice what may be happening beneath the surface and reconnect with your own clarity.

Some people may want massage. Others may want reflection. And for some, the two may naturally support one another.

The common thread is simple: creating a space where you can slow down, listen inwardly, and feel more connected to yourself.

Group of ten people, including men, women, and children, posing for a photo on a dirt trail in a desert landscape with red rock formations and green shrubbery in the background.

The Practice I’m Building

My vision is to create a practice that feels personal, grounded, curious, and responsive to the person in front of me.

I want people to leave feeling more at home in their bodies and lives—not because I have given them the answers, but because the space has helped them hear themselves more clearly.

And I’m already in the work.

I’m practicing, learning, listening, and continuing to refine what this offering wants to become.

A meaningful part of that vision is mobility. I don’t imagine this work being limited to one room or one town. I love the idea of carrying it with me—serving the community I’m in, while also traveling to the people I love and offering care within their communities.

There is something deeply meaningful to me about being able to visit friends and family and, while I’m there, bring something useful with me: touch, presence, reflection, and a way for people to reconnect with themselves.

I want this practice to have roots, but also wings.

Woman smiling sitting outdoors by a river with plants, wearing a green beanie and teal jacket, petting a black dog.

Continuing My Training

I’m continuing toward the next stage of my Body-Memory Release certification, including a month of intensive training with Jonathan in Maui.

The approximate investment for that next phase is:

  • Tuition & housing: $12,000

  • Food, living expenses & equipment: $1000

  • Flight: ~$500

Total: approximately $13,500

I’m continuing to fund this training while actively building the practice itself—through massage, Soma Reflection, my creative work, and the people who are already choosing to work with me.

What once felt like something I was preparing to begin now feels very much underway.

If something about this work resonates with you, I’d love to work with you—or to be introduced to someone you think might benefit from what I offer.

Thank you to everyone who has encouraged me, trusted my hands, reflected something back to me, or reminded me over the years to pay attention to the work that felt most natural.

I finally am.

A greeting card with a bear illustration and the words "STAY WILD" is placed on a wooden table. Beside the card, there is a bouquet of pink and white flowers with green stems.
A smiling woman in a blue hoodie and shorts sitting on a rocky mountain trail with snow, trees, and a lake with mountains in the background, holding a sandwich and surrounded by a backpack and hiking shoes.
A close-up of tall grass stems in the foreground with a sunset over a calm body of water and a distant shoreline or island visible in the background.
Two people, dressed in winter clothing, are sharing a hug on a city sidewalk in front of a historic stone building with arched doorways and windows, and decorative architectural details.
A view of a rocky coastline with turquoise waters and a sandy beach, surrounded by vegetation and cliffs.
Silhouettes of tall palm trees against a hazy, cloudy sky at dusk or dawn with a body of water and structures in the distance.
Close-up of fists with the word 'LOVE WINS' tattooed on the fingers, held in front of a gray T-shirt with 'CHICAGO' printed on it, indoors with warm lighting.

“Tell me not, in mournful numbers,
   Life is but an empty dream!
For the soul is dead that slumbers,
   And things are not what they seem.

Life is real! Life is earnest!
   And the grave is not its goal;
Dust thou art, to dust returnest,
   Was not spoken of the soul.”

-- A Psalm of Life, by HW Longfellow