......Increased Well-being......Equanimity......

Karen Michaels

Certified Zero Balancer, Licensed Massage Therapist, Certified Embodyoga Teacher, Developer of Dynamic Balanced Movement

Helping clients find more healthful and comfortable ways to move through their daily routines

"In every culture and in every medical

tradition before ours, healing was

accomplished by moving energy.”

- Albert Szent-Gyorgyi, Nobel Laureate in medicine

Testimonials

"...With each session, I always felt a sense of release, physically, mentally, and spiritually......Often with sessions, I would experience a better than average night's sleep......Karen is a wealth of information and has taught and given me many tools and techniques that I will continue to use in my life regularly." R.M., Shutesbury, MA, client

"...Working with you has helped me to refine my sense of my 3-dimensional self, and how I move myself through space....I felt taller, uplifted, and light in my body.....Paying closer attention...is helping me to let go of some long-standing tension in my neck, shoulders, and low back." S.M., student

"The work is very subtle when you are on the table but lasts for the next few weeks. Feels like the body is getting realigned naturally." L.R., client

"I have sought out her excellent skills as a practitioner on many occasions....combination of skills makes her contribution unique…” S.L., faculty, Muscular Therapy Institute

“She is quite simply the best Massage Therapist I have had the privilege of being worked upon by...” C.C., former yoga studio owner and director, yoga teacher, client

“(Zero Balancing)...relaxes muscles that are tense and tight, improves mobility in my joints, and relieves pain throughout my body...I have experienced many types of massage over the years, with many different practitioners. No one comes close to Karen in skill, expertise, and competence...” D.E., client

“...she has an uncanny ability to find and release tension; even better (and rarer), she doesn't just move the tension to some other set of muscles, she gets it all the way out of my body...” L.G., client

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The "Therapist" in "Massage Therapist" means my sessions offer much more than "just relaxation". Licensed since 1985, my clients have included people with chronic pain issues including fibromyalgia, people recovering from injuries, and people who engage in high levels of physical activity for work or recreation.

The process of how we move and how the quality of energy flows through our bodies has long been a source of intrigue to me, and continues to provide inspiration.

My work is enhanced by my many years training in movement, music, and homeopathy. I have evolved a treatment style that incorporates my original training in deep tissue work, my training as a dancer, dance teacher, and certified Embodyoga teacher, and my interest in a variety of bodywork and healing techniques, meditation and other Stress Reduction techniques.

I began my Massage Therapy practice in the Cambridge, MA area in the early 1980's, working closely with physical therapists, chiropractors, acupuncturists, and psychotherapists. I then practiced in the Littleton, MA area for 15 years, before relocating to the Pioneer Valley in 2003. In 2004 I began teaching dance in the Valley. 2007- 2009 I consulted as a Massage Therapist for a factory business, where I assessed and treated employees, many of whom worked long shifts that required continuous, repetitive, heavy lifting.

I have been a licensed Massage Therapist since 1985, and a Certified Zero Balancer since 1998. Since 2008, I have been a mentor for the Zero Balancing Health Association, helping guide certification candidates along their journey. In 2007, I received my Embodyoga Teacher Certification from Patty Townsend. This work is based on Bonnie Bainbridge Cohen's developmental movement training. I received my certification in Caring for Patients with Cancer (2009, Tracy Walton). 2006 - 2008 I particpated in and observed chair fitness classes taught by physical therapists at Atria Woodlands, an assisted/independent living facility in Dobbs Ferry, New York.

I have given presentations on Zero Balancing at UMass Amherst, Mount Holyoke College, and Hampshire College. I have also given presentations on Zero Balancing and other areas related to bodywork therapies, movement education, and Dynamic Wellness at various locations in the Pioneer Valley.

DANCE AND MOVEMENT/CORRECTIVE MOVEMENT CLASSES

It is my belief that we can all increase the ease and joy we experience as we move in and inhabit our bodies. In order to help others access this joy and ease, I am again offering Movement Education (Corrective Exercise and Conditioning/Functional Movement Repatterning, Restorative Yoga) sessions, and teaching modern dance, ballet, yoga, and Dynamic Balanced Movement classes.

I have my BFA in dance from The Boston Conservatory of Music, and in Western MA, I have taught dance at Amherst Ballet (2004 - 2009), East Street Dance Center (2009 -2016), and Dance Artists Classical Coaching studios (2012-2015).

Since moving to the Pioneer Valley in 2003, I have had the wonderful opportunity to train with Joanna Duncan of Dance Artists Classical Coaching studios in Shrewsbury, MA (classical ballet and conditioning), and Paul Dennis at UMass Amherst (modern - Limon based; Laban/Bartenieff influenced), Irina Vakhromeeva, Carlos Molina, and Donna Bonasera at East Street Dance Center, and to study Embodyoga with Patty Townsend, receiving my 200 hour teacher certification.

I also offer Dynamic Wellness workshops.

......Lightness......Calm......Joy......