About Me

I was born and raised in Kansas City, to a humble and kind family with 4 siblings.  I have always enjoyed making and experiencing art in its many forms which I continue to incorporate through creative expressions in my offerings of massage, yoga and Airbnb hosting.  Spending a semester at age 19 in Orlando Florida participating in the Walt Disney World College Program, I was grateful to have the experience to work with people from various countries and cultures around the world.  This gave me great appreciation for the beautiful diversity that mankind spans as well as a taste for broadening my perspectives to learn and experience more about different cultures.  At age 20 I moved South to Austin, Texas where I became inspired by a more natural and conscious lifestyle incorporating yoga, meditation, musical instruments and dance into my reality. 

There I had the lovely experience of completing the 200-hour Yoga Alliance recognized teacher training program through Black Swan Yoga in 2012 emphasizing hatha, vinyasa and Iyengar methods of yoga as well as training in breathwork, healthy lifestyle choices, energy work and meditation.  During this time in Austin, Texas I was also introduced to the concepts and career possibility of social work, which felt very much in line with my joy of helping others, along with my professional and ethical values.  I found that social work’s emphasis of promoting respect, equality and appreciation for the dignity and worth of each person as well as the importance of relationships and community connection can be beautifully weaved into any area of life.  Pursuing a degree in social work flowed seamlessly into my path and I was happy to graduate with my bachelor’s degree with honors from Texas State University in 2011.

My social work journey continued after graduation initially working as a Case Manager with Child Protective Services in Austin followed by a position with a small non-profit agency called Youth Advocacy, working with teens on probation, their families and the community.  In these positions I worked directly with clients to set and reach their goals of attainable positive outcomes, step by step together.  I advocated for clients and networked with families, schools, family court and justice systems, churches and other community groups and resources to collectively support positive transformations.  During my time as a social worker and my yoga teacher training, I was also introduced to massage therapy to help relieve physical, mental and emotional stress and to find balance and healing, promoting overall wellbeing.

I had been researching massage therapy programs in Austin as well during this time, feeling that it would be a very nice compliment to be able to offer along with my yoga practice and social work career.  I ended up finding a program based out of Denver Colorado and located in the eclectic beach town of Samara, Costa Rica where I had recently studied Spanish abroad during college.  At that time the Costa Rica School of Massage Therapy felt a little bit out of reach, but I began to save and work towards the dream of one day attending this amazing program in a natural and inspiring setting that I loved.  A couple of years later while driving home from work, I was rear ended coming off the highway.  Luckily the crash was not worse, but I did suffer from extreme whiplash injury that was causing terrible neck and back pain, inability to sleep, severe headaches and inability to work for first weeks after the accident. 

During the physical therapy sessions, I noticed that the most helpful of the therapies I was receiving were the brief massage sessions for my neck and shoulders. I decided to ask the insurance company if they would specifically provide full professional massage therapy sessions to aid in my recovery and thankfully, they said yes.  I had heard of Thai yoga massage during my yoga training and so I sought out a massage therapist in Austin who specialized in this modality.  He was a serene and incredibly talented massage therapist from Thailand who had been practicing this style of massage since being trained by village elders who recognized his gift as a child.  The 90-minute sessions I had with him were rooted in traditional Thai massage which is practiced on a soft floor mat and the person receiving wears loose clothing allowing for free body movement.  The massage consists of a series of yoga like stretches as well as some acupressure point work and at times deep pressure and gentle structural adjustments that leave the body feeling thoroughly open and nurtured.

The theory of energy lines in the body called “Sen lines”, where energy blockages may be found and released resonated with me on all levels and I was reminded of the extensive chakra and energy healing workshop I attended in addition to my yoga training. During my course of Thai massage treatments, I vividly felt painful blockages from my injuries being worked out down the energy lines and released out of my body.  Each session left me feeling more open and with less pain until one day I realized that I had felt fully recovered and even better physically, mentally and emotionally than I had actually felt before the accident.  Filled with gratitude and inspired with the wish to help others in the way that I had been helped, gave me the final motivation to take the plunge and apply for the massage school in Costa Rica that made my heart sing.

The decision to attend the Costa Rica School of Massage Therapy opened the space for life transformations that I had never even imagined possible.  I felt so much gratitude to receive training across several massage therapy modalities taught by a variety of the most experienced and competent teachers from across the United States who arrived down to Costa Rica to share their gifts and expertise. Having the blessing to attend this high-quality program and to learn this art that I was passionate about so that I may help others as I had been helped, seemed to bring everything into alignment.  Graduation from the CRSMT intensive 600+ hour massage program in 2014 followed by a 2-week intensive course in Thai massage, set me well on my way to the next branch of my career path in the healing and helping professions.

Upon graduation I began practicing massage in Costa Rica and really felt in tune to stay in Samara beach for as long as possible.  After years of suffering from anxiety and skin issues, it was really the first time in a long time that I experienced clear skin and felt fully at peace and at home.  I put out a notice for an apartment for rent and took a job learning how to manage a lovely little boutique hotel in the forest.  When the response came for my apartment outreach, it was an adorable little project house just outside of town center in a peaceful local neighborhood… a place I had been and had loved years before studying Spanish and had said out loud at that time that “I would love to have a place just like this some day… so much raw beauty and potential… just being here fills my heart with joy”.  One thing led to another and the experience I gained in social work values, boutique hotel management, massage therapy training as well as blessings from above brought this property to be a synchronistic and positive personal exchange between me and the previous owner… thus was born Casa Heart Rock in Samara, Costa Rica.

Creating and building, traveling between the USA and Costa Rica, hosting and meeting amazing souls, providing a safe and inspired space for people to come from all over the world to explore their own dreams and transformations, working in a career field I loved and felt passionate about while helping others… these are the bones of the love project.  Having my first 7 years’ experience working in massage therapy with a chiropractic and wellness center in Kansas City, allowed me the opportunity to work with a wide range of clients who were experiencing a wide range of ailments or needs to be addressed.  I learned how to tailor treatment plans for clients and work individually with them to reach desired outcomes as well as together with other healthcare professionals to provide the most holistic and effective wellness services. Addressing a variety of ailments with clients including back injuries, postural misalignments, neuromuscular diseases and general stress among many other pathologies.  Measuring progress towards goals, helping to promote tension and pain release, increase in circulation, flexibility, relaxation and healing is in continuous flow throughout treatments. Placing equal emphasis on the mental and emotional states of being during sessions allowed clients to arrive without guard and to open to avenues of recovery, release and positive transformation wherever the need may be at that moment.

Practicing massage has been incredibly rewarding work for me.  To connect on a genuine human level with others without judgement and to assist in releasing heaviness and darkness, replacing it with lightness and love has been an amazing blessing that I feel lifts me up as much as it does those I work with.  I have had the honor to build rapport and long-term working relationships with clients over several years and now am happy to manage my own massage practice with a schedule that works for all.  I continue to learn from my clients with each session how I may better serve and I continue to be inspired to learn new techniques and modalities to incorporate into our sessions.  Building these long-term beneficial working relationships through my massage practice brought me to the realization that I could better serve those I work with in a holistic way if I would seek training in therapy areas of mental and emotional health as well.  This realization motivated me to return to university to pursue my master’s in social work with the eventual goal of attaining my licensed clinical social work credential and to be able to provide psychotherapy as well.  University of Saint Mary in Leavenworth has proven an amazingly supportive, competent and educational MSW program that has provided me with the avenue to receive this training with a projected graduation in 2027.

For someone who is very grounded and loving human connection, not very tech savvy and who has been out of university since 2011, returning to pursue a master’s degree in social work and beyond through an online program beginning in 2025 was a very daunting endeavor for me.  Once again, I had to come back to myself and to try to act on the words and encouragement that I constantly preach to others.  Look fear in the face, know that you are capable of anything and that anything is possible if you act with love, integrity and determination.  Realizing that difficult times may be part of your path allowing you to find your true strength, resilience and direction. Let go of that which no longer serves you, live with gratitude and you will be amazed at the doors that open when you trust and follow your heart…. Are you ready for the journey?