Alissa Smith, LMT
EDUCATION
SPECIALTIES
CONTACT (520) 833-0194 Prices
Massage
60 minutes • $95.00 90 minutes • $130.00 Manual Lymphatic Drainage 30 minutes • $65.00 60 minutes • $115.00 90 minutes • $150.00 |
Alissa has always had the healing touch and the inclination to use her hands to help those who are hurting. For as long as she can remember, she has been told she has a knack for “finding the right spot,” so, naturally, she became a massage therapist.
Alissa actually went through massage school twice! Her first experience was tarnished by some difficult life events, and although she had earned certification, when she decided to pursue a massage career seriously, she decided to enroll again. “When I decided to make it my career, I went back to school and focused on filling in the gaps of my original education. It was an amazing experience to be able to soak up advanced technique because I already knew how to massage.” Even then, massage school was only the beginning of her education. Working at a large massage chain as a recent grad, she found her passion in helping people with posture and in alleviating chronic pain and injury. Moving on to work at an acupuncture clinic gave her the opportunity to learn traditional Chinese techniques like cupping and gua sha. She also found medical massage and fell in love with its complexity and impactfulness. In advanced, specialized techniques like these, Alissa found her niche. In particular, Alissa was fascinated with more holistic views of the body and its systems—for example, the fact that the muscles aren’t isolated but form continuous “trains,” and that they are all further connected by the fascia, or connective tissue. Diving deeper into body science, she became interested in another pervasive network of the body, the lymphatic system, and became certified in Manual Lymphatic Drainage (MLD). This training was key in expanding her understanding of the body as a whole system and changed her approach to bodywork. Alissa credits a large part of her success in treating clients to teaching them body awareness as part of self-care. “Clients are empowered when they become more present with their bodies, and understanding the mind-body connection is an important step in their healing journey.” Using mindfulness techniques to help clients strengthen their connections with their bodies is another of her passions. She has found that, when people are able to make sense of what their body is telling them and know how to choose the right tools for self-care, they are more successful at easing pain at home, which in turn makes bodywork treatments more effective. Combining her clinical MLD training with her more-intuitive style of medical massage, Alissa finds that she has the tools to address most any issue clients bring to her table—from accidents/injuries to migraines to chronic pain to difficulty achieving fitness goals. “I like to say that I help correct dysfunction in the body,” she says. Originally from the Central Valley of Northern California, Alissa came to Tucson to be closer to family. She loves to spend free time at the gym lifting weights, exploring nature with her kids, cooking and eating good food, watching a good science fiction or horror movie, or just enjoying her family and friends. |