Okay fam, let’s real talk for a moment. How was your 2019? Take a minute to reflect. It’s okay, I’ll wait!

Did you do it? I’m really happy for you if you had an excellent 2019! And if you didn’t, 2020 can be so much better! But now I want to ask… What were your pain levels like? Even if you think you had a great year, how many times at work did you have to scoot away from your desk to massage a kink out of your neck? How many headaches did you put up with this year? How many times did you sit up wrong in bed and think “there goes my low back again, time to see Dr. Warwick”?

I’ve been reflecting lately about American culture and how we’ve cultivated this standard that these aches and pains are just something we have to put up with. In most work places it’s unacceptable to call out for anything less than being sick as a dog, or you got into a car accident. So we grind away in warehouses, in offices, in retail stores, driving our semi trucks, driving the kids to and fro, wincing from sudden jolts of pain and waiting for our extra strength Advil to kick in. And hey, don’t feel bad because I’m totally guilty of it too.

Do you remember what it’s like to be pain free? For the sake of honesty, I don’t remember what it’s like. I have periods where my body feels better because I’m doing my yoga stretches twice a day, drinking my water, and getting massages with adjustments. But I haven’t made the commitment to myself to really truly take care of my body, and boy am I tired of popping that extra strength Advil.

You might be thinking I’m a hypocrite, preaching wellness without following my own practices. Well you’re right. I’m right here with you all in the trenches, dealing with pain in my body because I’m a hard worker and I don’t listen when it says “hey this hurts!” I’m ready for that to change!

As your friendly neighborhood massage therapist I need to practice what I preach. I want 2020 to be the best pain free year of my life so far! I want to lead the charge against the social norms and experience my body at its best. Because when I feel my best, I can give my best, and you deserve nothing less from me.

How am I going to accomplish this you ask? I’m going to practice what I preach. I tell everyone that a good standard for massage frequency is at least once a month for maintenance, however, twice a month is better if you have a lot of issues. I have a lot of issues so I’m going to receive bi-weekly massages, in addition to adjustments from Dr. Warwick and Dr. Waling.

I’m going to drink my water!

I’m also going to try something new every month! Hot yoga, thai massage, cupping, zumba, belly dancing, reiki, acupuncture Ashiatsu; you name it! I’m going to try it!

And every month I’ll be writing an update or doing a video review about the new thing I tried and researching the benefits of each thing.

It’s my deepest desire that this will inspire you all to take charge of your pain in 2020 and join me in living our lives at the highest quality possible. Stay tuned!