The Approach
Bodywork that meets the whole person.
Pain is rarely just structural. The body holds the history of our experiences and this work is designed to meet it there, with patience, precision, and no script.
The philosophy
Chronic pain and persistent tension are rarely just mechanical problems. The body holds all of it — a car accident, a relationship that ended badly, years of managing a high-pressure job — these leave traces in the nervous system, expressed through tissue.
Rather than treating the body as parts to be fixed, sessions work with the body as an intelligent system that knows how to let go when it finally feels safe enough to.
Pain is approached as both a physical and nervous-system experience — and the body knows how to release it, when it finally feels safe enough to.
Sessions look different from conventional massage — more listening, more space, and more attention to what's actually present.
Core principles
Regulation before release
The nervous system cannot release what it doesn't feel safe enough to let go of. Sessions bring the system into a regulated state first — through pace, presence, and quality of touch — before any deeper work begins.
Consent is the foundation
Every session begins with a check-in: what you're bringing in, what you'd like more or less of, what you're not up for today. Nothing happens without an explicit yes. Consent is ongoing.
No protocol, just presence
There is no script. Tami follows what's present in the tissue and nervous system in real time. Every session is genuinely different.
Slow is productive
The nervous system doesn't respond well to force or speed. The most lasting work often happens in the moments that look the most still. Tami works at the pace the body can actually integrate.
Transparency by default
Trauma-informed care means the person always knows what to expect. Session structure, pricing, cancellation policy — all stated clearly and up front.
The body is always the authority
The client's body is the authority on what's working and what isn't. Verbal and nonverbal feedback is always welcome and always taken seriously.
Modalities used
Sessions typically draw on several of the following approaches, chosen in real time — not according to a sequence.
Medical and Sports Massage
Advanced soft-tissue work addressing specific holding patterns, injury recovery, and structural imbalances. The structural backbone of most sessions.
Craniosacral Therapy
Very light-touch work addressing the central nervous system through the craniosacral rhythm. Particularly effective for nervous-system dysregulation, headaches, and trauma held in the head and neck.
Somatic Experiencing
A trauma-resolution approach developed by Dr. Peter Levine, working with the nervous system's natural completion cycles. Used when the body needs to finish something it started.
Integrative Somatic Coaching
Body-based inquiry used to support sense-making, integration, and verbal processing when the work calls for it. A bridge between bodywork and understanding.
Somatic Presence and Tracking
Trained attention to moment-to-moment signals — breath, tone, micro-movements, stillness — that guide the session's direction and pacing.
What happens in a session
Every session has a structure, even if the content varies.
Arrival
A short check-in about what you're bringing in — physical holding, nervous-system state, what you'd like more or less of today.
Hands on
Bodywork drawing on medical massage, craniosacral, somatic, or coaching techniques as appropriate. Consent is ongoing throughout.
Return
Time to land before getting up. Optional verbal reflection. Tami may offer observations from the session if that would be helpful.
The 90-minute and 120-minute sessions allow more time in each phase. New clients typically start with a 90-minute session.
Who this work is for
This work is particularly suited to people navigating:
- Chronic pain that has not responded to structural treatment. Often the nervous system is holding a pattern that bodywork alone cannot resolve.
- Post-trauma integration. Unresolved experience often lives in the body. Sessions provide a regulated container for the nervous system to complete what it started.
- Psychedelic or retreat integration. The 120-minute session is specifically designed for clients processing significant altered-state or peak experiences.
- Major life transitions. Grief, career change, relationship shift, becoming a parent — transitions have a somatic signature.
- Anyone who wants to know the body they live in. You don't need a diagnosis or difficult history. Curiosity and a willingness to slow down are enough.
This work is not a substitute for mental health therapy, medical treatment, or crisis support. If you are in active mental health crisis, please connect with a licensed therapist before booking.
Ready to begin?
Sessions by appointment, Tuesday through Saturday in Salt Lake City. New clients welcome.