Those clients that have already been in this month to see me will be added into the drawing. I am still offering my frequent massage card. After coming in for 5 massages, you will receive $20 off your next massage. This does not apply to packages.

I hope all is well in your world!

We have made some really important decisions in the last few weeks. The most important has been choosing how to birth our baby. It’s so great that we have choices. We’ve decided to do a natural childbirth with no medication. In order for our wishes to have a natural childbirth to come to fruition, we have chosen to give birth at a birth center. We’ve chosen to have our baby at Labors of Love in Spartanburg. We couldn’t be happier with our decision. The nice thing about birthing with them, is that they have also taken over all my prenatal care. It has been so nice being able to work with Linda and Amy. I’m able to e-mail or call them whenever I have a question about something and I get replies within a few hours. They aren’t pushy and explain everything in great detail. I feel like our baby is going to be in good hands.

Linda and Amy have also introduced me to Mary Kury of Upstate Natural Birth. Mary teaches the well known Bradley Method, which are the husband/coach assisted childbirth classes. We attended a classes for 12 weeks and were well informed about how to birth our babies without using medication. Mary’s classes were informative and have helped us come to a place where we feel really confident about having a natural birth. In my mind, there is just no other way to bring this baby into the world. It’s so important to do your research and not leave everything up to the Doctors. Medical doctors definitely have a place in the world. I do feel that there are too many cesareans occurring each day at hospitals.

I’ve really enjoyed being pregnant and love feeling little Andrew kick. However, I’m not going to lie, but I would love for the next 12 weeks to fly by. Like every other pregnant woman, I want my body back! I’m dying to get out there and run! We’ve purchased our BOB stroller and can’t wait to use it!!!

I hope all is well in your world!

This is just an update for my new office. I will no longer be able to accept any credit cards. I will only be able to
accept cash or checks at my new office. Please look over my Massage/Rates page for my rates.

Thank you for understanding! I look forward to seeing you at my new office!

Hope all is well in your world!

Check out Kathryn’s website, keyacupuncture.com for directions. I will post them below as well.  I will be in this new location starting August 2, 2010. As I’ve told many of you, I plan on working until the end of September and possibly into mid-October. I’m looking forward to seeing you all soon!

I hope all is well in your hot summer world!

Directions to Key Acupuncture

600 E. Washington Street, Suite 150, Greenville, SC 29601

Directions from I-385: Take 385 into downtown Greenville. Take a left onto Church Street after passing the Bi-Lo Center. Take a left on E. Washington Street. Take your second right on Heldman St. just after the Independence bank and just before the tan colored building with a red roof. Take a left into the rear parking lot of the 600 E. Washington office complex. We are located in suite 150.
*Please Note- We are located in the rear of the building and you must take the side street (Heldman) to find the back parking lot and entrance.

Sportsclub Five Forks yoga instructor, Athena, will be doing another 6 week series starting August 9th, 2010. I highly recommend taking this class. Non-members are able to take this class for $90. The benefits far outweigh the cost of this class. Yoga is important because it teaches you to breathe deeply and relax. This will be important during your labor.

Come join me August 9th for another 6 week series of prenatal yoga.

For more information contact Sportsclub Five Forks at:

Five Forks

317 Scuffletown Road
Simpsonville, SC 29681
(864) 675-5808

http://www.sportsclubsc.com/

I hope all is well in your yoga world.

I thoroughly enjoy working on my pregnant clients though. There is just something very special about being able to work on someone who is pregnant. They have great energy and it’s just a great feeling being able to help them. There are so many benefits to receiving body work when you are expecting. Your body goes through so many changes so quickly. Massage therapy is there to offer relief. My clients are always happy to have someone rub their backs for them. Most women enjoy medium to deep pressure. Every now and then I will do a Swedish massage, but deep tissue is requested most often.

Prenatal massage is great for sore necks and shoulders. I’ve also been taught really great techniques to release pressure from the mother’s lower back and hips. Some mothers may suffer from hemorrhoids. There is a technique that is non-invasive, that can help with those. When you reach your due date I am also able to help you with some of the labor points. It can help induce some women. This does not work for everyone, especially first time mothers. Your baby will choose its birth date. You have to allow your baby to come when he/she is ready, as long as there are no complications for either mother or child.

There are some truly wonderful prenatal massage therapists in Greenville, SC. I advise you to use caution and to make sure that your therapist has taken an extensive course in prenatal massage therapy. If you are suffering from pre-eclampsia please do not go for a massage, contact your doctor as soon as possible. Make sure you tell your therapist about any complications you have experienced during your pregnancy. Some therapists may choose not to work on you if you are high-risk. In those cases, a doctors note may be required. We want the best for you and your baby, so please don’t be offended if you are denied massage therapy or asked for a permission slip.

It’s also important to know that massage therapy cannot cause a miscarriage. This is merely a myth. Some therapists may prefer to wait until you are in your second trimester before they will work on you. What happens is that the massage allows your body to relax. When your body is in relaxation mode, it may allow the miscarriage to happen sooner. Either way, the miscarriage will happen. When your body is relaxed, it’s able to let go and that is when the miscarriage happens. Massage therapists are there to help you, not harm you. If you had a difficult time getting pregnant, then I would advise you to wait until you reach 14 weeks before you receive any type of body work.

Prenatal massages make great gifts for expecting moms. If you have any further questions please feel free to contact me at any time!

I hope that all is well in your world!

A year after graduating college I went to massage school. Near the end of the course, I injured myself on a body builder. My thumb pain quickly turned into neck and shoulder pain. At that point it was time to see a doctor. I was referred to a neurologist in Seneca, SC where they performed and EMG, a nerve conduction test, to see what was going on. All they found was a little inflammation. Of course then I was sent for an MRI. They found mild arthritis, two bulging discs and some bone spurs in between. After that, it was time for physical therapy.

I’ve come to realize physical therapy in one office isn’t always the same as another office. With my education in massage therapy, I have learned that when muscles are inflamed it’s not always wise to start strengthening them right away. You need to get the inflammation down first! At the first office I went to they did not do anything about the inflammation. So of course it was no surprise that I was still injured two months later! I took it upon myself to find another physical therapist. At the second office they used ultra sound and massage to help heal the inflamed/injured muscles before we started strengthening. It made a huge difference, it was 100% better, but I was able to massage again.

Then, in May 2007 I decided to see Terry Hall Hines a naturopath/Iridologist at Creative Health in downtown Greenville, SC. I was still having trouble with my IBS and still had some inflammation. Terry taught me that what we eat has an affect on our bodies and how our bodies function every day. Terry is also a nutritionist and made a new plan for me.My IBS was gone within two weeks. She puts most people on this diet. It’s mostly food combining that you need to worry about.This is what her diets normally are:

NO Dairy, red meat (only in season), canned foods, microwaving, or wheat

That is a HARD diet to stick to! Let me tell you! As for the food combining: No starches with proteins. Only proteins with vegetables or starches with vegetables. I definitely felt 100% better when I ate that way. Now I try to eat healthy, organic foods and usually try not to combine foods too much, but I do on occasion.

Terry has opened my eyes to a whole other way of living. She’s introduced me to wonderful self-help books to help me live a happier and fuller life. I still eat my ice creams and chocolate, yes. I can’t live my life without those, but like they say “Everything in Moderation”. It really important to listen to your body. Terry also is an herbalist and prescribes herbs to people. Some of those herbs have really had a positive effect on my life. I don’t take any medications.

Through Terry I have also met many like minded people and have been introduced to acupuncture, which I just love. It’s amazing how acupuncture keeps your body in balance. I feel like I have received a true gift and I need to pass it on to everyone I know.

I hope all is well in your world. Just know there are many tools to make your life better, you just have to reach for them. I strongly encourage you to be your own advocate. If you aren’t happy with the answers you get from Doctors, find another one or try a Naturopath. I’ve been very happy with the results I have gotten physically by going to see someone who practices alternative medicine. Doctors are there for a reason, there is no doubt about that, but I do believe that they don’t always have the answers. You owe it to yourself to find someone who does have the answers. It’s time for you to live your life to the fullest.

Two 60 min massages for $100

Two 90 min massages for $150

June 1- June 20, 2010.

The scary thing about disposable diapers made in the US is that they use chemicals such as Dioxin, which is used in the bleaching process and is known to be a carcinogenic chemical. It has also been listed by the EPA as one of the most toxic cancer-linked chemicals. Think about it people, how many diapers are you using a day? How often are you exposing your baby to this toxin? It’s not the only one either. We really need to be doing our research. Just because a TV commercial shows a happy baby wearing a disposable diaper, doesn’t mean we should use them.

If you need another reason, think about all the money you’ll be saving! I just purchased 24 Bumgenius diapers for $339. I’ll use them for a very long time. Disposable diapers cost about $0.25 each. You’ll probably spend around $70 a month on disposables, that’s about $840 a year. Some kids aren’t potty-trained until age 3, so that’s $2,520 for three years. I only spent $339 for those three years and I’ll be able to use them for my second baby. If that doesn’t make you excited then I’ll add that some cloth diapers have a high resale value up to $10 a diaper. This is a no brainer!!

Let me know what you think guys!

For more information check out this site:

http://www.realdiaperassociation.org/diaperfacts.php

Bumgenius Diaper Sale on naturallytrendy.com

I hope all is well in your diaper world!

I was getting my practice fertility massage and really tried to clear my mind. A vision of a little girl came to me and then there was a younger boy hiding behind the little girl. That image has never left me! Since then, I took a prenatal massage class in December. The class was taught by the same instructor, a massage therapist who also happens to be an astrologist. I’ve never had a reading done, but one night during conversation she told me that she sees me having a girl first. So that’s two predictions even before I was pregnant! The last predictions happened last week after I got my fantastic two hour facial given by my friend Mickie at Creative Health. After my facial I started chatting with the acupuncturist and Iridologist. They were just asking about the pregnancy. The acupuncturist asked if I knew what the gender of our baby was…of course the answer was no. So she held my wrists and said, “you’re having a girl”. That’s three predictions so far and I can honestly say I’ve just known all along we are having a girl. We have two and half more weeks before we find out and I just can’t wait, for the confirmation that is!

My husband Justin thinks it’s a boy of course, but I think most men wish for their first child to be a boy! Of course he’ll love a girl just the same. So my question to you all is this: How many of you felt that you were having either a boy or girl and had confirmation either at the ultrasound or birth? Is it our intuition that tells us what the gender of our baby is? I don’t know.

I hope all is well in your world!