Deep Feet Instructor Spotlight
I was just feetured by my crew over at DeepFeet..
Deepfeet Bar Therapy® Instructor Spotlight #7- Mariah Neeson
This is our Instructor Spotlight #7 and we’re trekking northwest to Spokane, Washington. Welcome to the ashi tribe Mariah Neeson!
Where are you from originally? I moved around a lot as a kid but I’ve lived off and on in Spokane, WA longer than any other place.
How long have you been a massage therapist? (Or what year?)Since 1998
What made you want to get into massage? I was in an auto accident in 1995 and saw a massage therapist for a year and half. I went to massage school less than a year after graduating from highschool.
What did you do before massage school? I was a student
How long have you been doing ashiatsu, and where did you originally learn? I have been doing Ashiatsu since 2009. I trainined in Las Vegas for Basics. Then I jumped onto Jeni’s class in Camano Island and followed her to Portland for Ashi Thai just a few months (or a year?) later.
What drew you to the modality originally? I had been practicing massage for 11 years when I found Ashiatsu. My body was holding up just fine but I was bored. I signed up for Basics as soon as I found out about Ashiatsu. I didn’t really know much about it, I just knew it would change my career for the better.
What percentage of your clients do you do barefoot massage on? 100%
What other modalities do you do in your massage practice? I am also a trained Transformational Life Coach. I work with people in Spokane and all over to help them let go of limiting beliefs and patterns that keep them stuck and eventually cause physical pain and illness. I work with people one on one and also host creative classes here in Spokane.
How do they complement each other? For years I’ve noticed clients who just don’t seem to recover from injuries the way other people did. Or they seemed to be “holding on” to their pain. Massage and other body focused techniques weren’t getting through. I’ve always been fascinated by the mind body connection and with more and more evidence supporting it’s validity and moving it out of the world of new age woo woo and into a more scientific range, I feel that massage and life coaching are perfect compliments to one another.
Barefoot Basics. October 2015 at THE SPACE
How long have you been teaching barefoot massage? I have just begun. My first class will be in San Antonio this July 2015
What made you want to teach? I’ve always had this voice in my head screaming “I want to teach!!” I just hadn’t really figured out what it is that I wanted to teach. I really love the work I do as an Ashiatsu therapist and being able to teach it is a great fit for me.
What makes teaching Deepfeet rewarding? I can probably answer this better after my first class but without even getting there, I have to say it’s all about integrity to me. I prefer to train with and for the best in the field and Deepfeet is it for Barefoot Massage. Since class, I have to add it’s the excitement of the new Ashi’s that made it rewarding. They were all so thrilled to learn Ashiatsu and it shows in their social media posts since class. That’s pretty cool to see.
How do you feel like you can transform other massage therapists’ careers? I’ve usually thought about it as the massage profession as a whole more than just individual careers. I can see Ashiatsu really changing the way we think about and deliver massage. Each individual therapist who trains and begins to truly love barefoot work and what it can do for his or her clients will be a part of that change in the profession.
Do you blog anywhere other than here? What’s your site? I blog periodically at SpokaneSPACE.com
Married? Family? Pets? I am married with two boys aged 8 and 11. We have a Boston Terrier, a cat and a beta fish.
Can you drive a stick shift or farm equipment or ride a motorcycle? I learned how to drive with a manual transmission. I’m debating buying a manual transmission in a few years so my kids can learn as well.
What do you do for fun? I love to cycle, and hike and paddle around a lake. Only I haven’t done much of those things lately. Lately my fun consists of building my newest business in Spokane. When I’m not business building, child rearing or house cleaning,I can be found binge watching some TV show, listening to podcasts or reading.
Any other interesting tidbits? I met my husband on a family trip to Ireland. I got tired of my family and left them to go to a local pub on my own. I saw him as soon as I walked in and he saw me. Long story short, we spent a few days together before I left Ireland then he moved in with me in Portland Oregon 40 days later. We married a month after that (on halloween 2003).
