Massage Therapy

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Carl Johns has been a bodywork therapist since 1996, and primarily draws his therapeutic bodywork style from Shiatsu, Acupressure, Craniosacral Therapy, Neuromuscular Therapy, and Lymphatic Drainage.  He has long been practicing a combined style that he calls Acucraniatsu, that can be adapted to any client presentation, from military vets, to athletes, to elders, to cancer patients.  He has specialized throughout his career in working with medically complex clients, and with people in chronic pain. He is particularly interested in the power of hands-on work in bringing awareness and change to people with PTSD and traumatic brain injuries.  He has also been in the massage and bodywork education field since 2001, as an instructor, curriculum developer, and school owner.  He is committed to teaching students and clients about the power of hands-on work in promoting inner wellness. 

TX Massage Therapy License Number MT136363

TX Massage Therapy Instructor License Number MI4447

NCBTMB CE Provider Number 1000247

NPI 1750986618

Gina Johns has been doing bodywork since she was 5 years old.  Her mother, born and raised in Tokyo, and in the Japanese tradition, taught Gina how to do Shiatsu when she was a little girl.  She worked on family and friends growing up, and through her 30-year career in high tech.  In 2008 she made the shift to full-time professional massage and bodywork.  Gina draws her therapeutic bodywork style from Swedish Massage, Shiatsu, Craniosacral Therapy, Neuromuscular Therapy, and Lymphatic Drainage, and has worked in many settings, from high-end spas to clinical offices.  She loves working with people to promote therapeutic relaxation, and relief from chronic stress, anxiety, and pain, and has worked with everyone from pregnant moms to elders, to military vets, to stressed out high tech workers.  With a lifetime in therapeutic bodywork, Gina has a quality of touch that should be experienced. 

TX Massage Therapy License Number MT138765

NPI 1598369381

Combining Modalities

This page is full of information about us and about many massage and bodywork modalities that you may not be familiar with.  Most of the modalities can be done as full sessions, and many of you may wish to have the experience of a full session that focuses on a single modality.  It is also very common to combine different styles of massage, and the possibilities there are limitless.  Shiatsu and Swedish massage often function as the base for full body massage, with Swedish being oil on skin, and shiatsu generally done over clothes, although shiatsu can easily be incorporated with Swedish massage and is done over the sheet.  Techniques from Acupressure, Lymphatic Drainage, or Craniosacral Therapy, for example, can be incorporated into a Swedish or Shiatsu session, or the three could be combined to create a full session.  You can see the possibilities are endless.  What we will always strive to do, is listen to your needs, with thorough intake, and to suggest the combination of modalities that will achieve the best results for you.  

Shiatsu is a Japanese bodywork form that is based in the theory of Chinese medicine.  The work is done over clothes and uses compression, stretching, rocking, movement, percussion, and brushing to move stagnant qi and blood, bring healthy circulation to all body tissues, and to create balance and harmony in the whole person.

Craniosacral Therapy is a very gentle bodywork therapy founded in osteopathic principals, that releases restrictions in the bones of the skull, spine, and pelvis, promoting free movement and fluid flow extending throughout the body.  There is a major focus on stillness and deep relaxation. This is an ideal bodywork therapy for chronic stress, PTSD, chronic pain, headaches, and autoimmune disorders.  The work is done over clothes and combines well with acupressure and shiatsu.

Swedish Massage is the classic oil on skin full body massage, promoting length and ease in muscle tone, and deep therapeutic relaxation.  This is one of the most well known and requested styles of massage in spas all over the world, and it benefits all of the major body systems.

Lymphatic Drainage uses very gentle pressure and technique to move fluids into and through the lymphatic system.  Historically, it was used to enhance immune function during cold European winters, and it is an ideal therapy post injury or post surgery to promote healthy tissue healing.  The work can be done on the skin or over clothes, as a full session or combined with other modalities. 

Acupressure uses gentle touch for holding point combinations, and works on the same theory as acupuncture, without the needles.  It is deeply relaxing and rejuvenating, and combines beautifully with other modalities. 

Neuromuscular Therapy is an umbrella term for a number of complex techniques using knowledge of how the nervous and muscular systems function together, to promote ease in the tissues, restore normal muscle resting length, and remind the body of lost patterns of movement.  The work can be done in combination with many bodywork modalities, and combines well with Shiatsu or Swedish Massage. 

Cupping and Gua Sha are techniques from Chinese medicine that have been widely incorporated into massage therapy in recent years.  From a Chinese medicine perspective, they pull excess Qi out of the tissues and up to the surface, helping to relieve pain and tightness in the tissues, and clearing the channels for Qi and blood flow.  From a Western massage perspective, they are good for opening the connective tissue and bringing blood flow into the area.  Cupping will leave  circles, and Gua Sha will leave areas of the skin with discoloration ranging from light red to deep purple, which will fade over a few days.  This can look like bruising, but is not a tissue injury like a deep bruise.  These techniques can be incorporated into many different modalities, and we are happy to include them, where appropriate, at no extra charge.