Somatic Intelligence

For a 40^th birthday present, celebrated a year later by some forgetful friends, I was gifted a massage by Justin Hromada, owner and operator of Somatic Intelligence. Granted, I was hesitant, as my idea of massage was something slow and sensual. Preferably by someone of the opposite sex. I believe that line of thinking is typical of anyone who doesn’t understand the true benefits of massage, a genuine practice of healing that isn’t dependent on gender but rather genius.
And let me tell you, the man is genius. The man is genius because the work he does is not simply body work. It’s emotional. It’s spiritual. It’s so much, and even now having had the massage weeks ago, I’m tapping into the benefits, educated and enlightened and energized.
Educated: The healing part of this hands on art form was more than necessary as I recently injured my shoulder — torn labrum — in a softball game trying to relive my glory days. A week prior to «finding the time» to go to Justin I went to two physicians who diagnosed my bum shoulder as a soft tissue injury. Both, dare I say, professionals had neither checked my range or motion, nor spent more than a couple minutes evaluating me before scribbling a prescription and, in turn, passing me along to another practitioner. Justin, however, took his time with me, asking me a series of questions on what type of massage would be beneficial, outlining the what and the why and the how, but not before locating the where, checking my range of motion, careful not to subject me to further injury, but rather increased awareness and ultimate satisfaction feeling, well, healed.
Enlightened: There’s the physical, something I’m learning more about not being as versed on this specific modality as others may be. In all honesty, Justin was only my second masseur, aside from having my children walk on my back. But I can say I’m an excellent judge of empathy and compassion, all of which expounded from an incredible depth and breadth of knowledge. People connect massage and bodywork with the physical, but Justin was able to push me through a few emotional setbacks in my personal life; career and creativity conundrums. As the tension released, so did my anxiety, and I can promise I gave the man an earful vetting and venting, so on and so forth, all the while being a true professional who listened, consoling with the ever so often, «This is your massage … «When I pummeled him with questions of each movement he walked, rather worked, his way to my ease.
Energized: «This is your massage … «It was. There wasn’t the gimmick of a heated stone on my spine that should never be the substitute for a human touch. There was the candied touch of essential oils to mask the true essence of what needed to happen, which was me — the client — to feel better and possibly, just possibly, work through something. More so, there IS the aftermath of me, present, working multi-​dimensionally through various projects, career and creativity, fatherhood and family, life all loved.
And then there’s the practicality, the bare bones fact.
Don’t use the excuse «finding the time,» be it a year or a day. Find Justin. Find Justin Time. Let him do the work … for you.

I had the pleasure of getting a massage from Justin on my birthday this year while I was in Sedona on vacation. It was one of the best massages I have ever had!
I tend to get a lot of massage work done because I have some shoulder tension, so I have had a lot of therapists with different techniques.
I really enjoyed Justin’s work because he knew all the pressure points (don’t know if that is the technical term) but those places that release tension and feel really great! He is very knowledgeable and gave me new insight into how I can improve my tension issues.
He also did a mix of massage and stretching, which also gave me a level of relaxation I don’t always get from purely massage.
His home studio is gorgeous and he does a great job communicating to make sure you are comfortable.
He really cares about his clients and encouraged me to do 90 min (which I really needed) and his prices reflect his values in that he feels massage is important for everyone.
Highly highly recommended!

A great massage therapist. Amazing focus and strength. I would recommend Justin for an awesome bodywork experience.