We have closed our doors but my mission to give back is alive and well.
The Spa first provided a beautiful space for other massage, skin care, and beauty professionals to grow their businesses and we gave back to the community through volunteering and fundraisers.
I had been a massage therapist in Boulder, CO and Rochester, NY for 7 years when I opened the Spa in Williamsville, NY in September 2015. I was inspired after volunteering at Children’s Clinic at St. Lawrence in Buffalo and hearing the story of Saint Lawrence. His legendary faith, humor, and principles aligned with my vision of serving the community.
After 2 successful years in business i started medical school at Ross University. I had no idea what an adventure I was in for — stories for another time.
Now in my 4th year of medical school, on my way to graduating with honors, in the middle of a pandemic and amid a changing social climate I am starting to see where I and St. Lawrence Spa will fit in and who I will be as doctor.
I believe that creating a safe space for education about what is causing and how to prevent illness, and trusted care are key to staying well. A mentor taught me that the people who need to go to the doctor most are often most reluctant to go. That isn’t a coincidence. The more we understand about our bodies, the less fear we will have and the better we can self-advocate in a medical setting. Self empowerment for too-long marginalized populations is my mission. My ultimate goal is to see people so healthy that going to the doctor will feel like going to a health spa: fun, relaxing, and just because you’re worth it!
I have learned a lot but before I can serve my community, I need to know what my community needs. Please send in any health question you have and I will help you find resources including appropriate medical professionals to address that concern.
Thanks for reading and sticking with me. I look forward to working together.
-Emilie Tomkinson, 4th year medical student, owner of St. Lawrence Spa.
Educational articles about the health benefits of massage therapy
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*MASSAGE AND MEDITATION THE TOP TWO ALTERNATIVE HEALTH BOOSTERS
Featured article. Click HERE to read the entire thing on prevention.com Prevention's Integrative Medicine Winner: Massage Benefits: Eases back pain, boosts immunity, cuts stress A pill that eases pain, boosts immunity, and improves mood might take many years and millions of dollars to develop, test, and market. But you don't have to wait in order to get that bevy of benefits, according to new research. Studies done at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles and at the Group Health Research Institute in Seattle showed that massage already provides them. After analyzing blood samples taken from subjects pre-and post-massage, Mark H. Rapaport, MD, leader of the Cedars-Sinai study, found that a 45-minute Swedish massage brought on a major spike in lymphocytes, white blood cells that fight bacteria and viruses. It also decreased substances that cause inflammation and trigger allergies and asthma, and it lessened production of a hormone that is associated with stress levels. "Massage helps you stay healthier," says Dr. Rapaport, now chairman of the department of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Emory University School of Medicine. The Seattle study found that massage does a very good job of relieving back pain as well. It compared the benefits of two types of massage with whatever the participants were already doing, including taking medication. At the end of the study, up to 39% of those who got a massage said their back pain was better or gone, compared with just 4% of people who followed their usual care. "For lower-back pain, massage and other treatments such as acupuncture are every bit as effective as--and sometimes more effective than--conventional medical treatments and often have less serious side effects," says senior investigator Daniel C. Cherkin, PhD. ...Halfway across the country, Theresa Hernandez, PhD, associate chair of the department of psychology and neuroscience at the University of Colorado at Boulder, studied 38 people who had suffered a mild to moderate brain injury. Half had a type of acupressure called Jin Shin for 40 minutes twice weekly for 4 weeks; the other half had placebo acupressure. At the end of the study, which was published in a recent issue of the Journal of Neurotrauma, those who received acupressure had better memory and attention and less stress and anxiety. Acupressure appears to produce what Dr. Hernandez calls "stress resilience." That's crucial for these patients because a bout of stress can cause a setback. What's nice about acupressure is that it's so easy to learn that a patient can self-treat or have a family member perform it. What It Means For You: If you suffer from back pain, it's time to start taking massage seriously. Getting a weekly rubdown may not only relieve your discomfort but also keep you healthier overall, because nagging pain can make you depressed and weaken your immune system. Some insurance plans pay for massages for cancer patients or people with musculo-skeletal problems. Dr. Rapaport's findings could pave the way for research that will one day convince insurers to cover routine massages. Both therapies can help ease everything from muscle pain to the side effects of chemo, though you may have to pay out of pocket. If you want to try either, go to an accredited practitioner. For now, schedule a massage as often as your wallet permits. "I get a massage once a week," Dr. Rapaport says. "It has relieved my stress. Also, I have a very bad back, and it has certainly helped that." Prevention's Integrative Medicine Winner: Meditation Benefits: Improves focus, eases pain and stress Some 116 million Americans suffer from chronic pain, and millions more live with the debilitating symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. Traditional treatments bring too few lasting results. But two studies point to a surprising new path to relief: the practice of mindfulness meditation. Mindfulness meditation operates on a simple principle. "You focus on being in the present, not on your worries," says Susan A. Gaylord, PhD, director of the Mindfulness-Based Stress and Pain Management Program at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, who led the IBS study, which was published in the American Journal of Gastroenterology. When the women she studied applied mindfulness meditation to the diet and lifestyle strategies they were already using to control their IBS, the severity of their symptoms was slashed by 26%. In a recent study published in the Journal of Neuroscience, mindfulness meditation had equally dramatic effects on reducing pain. Researchers at Wake Forest School of Medicine found that it cut pain intensity by 40%--in some people, by up to 70%!--compared with about 25% for morphine and other pain relievers. "I was surprised by the dramatic results," says study leader Fadel Zeidan, PhD. What It Means For You: To use mindfulness meditation to get relief from pain, you need to devote just 20 to 30 minutes a day to it, says Dr. Zeidan. To learn the technique, check hospitals or academic medical centers for classes. Featured article. Click HERE to read the entire thing on prevention.com
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