Anjuna Spotlight on Katie Field, LMT

As a massage therapist in Eugene Oregon, I have had the great fortune of being part of an amazing community of therapists and teachers. It’s a profession that feeds many parts of my personality and desires. Serving others through massage has been an excellent path for me to take in expanding my awareness and sharing my experience and knowledge. When I get to talk with my clients, listen to them about their needs, and deliver a service that resolves long standing issues, I feel like I have the best job in the world.

From a very early age, I had an interest in understanding the way things worked. For one of my favorite school projects in 4th grade, I dismantled a typewriter to understand and explain the mechanisms and report on how it worked. I also spent time studying my bicycle brakes and gear systems, following the path of the brake cables, and watching the chain jump from gear to gear as I spun the wheel. While I believe the body is not a machine in its entirety, I love studying the systems and dynamic movements of the body. I believe this makes me an effective practitioner when working with patients with injury and in sports medicine.

I also enjoy working with those who experience chronic pain. I struggled for many years with widespread, unexplained pain. Finding many dead ends in my health care and not knowing where to turn, I began educating myself in human anatomy, alternative medicine and self-treatment. I read books and articles searching for ways to understand what I was experiencing. For me, learning about the body gave me the vocabulary to understand what I was feeling. When I began the massage therapy program at Lane, I knew right away that I was on the right path. I was not only learning to help myself anymore, I was learning how to help others. The more I have learned about how to manage my own symptoms, the more I find myself wanting to share with others who have had a similar experience.

I feel that my first-hand experience makes me a more sensitive and humble practitioner. I know that, occasionally people have difficulty expressing what they are feeling, or maybe they’ve never had anyone listen before. First-hand experience certainly doesn’t mean I know exactly what my clients are feeling, but I believe my personal experience with pain has given me a window into understanding. I can relate to the frustration and exhaustion of having physical pain, and I believe it is important to advocate for yourself and have a practitioner who will always hear you.

If pain affects you daily or limits your activity or happiness, it’s important to address your pain in a way that will serve you best. I believe that massage is an excellent tool for treating and managing chronic pain. If you have never talked extensively with a practitioner who can hear your needs, or if treatments you’re trying don’t get you the results you are looking for, call us at Anjuna Medicine. You know your body best, so keep paying attention, and find what works best for you!