integrative bodywork

• The Power of Healing Touch
• Who Benefits from my Approach
• My Experience
• My Integrative Bodywork Offerings
• What is Polarity Therapy?
• What to Expect
• Testimonials

"My favorite part of the Partner Massage Playshop was learning to use my feet to give massage! I’m excited to try my new skills with my family and I want to practice asking permission for touch with [my] children.”
~Louise Omoto Kessel, Director, Clapping Hands Farm

MAY YOU BE IN LOVE with and at ease in your unique and resilient body.

The Power & Benefits of Healing Touch

Respectful, caring touch is essential to healthy human life and development. Along with herbalism, massage is among the oldest of all human healing traditions, practiced by cultures around the world.

After our bodywork therapy session or partner massage playshop participation, you may feel: deeply relaxed and nourished, slowed down yet awake, at peace, heard and respected, expansive, lighter, and grounded. Other benefits include increased body awareness, stress reduction, relief from muscular tension and spasm, and improved circulation and energy flow.

People Who Benefit From My Integrative Approach

• People in need of deep relaxation and restoration to nourish and revitalize the nervous system
• Those in times of transition who want the wisdom of their body to guide resolution and integration of changes
• People interested in increased awareness and ease in their bodies (can be enhanced with one-on-one yoga instruction as part of session)
• Teenagers
• Pregnant moms and their partners
• People celebrating birthdays, weddings, graduations, and other life passages
• Those needing grounding (fully clothed “Groundwork” massage can be done lying comfortably on a mat on the earth, on the screened-in porch, or, during inclement weather, on the floor in the treatment room)

My Experience

I grew up in a family that shared lots of healthy hugs and exchanged frequent shoulder and neck massages, encouraging my innate healing touch from an early age. I also experienced the pain and confusion of non-consensual touch as an adolescent, and receiving professional massage and polarity therapy played a huge role in my adult healing journey. The miraculous experience of providing massage to my sister during her 36-hour labor was the final catalyst for beginning my professional bodywork training, the very next month.

Since graduating from the Body Therapy Institute in 2003, I have studied and incorporated additional healing modalities, including five years of Polarity Therapy training, the year-long Mind Body Spirit Yoga teacher training, and introductions to Reflexology and Thai Massage.

My Integrative Bodywork Offerings

It is my joy to share the time-honored healing benefits of massage directly with individual clients and as a facilitator of group learning experiences.

I believe in each person’s innate self-healing ability. I am honored to support you in connecting more fully to the natural wisdom, wholeness, and health of your body. My compassion, respect, and delight in all people is evident in every one-of-a-kind session or community event.

Individual Bodywork Sessions

My integrative bodywork practice blends the modalities of Swedish massage, Polarity Therapy, and Hatha Yoga to best meet your needs and intentions for our session together, and can include: yoga exercises for home and office, affirmation card creation, stress reduction skills, breathing exercises, sound, identifying additional self-care resources, goal setting, or simply resting and receiving. 

As a Community Herbalist, I handcraft organic herbal massage oils, infused with the healing properties of local medicinal plants to support the physical and energetic well-being of my clients.

I see clients for integrative bodywork at the Pittsboro Center for Natural Medicine. Payment installments and some partial barter are negotiable to support affordability. Cash (including Plenty) and check are the preferred methods of payment.

I primarily offer 75 and 90-minute sessions for $75 and $90, respectively. Each session includes about 15 minutes to: review your health history and observe your current state of being prior to hands-on work, and a brief check-in afterward to assist with integration.

After my first session with an adult client, 60-minute table sessions ($60) are available if you prefer. I have found that a 60-minute session meets the needs of teenaged clients, for both initial and follow-up visits.

Once a month I offer 15-minute table massages at the Rainbow Tree Clinic for a sliding scale of $10-$30.  The clinic takes place at the Pittsboro Center for Natural Medicine on Tuesdays from 5-8 pm and other healing arts practitioners offer various modalities such as chiropractic and acupuncture at affordable rates.  Check my events page to see which day of the month you can find me at the clinic.

Partner Massage Playshops

A Fun, Relaxing, Affordable Massage that keeps on giving...

I offer community workshops on massage and polarity therapy for participants of many ages. In a Partner Massage Playshop, I guide partners through giving and receiving an easy, therapeutic, fully-clothed massage. Receivers lie comfortably on blankets on the floor, while givers use healthy body mechanics to rock, stretch and compress their partner. Participants go home with tools for sharing the healing art of massage with other friends & family.

Playshops usually last 2 hours, and people sign up with a friend, family member or partner. We review communication skills for giving and receiving touch, then I facilitate the process step-by-step. The cost is $20-$30 per person (participants pay as they are able within this range).

      Some benefits include:

• noticing that what feels good to one partner does not always feel good to the other
• practicing communication skills (including nonverbal) which improve all relationships
• learning how to share touch in a way that does not cause strain in the giver’s body
• a sense of joy at how easy, fun, and therapeutic it can be to share healing touch

Subscribe to my monthly email newsletter to hear about the next scheduled Playshop. Contact me if you would like to organize your own Partner Massage Playshop for your group or family.

Pregnancy Celebration Package

This unique and memorable 3-hour mini-retreat for mom-to-be and a small group of friends includes creating a belly cast which incorporates blessings and well-wishes for the journey ahead. I provide nourishing herbal tea and a healthy snack for the group, and facilitate other activities as time permits. After the group activities conclude, mom receives a 75 or 90-minute pregnancy massage. Contact me directly for pricing and availability.

What is Polarity Therapy?

Polarity Therapy is the art and science of balancing the natural, electromagnetic energy, which is the foundation for our physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual selves.

As a Polarity Therapist, I view the flow and balance of energy in the body as a foundation of good health. The human energy field can become blocked or imbalanced by everyday stress and various forms of unresolved trauma. In a typical Polarity Therapy session, I work together with clients to address physical, mental and emotional energy blocks by creating a safe and supportive environment. In this holistic approach, I blend therapeutic touch, movement exercises, and dialogue that facilitates self-awareness and the building of internal resources.

Polarity Therapy works with a client’s natural self-healing abilities to harmonize the energies of the body. No oil or removal of the clothing is required for this sometimes subtle yet profound process. This transformational healing system is complete in itself as well as easily combined with massage therapy.

The results of Polarity Therapy sessions vary, and may include: profound relaxation; increased body awareness; greater clarity, openness, and creativity; plus relief from specific health challenges (ie, anxiety attacks and breathing difficulties).

"I experienced deep states of relaxation, awesome and beautiful visions, new awareness, energetic shifts, and emotional emptying and relief. At the end of the session I felt like I had a new body with which to feel, perceive, and interact with the world in a different way." ~Anonymous Polarity Therapy client

What to Expect

Combining my intuition and deep listening skills with my training in Swedish Massage, Polarity Therapy and Hatha Yoga, I provide one-of-a-kind sessions. Read a detailed description of what to expect during your bodywork therapy experience with me....

Testimonials

“My favorite part of the Partner Massage Playshop was learning to use my feet to give massage! I’m excited to try my new skills with my family and I want to practice asking permission for touch with [my] children.” ~Louise Omoto Kessel, Director, Clapping Hands Farm

“As I prepared for and recovered from surgery, Kim's healing touch and positive energy helped me to reduce the tension I was holding. Her holistic approach and genuine concern for her clients is inspiring.” ~Margaret Barrett

“What a joy and comfort to be in Kim Calhoun’s loving and capable hands!” ~Cynthia Crossen

"I have good news--I'm pregnant! I really believe the relaxation I received from your treatment played a part. Thank you! What a gift!" ~Melinda Harder

“Kim is a massage and polarity therapist of great sensitivity and warmth. I am working with her to overcome the painful effects of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Kim’s calm reassuring presence creates a sanctuary of acceptance where it is safe for me to face some of my most deeply personal issues.” ~Anonymous

“Throughout my pregnancy, the work that Kim and I have done together has supported my mental and physical wellness during this permanently life-altering experience. Kim is a true healer--she listens to me, honors what my baby and I are going through, and suggests techniques that I use between sessions to manage stress. Most importantly, she brings the gifts of unwavering presence and unconditional caring to every session. I will keep these gifts in the place where my most sacred learnings are kept, knowing that sharing this journey with Kim has made me a better mom and human being." ~Liana, first-time mother to Margo

"This session was a powerful and significant step in my journey of healing. I had intense and challenging emotions/energy arise around issues of my relationships with others and my relationship to myself. Kim guided and grounded me through states of confusion, anger, frustration, and grief. She did this with guided mindfulness, encouragement of verbalization, work with movement, releasing of energy through sound, and completion of the session with stabilizing/integrating table work. To have had Kim's steady and strong, wise and loving presence as a witness to this experience is very meaningful to me. I am grateful." ~Anonymous