Where I Come From

Listening for a baby chick inside an egg on my grandma's farm.

This is the third in a series of posts about my practice. The first two were about how I can help you feel more comfortable in your body, and what to expect from a session with me. I’m going to finish by sharing some of the diverse experiences I’ve had around gender, sexual orientation, race, and disability. I think it helps, when choosing to work with a therapist, to know a bit about background and why they see the world the way they do.
 
I’m a gay man in my early 50’s. I grew up in New England, lived in Boston for years, and came to San Francisco in 2010. Conventional gender roles weren’t really a thing in my family. Growing up, my mom wore jeans and a man’s shirt, and loved gardening, working with tools, mowing the lawn, repairing things around the house, and sports. My father was a fastidious dresser who preferred fine foods, fine clothes, ballet, opera, and music. As children, my sister liked sports and cowboys, while I enjoyed cooking, theater, and music. As a result, I’m pretty comfortable around all sorts of different gender expressions.
 
My family worked in mental health. My father was a psychiatrist, my mother, an occupational therapist, and my sister, a social worker. I spent a lot of time working in the arts, putting myself through art school while working as an event planner for the largest conference for people with disabilities on the East Coast. During that time, I worked closely with a team of people with all sorts of disabilities, learning first-hand about the kinds of oppression they were fighting. Later, I had a career in gay men’s health, working not only with gay men but with transgender people as well. I’ve worked with people in recovery from drugs and alcohol, and coached community members in helping their peers navigate the health care system in inner cities and rural areas. I’ve worked closely with Black, Latinx, and Asian communities.
 
My first experience with massage was through the Body Electric School. While I found this work fulfilling, I wanted to expand further, to learn anatomy, physiology, and a wider array of techniques and modalities. My goal as a massage therapist is to help people lead richer lives while feeling more at home in their own bodies, addressing the whole person, body and mind, in order to help them achieve the balance they desire. 
 
For more information, check out my bio page, which includes a list of the various modalities and techniques I’ve received training in.

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