Graduated from Cortiva Institute in Crystal Lake 2012, received the Valedictorian Award and Presidential Scholarship from Cortiva. I believe that massage can help heal a person from the inside out. Massage should not be a luxury, but a necessity for everyone's health and well-being. Each individual can achieve optimal wellness and be able to enjoy their activities of daily living to its fullest potential through the use of massage and various other key programs. There are so many things that massage can do, that are still unproven. I truly believe that as research continues to be done on the positive effects of massage, that we will all be blown away by its capabilities. I became a massage therapist because of my desire to help others. I have always helped people in just about every job that I have held in the past. It is an incredible, personal satisfaction to know that you can change a person's life with the touch of your hands. I am a wife of 10+ years and a mother of 4 beautiful children ranging in age from preschool to college. My first love was that of teaching. I became a special education teacher right out of college. I absolutely loved being able to help others. The greatest satisfaction was seeing my students acheive something that they thought they couldn't. I left teaching to be a stay at home mom for my 3 younger children. I decided to go back to school a couple of years ago and massage therapy is the path I chose. It has been a very rewarding profession and one I see myself in for a very long time to come. I am glad that I made the decision to change career paths. I can still help all those in need in a much more fulfilling way.