Reconnecting with the body through healing touch

Bereavement Support Massage

If you’re navigating grief, I want you to know—you’re not alone. Grief has been a part of my life for over 30 years, and it’s deeply influenced how I provide genuine care for women through massage. I understand how heavy it can feel, not just emotionally, but physically too. That’s why I offer Bereavement Support Massage—a gentle, slow-paced treatment designed to support both your body and your heart through this time. My approach is always compassionate and trauma-aware. I hold space for you in whatever way you need—whether that means talking through your experience, or simply resting quietly while being cared for. There’s no pressure, no expectation—just warmth, understanding, and a safe space to breathe. Massage can be a beautiful way to ease some of the tension grief brings. The calming touch, the release of endorphins, the quiet—it all helps your nervous system find relief. I use aromatherapy oils chosen to gently support your emotional wellbeing, and after your first session, I’ll send you home with a small nurturing gift, just for you. Whenever you're ready, I’m here.
  • Bereavement Support Massage works to facilitate the relaxation response, promote a sense of physical wellbeing and validate and normalise feelings and thoughts
  • Massage therapy is not designed to ‘fix’ the bereaved.
    It helps to support a person through a very difficult time

My Journey

My journey with loss began in 1993 when I was just 12 years old, losing my mother to lung cancer. Four years later, at 16, I faced the shock of my brother’s suicide. Then, at 34, I said goodbye to my father, who passed away peacefully in his sleep. I am now the last remaining member of my immediate family. For the past 30 years, healing has been a slow and ongoing journey for me. Each loss seemed to deepen the last, and it’s taken time for me to truly understand how to live with grief. But through this journey, I’ve gained new tools to help me face it. Over the years, I’ve come to realize that underneath the grief lies love—love for those I’ve lost, love for myself, and love for others who are grieving. Now, I honor that love by supporting women through their own grief journeys, offering the care and understanding that helped me heal. Becoming a massage therapist wasn’t a path I planned for—it’s something that unfolded through my experiences with grief. Grief, as I’ve come to understand, is a powerful force that touches every part of us, body and soul. The emotional weight is often obvious, but grief also takes its toll on our bodies in ways that aren’t always noticed until we stop and listen. That’s where healing through touch comes in. I’m not here to fix broken hearts or turn back time. But what I can offer is a deep understanding, shaped by my own losses, of how nurturing touch can provide comfort and healing. Each session I offer is a space for grief to be acknowledged—whether that means letting out tears, finding moments of laughter, or simply sharing your story.

Physical effects of grief

Grief can affect us in more ways than just emotionally. Have you noticed any physical symptoms since your loss, such as tightness in your chest, muscle tension, headaches, or trouble sleeping? These physical effects are common and can be just as challenging to navigate as the emotional side of grief. Through massage therapy, we can address these physical symptoms and help your body release some of the tension that grief often brings.
  • Indeterminate pain (generalised or specific)
  • Headache
  • Gut dysregulation
  • Immune suppression
  • Appetite and weight loss/gain
  • Dyspnoea (difficult/laboured breathing)
  • Palpitations
  • Extreme fatigue
  • Physical weakness or restlessness
  • Anxiety
  • Panic attack
  • Flat affect/mood
  • Dysregulated anger
  • High levels of distress
  • Feelings of abandonment and loneliness
  • Confusion
  • Disorientation
  • Intrusive images
  • Social isolation
  • Emotional exhaustion
  • Depression
  • Demoralisation
  • Agitation

Clinical orientation of Bereavement Massage Therapy

  • "Grief is a physiological phenomenon.”
    Erich Lindemann, psychiatrist – Symptomatology and Management of Acute Grief
    “To ignore the somatic aspects of grief in favour of psychological ones is to incompletely address the needs of the griever.”
    Dr Therese A. Rando Clinical Psychologist, Thanatologist, Traumatologist
    Receiving soothing massages for eight weeks after the death of a loved one can provide much-needed consolation during an intense, stressful period of grieving
    Leslie Freeman and Annie Murphy, Journal of clinical nursing