PrinceFelix's Massage Interview
How long have you been a Masseur and how long do think you'd like to continue?
I’ve honestly been massaging most of my life. I started massaging family as a kid and then friends as I got older and have been massaging professionally the last 5 years. Bodywork feels really important to me and is something I plan to continue to practice and share with people for many more years. I like that Thai massage allows me a lot of range in what I do and is also as good for me as it is for my clients.
How often do you travel? Do you prefer to travel or are you more of a homebody?
I tend to travel at least once a month. Lately I’ve been working in portland and traveling up to Seattle once a month. I’m now starting to add some more places like San Francisco and LA to the mix to be able to check out some new places. When I’m not working tho, I definitely flow between outdoor adventures and cozy homebody vibes ✨
Do you remember your first client ? Tell us something about that first day when you decided to be a Masseur!
I remember my first client well, we worked together for over 3 years. I’d been massaging consistently for a while and was referred to him. I really loved being able to connect with him and be a source of touch and presence in his busy, relatively isolated life. We shared many hours together with him on my table. We only stopped working together when I moved away but we had a really great dynamic and rapport that I value.
Tell us a little about yourself, if you were to pick something what would you like your clients to absolutely know about you?
Consent is something that I really value. I like to ask my clients what that do and don’t like and how they like to be touched. I think understanding a clients needs and how they want to be touched is such an important part of nourishing touch. Just like I value consent practiced for myself, I aim to respect the boundaries and needs of everyone I connect with. And within that I like to establish what I'm consenting to so that in the session we can sink into what feels good and both come out of it feeling refreshed, recharged and more connected to our minds and bodies.
How would you like someone that contacts you for a massage to feel when they leave?
My favorite seasons are those where both of us leave feeling relaxed, rejuvenated and feeling like we got our needs met. I love when someone feels relax and in the clouds from some deep work, or really energized and present from more focused and specific work. Overall, I tend to be happy when a client is leaving feeling more in their body, more relaxed and more joyful after a massage session with me.
Do you consider yourself a successful Masseur?
Absolutely, I've been doing Massage and Bodywork full time the last 5 years and have been able to connect with some wonderful people around the country and world. I think people are drawn to my unique energy and appearance, my diverse and cultivated skillset and an interest in what I have to offer. I'm frequently told that the bodywork I offer is truly different than many of the providers on here, that I sink in deeply both physically and energetically to curate a wonderful session. Bodywork is a big part of my life and I enjoy being able to connect with people who me out for for connective, healing, and pleasurable experiences.
I have a background in various healing arts and often incorporate Reiki and energy work into my sessions as well as sound healing and breath work/mindfulness. I love cultivating deep healing experiences that enable people to be present with themselves and facilitate their own healing and connection to self.
What are your hobbies, what do you like to do in your spare time?
When I'm not working on my massage mats or table I try to get out into the forest as often as possible. I love waking up and going for a morning hike or an all day hike climbing up a ridge and finding a secluded spot to enjoy. I have a deep love for dancing and like going to ecstatic dance events, outdoor dance parties, warehouse shows.
I'm big on food and am often cooking up some kind of vegan deliciousness for dinner. My main style of making art the last 6 years has been through photography and modeling and have recently been exploring being the one taking the photos as well as getting into figure drawing of some of the polaroids I take. Art and creativity are big parts of my life.
Why did you become a Masseur?
Touch is one my my main love languages and a way I really enjoy connecting with others. It's something I'd always been drawn to and started at a young age. After so many years working from a [place of intuition, I decided to seek out additional education and information which is where I unexpectedly fell in love with Thai massage. During my massage program I took a 3 month course to explore Thai massage and soon after that and graduating Massage School I traveled to Thailand where I lived for another 3 months studying with really knowledgable and skilled Thai medicine workers. In that program I added so much knowledge and experience to my base of work.
So many people navigate personal and physical isolation before and especially through this Covid experience. Many people these days don't experience the levels of physical closeness or touch that is so important to our human experience and health- being able to connect with people and share my love of touch, healing and the skills I've been building for years fills me with joy. I've always had a deep love for touch, health exploration and helping people, so bodywork feels like such an ideal blending of my passions and skill
Is extensive training necessary for a Masseur in order to be successful?
I think as humans we all have an intuitive capacity for touch and massaging each other. So I don't think extensive training is necessary to be able to massage someone.
I do think that levels of training, cultivating knowledge, refining awareness and techniques, and body mechanics make a huge difference in someone's ability to work as a bodyworker longterm / sustainable. I think additional training also enables someone to sink more deeply into healing energy, and have a much larger base of skills and techniques to draw from, which creates more nuanced and individualized sessions rather than using the same flow on every person.
Civilizations and cultures around the world have been developing various and individualized styles of bodywork for as long as we've been human and there is so much knowledge and skill to be learned from those bodyworkers. I think people can do a great job relying on intuitive work. But when someone chooses to expand their knowledge base and skills I often find that I see/feel a pretty noticeable shift in the quality of touch, the energy they bring to a session, the thoroughness at which someone is able to work as well a deeper confidence in their touch.