Meet Karen, ALPHA Registered Massage Therapist!

In 2012 I was diagnosed with triple negative breast cancer.  Once I was through all of my surgeries and treatments I was trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my life post cancer.  I knew I wanted to give back and make a difference somehow.  I was focused on looking for jobs in the not-for-profit sector but something just didn’t feel right.  I was almost making myself sick trying to figure out what I was going to do next.  What am I going to do with my life?  I had lost so much control through the whole cancer experience that I was desperately trying grasp hold of anything.  I finally succumbed to just letting go.  Once I had accepted this time for what it was, that’s when things started to fall into place.  I went to a Rethink Live, Laugh, Learn event, which is an event for young women with cancer, and a teacher from Sutherland-Chan was there speaking to all of us on the benefits of massage and breast massage.  It was like a lightbulb went off in my head!  This could be a profession that would allow me to work with breast cancer patients, but not necessarily have my whole practice focused on just cancer.  This could be my way of helping and giving back to the cancer community.  I was immediately energized from this seminar and the first thing I did was research Sutherland-Chan once I got home.  Within a month of that event I was signed up for the 2 year program.