Meet Our Pain Management Specialist, Karl
Karl joined the Michigan Massage and Wellness team in February 2022, and he is passionate about pain. A 2016 graduate of Carnegie Institute, he is the only therapist that did not start as a student intern with us, but he is our newest pain management specialist! Settle in and read more about Karl and how he can help you.
What made you choose massage therapy as a career?
It was making a true impact on people’s lives. The ability to bring someone back to proper homeostasis and comfort is paramount to me. Most of us deal with pain in a myriad of different ways. Applying my skills to other individuals and giving them the gift of pain relief via a natural path is a miracle. As massage therapists, we provide tiny miracles on a day-to-day basis. It’s an incredible feeling to help someone in this fashion and is the force that drove me to this endeavor.
What modalities/techniques do you LOVE to do? Conditions you like treating?
Myofascial release, trigger point therapy, proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitation stretches, Muscle Energy Techniques, Cross Fiber Friction, and sports massage/stretching. I love to assist individuals with frozen shoulder, torticollis, piriformis syndrome, T.M.J., plantar fasciitis, whiplash, thoracic outlet syndrome, median nerve impingement, and golf/tennis elbow.
Tell us about your personal life. Who are your favorite people to spend time with?
I’m a 40-year-old massage therapist who has been practicing professionally for the past five years. Married to unbelievable, remarkable, hyper-intelligent, beautiful, and absolutely hilarious wife Toni of three and half years. I’m a bit of an extrovert. I love talking with just about everyone. Avid reader. Audiophile. Longtime cook (Italian, Middle Eastern, Cantonese, Indian, etc.) Movie, music, and overall general knowledge buff. I love tinkering with all of my gadgets. I love spending time with my wife, brother, our godson, and my best friends, that have been with me for more than half of my life, as well as my wife and my large extended family.
What are some of your hobbies?
I love searching for musical gems on YouTube and consuming as much information as I can from books, articles online, documentaries. I love learning to cook all types of new cuisine from around the world and studying different forms of martial arts. Love cinema. Massive fan of the at-home theater movie-going experience. A bit of a novice writer.
What are you looking forward to learning next in your career?
Cranial sacral therapy, cupping, Graston techniques, still point therapy.
Did you consider other avenues before deciding to go into massage therapy? Or did you make a career change when you started massage school?
I made a career change in my mid-thirties. I was a supervisor at a grocery store change and felt listless. Massage therapy provided a new and fantastic avenue to meet incredible people and help them with their ailments to the best of my abilities.
What’s on your bucket list?
I would love to learn more languages (Spanish, Russian, Japanese…). Write a trilogy. Direct that trilogy. See some of the world’s wonders (Grand Canyon and Stonehenge, to name a couple). Visit Australia, Spain, Greece. Try new cuisines from all over the world. Witness the Northern Lights. See our seven-year-old godson grow into the incredible man we know he will be. Meet as many people as I can and hear their magnificent stories. Learn as much as I can. Knowledge is not a base. It is continual.
What is one piece of advice you have for clients that come to see you or who may be thinking of coming in for an appointment? Why should they book a session with you?
Learn as much as you can about your body. Please do not ignore certain aches and pains. This could be a prelude to something that can be corrected now instead of future regret and dysfunction. Listen to your body. I aim to create a wide-ranging treatment plan geared towards repair and renewal. Once I start working with a client, I immediately become your detective to discover what is ailing you—carefully crafting a plan that brings relief and proper function. Pain, discomfort, and restricted range of motion can become a significant impediment to your day-to-day life. My ultimate goal is a return to normalcy. Feeling free of pain and unrestricted movement is a gift to all of us.
And there you have it! Karl, thank you so much and we know you are in the right place! To book your session with Karl visit us online or give us a call at 248-795-5196.
In Good Hands,
Rebecca Tamm, LMT