Graduate Spotlight July 2018 Olivia Pierson

Olivia began her quest to help people by enrolling in the Exercise Science program at Salem State University. She graduated in 2016 and began an internship at an athletic training facility, Body by Boyle in Woburn. She soon realized that she wanted to help people not only with personal training but also with massage.

Olivia graduated from Ipswich High School and Spa Tech Institute was right next door. She not only knew some graduates from Spa Tech Institute but heard from others it was a top-rated massage school. It was a natural choice for her, so she enrolled in the fall of 2016.

While as Spa Tech Institute, Olivia quickly became good friends with all her classmates. She had so much fun in school and she remembers Margie, one of the instructors, had a fun way of teaching even though it was serious learning! She enjoyed the infant massage where students would teach parents how to massage their babies, but said her favorite overall class was deep tissue massage. Olivia commented that her classmates kept her going through the clinics and tests.

After graduation from Spa Tech Institute in 2017, she was employed by Equinox Luxury Fitness Club, in Newton, as both the manager of the club and a massage therapist. She enjoyed the mix of working with clients and having management responsibilities.

While working at Equinox, her boyfriend was presented with a fantastic work opportunity in Portland, Oregon so the two of them packed up and moved this past year. It was a life changing decision but one she happily embraced. When Olivia arrived in Portland, she soon discovered holistic health was everywhere with chiropractors, naturopathic doctors and healing centers. She knew she would be successful in building her business. She traded in her car for a bike and started to discover Portland.

Athena Rehabilitation is where she works as a massage therapist and trainer. She splits her time between the two modalities and says her five-year plan is to own her own space giving massages and doing personal training for her clients.

Olivia comments, “I love to help people realize they don’t need to live in pain and don’t need pills or surgery to feel good.”

Olivia markets herself by working at events and passing out her cards and brochures. She has learned cupping therapy, the use of massage tools and how to use KT tape on clients to promote movement and mobility.

Olivia commented it was easy to get licensed in Oregon from Massachusetts. The board had to review her transcripts and she had to take the MBLEx test (a national certification test required by most states but not in Massachusetts) but ultimately, she got her Oregon license to practice massage therapy in a short time.

If you’re ever in Portland, Oregon reach out to Olivia at 858-414-1394.

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