MOUNTAIN VIEW EXPRESS reporter Mark Hornbeck

MH: I know that you enjoy your work. Tell me how you got into massage therapy.

Bernadette: I went to Missouri College and  signed up. A month later, I started going to school. Eight months later, I graduated at the head of my class. I got my license a couple of months after that. You have to take a State Board Exam, then you have to get insurance. So, it was really a pretty quick process. It took me less than a year, from deciding to do it, to having my license.

 MH: How long have you been a massage therapist?

Bernadette: Let’s see… I graduated in April of 2002, but I was doing it that whole year in school, too. So I’d say, almost 8 years.

MH: You’ve had your own business for almost 3 years?

Bernadette: Yes. I worked at the Ritz Carlton Hotel in Clayton, which is very nice. And then I worked at the JCCA in St. Louis. They were all nice experiences, and yet can’t compare to working for yourself.

MH: Yes, of course. Tell us about your official certification. I know that you are proud of that.

	Bernadette: The American Massage Therapy Association has the connotation of being the organization that has done the most research on the effects of massage. It is the largest organization of its kind in the country. I am proud of having taken the Board Exam, which was not really a very easy thing to do! It has hundreds of very in depth questions; all the kinds of systems in the body. You go through a lot of anatomy and physiology.
Massage room at Beltana's

MH: What are some of the lessons that you have learned, both emotionally and spiritually, by your work?

Bernadette: I feel pretty humble to be able to work with people, and to have a job that makes people feel better. I think that’s really important. I think that spiritually, I can imagine people (I certainly wouldn’t compare myself to any of these people, of course), but I  can imagine people like Mother Theresa going around and doing the work that she did with the poor and starving people, and finding the  gratitude that comes with service. Because I feel that you’ll never really  understand what true happiness can be, unless you help people. I’ll probably implement some kind of program where I can work with people who can’t afford to come and get massages, but really, really need them. Because I think it’s important for people to know what it’s about.

MH: That’s very interesting, because you know a lot of times, people are not able to make a decision in their lives as to how to separate having to earn a living, and being of service. It’s a terrible dichotomy with most people, myself included. You would like to be of service all the time; donate your time and be a part of a larger community, in that way. But, there has got to be some form of compensation. Today, it’s money.

Bernadette: I’m very lucky to be able to do what I do here, because this is a small town. It’s something that is most likely pretty new to people. On the other hand, there are probably a lot of folks interested in it, and realize what a benefit it can be. And so, I’m able to make a fairly decent living doing it.

MH: Talk more, if you will, about the town of Mountain View, itself. You and Johnny think that Mountain View is a good town to live in.   Bernadette: I think it’s charming. I think it has a certain moral value to it, because people here seem to care about how they raise their children. I know that a lot of people home school, and a lot of people don’t. Either are fine, but I think that people really care about the fact that this is not a big city……rush here and rush there sort of place.   MH: Right.   Bernadette: And, I think that’s important for your sanity, to be able to move and live at a calm and a relaxed pace. It’s hard for me to go visit a big city, anymore. It stresses me out.

Sifu Johnny Holzer

MH: Isn’t that the truth!

Bernadette: Yes. So that’s why I think it is important for places like this to remain. I understand why people want to keep certain aspects of this town the way that it is, because they don’t want it to change. But, on the other hand, I think that because people are so afraid of change in some ways, that they could hinder things from growing. Things that could be positive.

MH: Right. Things that could really benefit them. Such as massage, which we will talk more about, and then you have Yoga classes, you have Tai Chi, Kung Fu, “Hoops,” and other things that you are working on to help people get in shape, with low impact on their bodies.

MH: Talk a little bit more about the kinds of massage that you offer.

Bernadette: I do a combination of Swedish and Deep Tissue massage. Swedish massage is what most people expect when they go to get an everyday, therapeutic massage. It’s a combination of different strokes, to provide certain results. Those strokes are effleurage, petrosage, friction, and compression. Deep tissue focuses on the friction and compression mostly, and is sometimes done without oils. It is done with people who are having spasms and different problems like that. I also incorporate a little Reflexology and a little bit of Reiki into my practice. Generally, it is pretty straightforward massage. I don’t do a lot of things like stones and wraps, things like that, yet. Eventually, I would like to incorporate into the whole vision for this place. But right now, I am really focusing on a very basic, straightforward massage.

     When I work with someone, the easiest way for me to describe it, is this way: I consider the whole being, the whole person. Spirituality and everything. When I’m working with someone, it is like working with a piece of dough. Wherever I feel like there’s something wrong, my hands just naturally move to that area, and focus and concentrate on that area for a little bit longer. Then, I’ll spread out. I’ll try to get that one portion that is real tense, to spread out. Then, get it away from the person, altogether.

MH: That’s fascinating. Bernadette: I mean, it is hard to describe how I feel. I close my eyes a lot when I’m doing massages, so that I can really feel what I’m doing without thinking about it, too much.   MH: Well, I think that to be excellent at your work, as you have the reputation of being, you would have to be a very caring and intuitive person.
	Bernadette, Johnny and Bela

Bernadette: Intuitive, yes. Very intuitive. And, I am a caring person, I like to think. But, I think that the intuition part of it is really important. People can train you how to be a massage therapist, but either you are going to be a good one, or you are not.

MH: Right. Either you’ve got those natural inclinations and abilities, or you don’t. “Gifts” is a better word.

Bernadette: Sure. It’s kind of like you’re a vessel. You are just there to help someone promote their own healing. And if you’re gifted enough to have whatever it is going through you, it helps people relax and makes them feel better. It’s a great thing to be able to do.

MH: What are some of the common problems that people come in to see you about, that you have helped them with?

Bernadette: Of course, I see a lot of people with lower back pain. I would say that that is probably the number one complaint. I see a lot of women with upper back pain, and shoulder and neck pain. Women seem to carry their tension higher, for some reason, and men seem to carry it lower.

      I’ve seen pregnant women, because it is very hard on your body. It pulls everything out of alignment, and they really need massage, to help them relax.

     I’ve worked with truck drivers, because it seem like they always have a problem with their right arm, because of the repetitive motion injury.

     A lot of people that work with computers, sitting at their desk, day after day.  That’s really hard on your body.

     Waitresses. That’s hard work. You know, anything where you are doing the same thing. Even if it is just sitting in the same position for a long time, can cause a repetitive motion injury.

		MH: How did you come up with the name “Beltana’s” ?   Bernadette: Beltana is my nickname. April 30 is my birthday. It is a Celtic celebration of May Eve, May Day. And, I’ve got Scottish blood.   MH: I’ve also heard you refer to your business as “Beltana’s Wellness Center.” Tell me about that.
Yoga class with Ananda Kanan

Bernadette: When we first opened up, we just used the name Beltana’s. That’s what we have on our city license. But, we decided that the name needed to grow to Beltana’s Wellness Center because we do so many different things here. We’re trying to incorporate a sense of “fun,” as wellness. By including all of these different things, such as the Yoga, and the Tai Chi, now the juggling and the hooping and all of that different type of exercise. So, I think that in order to be well, your whole Self has to be well, and you have to have fun doing it. I think that the “fun” part is really important. And we want people to know that at any age, and at any level of fitness, they can start by doing something. Most of the things that we are offering here is something that anybody can do.

MH: Talk about “hooping.”

Bernadette: There’s this really cool website, http://www.hooping.org and it will tell you everything you’ve ever wanted to know about why it is good for you and how to make your own hoops, which is really not all that difficult. We sell them here, but we also want people to know how to make their own, too. Some people weight them with water or sand or earthy things, like beans. You can do “fire” hooping. It’s becoming really popular, again. I think it used to be very popular in England. Then, it came here. And, the thing with these kinds of hoola-hoops, is that they are much bigger and much heavier than a regular sized children’s hoop. So, anybody can do it. It’s easier, because it is so much bigger and heavier for adults to be able to do it. Depending on the size that you are, you can get one that is custom made, just for you.

MH: did you say that even ten minutes a day could get you in shape?

Bernadette: Ten minutes a day and two weeks, and you’ll notice a difference.

MH: What is that going to do for me?   Bernadette: A lot of people are so focused on their abs, and focused on toning a certain part of their body. Well, that’s not the way to approach it. The way to approach it is you need to strengthen your core. You have to have this core strength. And for that to happen,  you really have to do something that is working out your whole body. Moving around. When you are doing hooping, you can actually dance around, move around, walk around, once you have been doing it for a while. It’s something that really starts changing you, from the inside out.

Hoops!

MH: That reminds me of something I heard one time, about concentrating all of your breathing, so that you take your energy down to increase your Chi.

Bernadette: Chi Gong, yes. I think it is important for people to open their minds, and not be afraid to try new things.

MH: Well, I think that it is amazing that you are prosperous here, in a small Missouri town. I would think that these would be disciplines that you would have to be in a big city, to practice.

Bernadette: Right. And why do you think that?

MH: Because I think that people living in a small town haven’t largely been exposed to other things. They are more centered on preserving their way of life that they have always had.

Bernadette: I think that you would be surprised at the amount of people that are open to most of the things that we are doing, here.

     A lot of the people that come to the Yoga classes, are pretty conservative people. But, they realize what good it is doing for them.  There are people that have come in here to get massages, that I have heard say things like, “Well, I don’t know about the Yoga class, because it seems like it involves a certain sort of mysticism that would go against my Christian beliefs. But, that’s really just not the case. It is the way that you approach it. It is a form of exercise. It is a form of spirituality for some people. For the people who teach it here, that is their spirituality. There are lots of different kinds of spirituality in the world, and for them to be able to come together and appreciate one another, without being critical of one another, I think is very important. I think that if you can’t have that, then you are closing off a great part of the world. You’ll never be able to feel comfortable with it. You’ll always feel that you are pushing parts of it away. I think it is important that people not be afraid to try new things.

     We have had a lot of people come in who are just interested. They have never been to a Yoga class, or they have no idea what Tai Chi is. We try to explain it to them in the most basic way that we know how. For example, Tai Chi is a moving meditation.

     What we do here, is a part of our personality, and our spirituality, and our living. It’s how we make a living. Too, we are both into music. I sing and play a little guitar. Johnny plays guitar. I have a group in which I also play. We do a few events throughout the summer. It’s a big part of me.

MH: That’s great. Everybody has to have those things that nurture them. What about the Drawing & Paining classes that you offer, here?

Bernadette: Art classes? My mother teaches the art classes. Her name is Fran Hanks, and she has a Bachelor of Fine Arts. She used to be an art teacher. She started with drawing, and that’s pretty much what the class is focusing on, now. We’re learning perspective, colors, the color wheel. And then, when we all get really good at drawing, she is going to take us into painting. They are really fun. We have a nice little group of about ten students that come every Saturday. And, anybody can jump in at any time. It’s ten dollars per class for adults, and five for kids.

MH: So, you don’t have to be a Da Vinci to….

Bernadette: Noooo! You’ll learn something at any class you come to. It’s a lot of fun.

MH: Thank you, Bernadette. We appreciate you taking the time to share your thoughts and insights with us.

Bernadette: You are so welcome!