We caught up with Urban pro Emilie to chat about her journey into massage therapy and osteopathy and what she enjoys most about being a massage therapist…

Hey Emilie! Mind telling us what treatments you offer on Urban?

Oncology massage, Deep tissue, Sports Massage, Pain/Injury Management

What made you want to become a massage therapist? 

I trained in Sports massage when I was in the first year of my Masters in Osteopathy. Before that I’d had a 10 year career working in urban design and community participation. As soon as I started my training I knew I wanted to immerse myself fully in manual therapy and it made sense to align my work with study. It’s really important to me that I practice oncology massage, as I know how difficult it can be for those living with and being treated for cancer to access massage, and it can have really positive effects on sleep, reducing anxiety and alleviating side effects of cancer treatment.

What do you enjoy the most about being a massage therapist?

I love the variety of people I meet, and being able to problem solve with clients to work out what is causing their symptoms and finding ways to make them feel better. When clients tell me they feel more mobile after treatment and better able to do the things they want, it’s wonderful.

What’s your standout highlight of working as a massage therapist? 

I love working with new parents and helping to alleviate upper body pain related to breastfeeding. It’s a huge privilege to be able to treat mothers in the days after birth and help make their experience more comfortable.

Do you ever book treatments for yourself? 

I’m lucky to be surrounded by incredible practitioners on my Osteopathy course and I also have a couple friends I get regular treatment from. We work very differently, and we learn from each other.

You mentioned you’re training to be an Osteopath, what made you decide to do this? How is the course going so far?

I first became interested in Osteopathy during my first pregnancy. The treatment that I received was transformative in terms of pain management but also in helping me better understand why my body felt this way and how I could help myself adapt to changes. Both my children benefited hugely from osteopathy after their births. Treatment helped them to turn their heads and feed more easily, which had such a positive effect on all of us. In my mid thirties I decided that as much as I loved my job working in community-led design, I wanted to work with people on a more personal level, and I started the 5 year course in 2019. I’m so grateful that I was able to make the change!

How do you travel to most of your bookings?

I’ve grown up cycling in London and do a lot of long distance cycling in my downtime so when I started with Urban it made sense to me to travel to clients on my bike.

How do you cycle with your massage table?

What does wellness mean to you and how have you introduced wellness into your daily routine?

I think it’s about choosing to do a few things that are important to me and trying to do them well rather than spreading myself too thin. It’s taken me a long time to understand that to feel well in myself I can’t do everything and have to make choices.

How do you like to unwind after a day of bookings? 

Cooking at home with my children, surrounding myself with books, or a glass of red wine with friends.

What pocket of London do you live in and what’s your favourite thing about it?

I’ve lived in Walthamstow for ten years. It’s the best place to cycle in London – the borough has done so much to reduce local car use, and quieter streets means even really young children can get around safely on bikes. My favourite spots locally are the Ravenswood Estate and the Rose and Crown theatre pub – both wonderful community spaces with lots going on for people of all ages.

To book Emilie for your next treatment head to our website.