Today we’d like to introduce you to Jennifer Land.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I’ve been a massage therapist since 2003 when I was just 19 years old and newly married. While I was also in school to get my Child & Family Studies Bachelor’s degree, it felt important to have a skill I could use right away if need be. I learned so many great skills during this time and fell in love with massage therapy.
When we began our family in 2005, I started to research all things pregnancy, birth, and baby. That first experience was difficult, and I knew I wanted to have a more empowering birth the next time. When I had my second child and everything went so smoothly, I decided to become a doula and childbirth educator to spread the word and support pregnant people and their families during this unique life stage. I offered education, massage therapy, and physical and emotional support during labor, delivery, and after the babies were born. It was such a rush every time and I adored this work! I even worked throughout my third pregnancy, supporting all types of births.
When we moved to the Dallas area over 10 years ago, it became quite difficult for me to be on-call. I had begun homeschooling our children. We had three young children, and quickly found out I was pregnant with my fourth! My husband worked about an hour from our home, and we didn’t have anyone to watch our children for me to attend births. I began offering in-home massage in the evenings and on the weekends to get back into what I loved and socialize with adults! I also ran a homeschooling and local events blog for many years.
I have loved helping all of my massage clients. I even worked out of a birthing center for a while, and that’s when I knew I needed to get back to specializing in supporting pregnant folks. I’ve always yearned to create a niche for my business.
When Covid hit, I decided not to offer massage. I took this time to really focus on things like journaling, meditation, yoga, and breath work. I became a certified yoga teacher and took extra coursework to certify in children’s yoga and prenatal yoga. The light bulb went off and I knew I absolutely needed to think about starting a business. Not just any business, but one that could support people during pregnancy, postpartum, and parenthood.
Keller Prenatal Massage is the result of all of these years of experience and education. It’s a labor of love and I am overjoyed to be able to work with so many wonderful families every single day I go to work!
I opened an office of my own in September 2022 in the heart of Old Town Keller. To make it even more special, I purchased a hydraulic table for the ultimate comfort, and so I can position people with ease. I have pillows and wedges so that each person can get as cozy and supported as possible for their treatment. Clients are given suggestions for self-care at home. I also offer hypnosis and coaching to help parents overcome the stress and overwhelm that can creep up during parenthood. If anyone needs a referral for another care provider, is looking for a photographer, doula, midwife, nutritionist, or anything else – I have many contacts within the community to connect them to. That’s really the heart of this – COMMUNITY. SUPPORT.
I would love to begin offering infant massage classes to parents, a breath work class for labor and delivery, and seasonal yoga classes outdoors in the beautifully shaded backyard of my office building.
I’m thrilled to be able to do what I love. Sometimes I can’t believe that I’m really doing this!
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey has been a fairly smooth road?
There have been many struggles on the way. On a personal level, I have endured a miscarriage, birthed 5 kids with VERY different birth stories (not all good – a few were really hard), moved several times before moving to the Keller area in 2013, lost my grandmother in 2020, and am 14 years into our family’s homeschooling journey. Sometimes it can be a struggle to balance my family’s needs with my passions and calling. They’re all a little older now, so it’s getting easier to get out of the house and pursue my own dreams.
Appreciate you sharing that. What should we know about Keller Prenatal Massage?
I am a massage therapist who specializes in offering support during pregnancy and postpartum. Keller Prenatal Massage is just me, so there’s no clinic or front desk staff, or other massage therapists. I love helping pregnant folks to relax, but I often help my clients with their back, hip, and shoulder pain. Because of my childbirth educator and doula background, I absolutely love and understand a pregnant person’s body and the changes they are encountering. With my yoga and meditation background, I can provide stretches and movements to work on tightness and pain, as well as to provide a calming experience for releasing tension.
It’s really cool to have someone come to me in pain, and have them leave with better range of motion, decreased pain, and a dreamy look in their eye from being so relaxed. I love it so much!
My specialty is a 90-minute prenatal massage, which I perform side-lying with plenty of cushions. I also love performing 60-minute postpartum massages to get new parents feeling more like themselves.
I always have recommendations for my clients to help the effects of the massage last longer. Additionally, I offer hypnosis and coaching services to help address the ongoing challenges of parenthood and guide them toward achieving their specific goals. I also love to help people connect with other prenatal or postpartum resources and businesses that they might need. I truly want to serve and help these new families in any way I can.
The crisis has affected us all in different ways. How has it affected you and any important lessons or epiphanies you can share with us?
All of the things going on in the world during that time were incredibly intense. It was a VERY high-stress time, and that’s when I realized just how anxious and high-strung I was getting! Things seemed out of my control, and that really bothered me a lot. This is when I really went on a journey with yoga, breathwork, and meditation. I dove all in and began journaling regularly, listening to audiobooks, and even took up making jewelry to keep my hands busy. It was a cool journey into finding out what helped me to stay grounded and worry less.
We had a crisis within my family that really showed me how important mental health is – and I thought I KNEW, but things got really real for us at this time. This is when I decided to start seeing a counselor as well. I started going to the regular doctor more, and generally just decided to actually start taking better care of myself.
After all of these years of taking care of my 7-person household, the pandemic taught me that I *have* to take time to take care of myself, too.
It’s really been amazing.
Pricing:
- 60 Minute Massage – $150
- 90 Minute Massage – $200
Contact Info:
- Website: http://kellerprenatalmassage.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/kellerprenatalmassage
- Facebook: facebook.com/kellerprenatalmassage
