Dear Neighbor,
If you'd like a massage that leaves your muscles feeling longer, looser and more relaxed, not just for the hour you're on the table but days later, here's what I've learned from 27 years and more than 25,000 sessions. I think it will work for you too.
But first, a confession.
I don't have an online booking system. No app. No portal. No stream of emails from a faceless company.
You text me. I text you back. That's it.
I know that sounds old-fashioned. But it comes with one thing no app can promise you.
You Always Know Exactly Who's Coming
Because it's always me.
When you book through a massage app, anyone can show up. You don't know who until you open the door.
When you book with me, you get the same therapist every time. The one who already knows which shoulder is the stubborn one, and how much pressure you like before you have to say it.
What Happens in Your Living Room
I bring the table and set up the space however you like it. Keep it simple, or dim the lights and put on music. You pick the music. It's your call.
You don't drive anywhere. You don't sit in traffic on the Hutch. And when we're done, you don't have to get back in the car and undo everything you just paid for.
You walk to the couch. Or straight to bed.
That's the real reason people book a mobile massage. It isn't a luxury. It's the hour and a half of driving and waiting you get back.
This Is Not a Spa Massage
I love spas. I've worked at most of the top spas in Westchester, as well as Shou Sugi Ban House, Gurney's Montauk and Moss on Fifth Avenue.
But an in-home session with me is different.
I work deep. But deep work isn't just leaning harder on a sore spot. It's knowing where to go and what to do once you're there. My approach is Lengthen, Release, and Lock It In:
Lengthen the muscles that have gotten short and tight.
Release them, separating each muscle from the tissue around it so it can move on its own again.
Lock it in with a traction or PNF stretch at the end. That stretch teaches the muscle to stay longer and looser, instead of snapping back to tight by the weekend.
I know I've done my job when someone gets off the table and tells me they feel longer, or even taller. I hear it all the time.
That last step is the one most massages skip. It's also the one my clients notice most.
A Few Things You'll Learn If We Work Together
Why a massage can feel amazing on the table and leave you just as tight by Thursday, and the one step that keeps that from happening
When a sports massage should be vigorous, when it should be light, and when it's smarter to wait a few days
Why the day after a hard match is usually the wrong day for deep work
What an oil change has to do with your lower back
Why the spot that hurts isn't always the spot that needs the work
I played Division 2 tennis in college, and I still play USTA leagues. So I know what a sore serving shoulder feels like from both sides of the table.
Who This Isn't For
I'd rather tell you now than have you disappointed later.
If you want a full spa day, with a robe, a steam room and a pool, go to a spa. There are great ones nearby, and I'll happily point you to one.
If you want a different face every time, an app will give you that.
But if you're a tennis player, a runner, a parent who carries a toddler on one hip, or someone who sits at a desk all day and feels it in your neck by 3 p.m., this is for you. It's also for anyone who has tried massage before and felt like it didn't last.
You Don't Have to Earn It
A lot of people treat massage like a reward for later. After the season. After the project. After the kids are older.
Think of it the way you think of an oil change. You don't wait for the engine to seize before you take care of it. Your body works the same way.
How to Book
Text me at (914) 523-0116. Tell me your town, what's bothering you, a few days that work and a window of time on each. I'll get back to you as soon as I can with the best available option.
You can see everything I offer on my services page.
I come to Bronxville, Eastchester, Scarsdale, White Plains, Harrison, Chappaqua, Tarrytown, Irvington, Dobbs Ferry, Hastings-on-Hudson, Ardsley and nearby towns.
Sincerely,
Doug O'Connell, LMT
P.S. If you remember only one thing from this letter, make it this: a good massage should still be working on Thursday. That's what the Lock It In step is for. Text me at (914) 523-0116 and I'll show you what I mean.