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Hi there, 

There’s no way to cushion this, I write with sad news. I have made the tough call to fully close my business and give up my office space. I have spent the past couple of weeks moving things out and locked the doors for the final time this past Friday night.

There were two major factors in this decision, and I feel it’s important you know about them (especially the second one). 

1. I have been closed since March 13, 2020. Paying full rent and utilities indefinitely with no idea when I will be able to return to work just didn't make sense financially. I officially terminated my lease at the end of December, but my landlord was hopeful I would be able to return to work before he was able to rent the space & encouraged me to leave my things there. Unfortunately, he was wrong. Someone loved the office as much as I did and rented it as of March 1st.

2. Massage still cannot be performed safely right now, partly due to the contagious nature of this virus and the new variants, but also because of some other serious considerations. We are still learning about serious post-covid complications occuring in people that had little or no symptoms, people that may not even realize they had it to begin with.

The CDC is increasingly concerned that the combination of rapid spreading variants and relaxed state/municipal ordinances will lead to another spike in infections. They are still advising people socially distance and avoid prolonged contact with people outside their homes, which means massage is still considered unsafe for the time being.

I know that many LMTs are open. Many never shut down at all. I know that everyone knows someone who has been getting massages straight through and hasn't personally had any problems. Maybe you yourself have gotten a couple and didn't ever feel sick. People are back to work, kids are back to school, and just about everyone is "over it" and ready to resume normal life. I get it.

None of that makes it safe.

Is it safer than it was a few months ago?

Yes.

Buuuuuuuut... Is it actually safe? That's still a no, according to professional guidance from our industry's leading expert on pathology as well as the CDC. And honestly, I trust their opinions more than any anecdotal evidence to the contrary. 

We are creeping closer to being able to reopen safely, especially with the number of vaccinations being administered now. For that, I am feeling both hopeful and grateful. If you are able to get a vaccination, please do so. The more people that get them and continue to mask and distance, the sooner I will be able to get back to work.
Speaking of getting back to work- I am SO looking forward to reopening and seeing everyone again.

I miss you all so much!

When and where that will be, I do not know yet. As soon as I have more information, I will share it. My landlord is amazing and let me know that he has another building nearby that has an office with my name on it, if I'm interested when he is ready to rent it later this spring. So although my business is temporarily homeless, I am not feeling totally panicked about the situation. Everything will be ok. Different, but ok.

As soon as I have more information as to when and where I will be working, I will send out an update to let everyone know. 
Now, on a more personal note...

My deepest apologies to anyone who has reached out to me recently and hasn't gotten a reply. It is no secret that I struggle with anxiety and depression and have for many, many years. Generally I do really well with daily medication and the many coping strategies I've acquired over the years. That said, the past 3-4 months have FAR exceeded every tool I have to manage it. We increased my medication, which helped me limp through the worst of it... but, overall, I have not been ok since realizing I wouldn't be able to reopen in October. Not even a little bit ok. My general ability to function dropped to near zero by early November. The meds helped me get out of bed, but weren't doing much beyond that. I wasn't even talking to my family beyond what was completely necessary, much less just chatting with anyone else. I struggled to complete simple tasks, things that should've taken a few minutes often took days. My brain felt like it was moving a hundred miles an hour but also in slow motion most of the time. Most of all, I was so exhasted. So, so exhausted. 


I read the messages as they have come in and fully intended to reply, but I'll be the first to admit that I've really dropped the ball on actually doing it. I'm not saying any of this to worry anyone or make excuses for my lack of response, I just wanted to be completely honest and transparent as to what has been going on and why I've been so hard to get in touch with. To be blunt, my brain has been an uncooperative a-hole for the past few months.

Thankfully, the worst of it seems to have passed. I am on the upswing and trying to get caught up now. I still have good days and bad days, so my progress is pretty uneven... but I'm making progress. I just never want anyone to think I was ignoring them or didn't want to hear from them. I always love hearing from you guys, even when my brain was malfunctioning in an epic way.

Thank you all for checking in on me and, again, my deepest apologies for taking so long to reply.
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