New Indoor Massage Space: Creating a Safer Environment

In the time of Covid, everything is about managed risk. Learn about the client safety precautions I’ve taken in designing our new indoor massage space!

The New Massage Studio Is Private and Separate.  The new massage studio has a private entrance, and private bathroom, for client use only. Potential connections to the rest of the house have been sealed, and HVAC airflow is separate from the rest of the building.

Healthy Airflow For Infection Control.  I’ve made choices to produce gentle and extensive airflow in the new massage studio. I wanted it to be as close as possible to being outdoors, while being sheltered from the elements. We’ll leave a combination of door and windows open, to catch the fresh Pacific Northwest breeze. There are two air purifier units. And there’s an outward blowing fan in the bathroom.

Why all the emphasis on airflow? Besides being pleasant, infection control. New hospital requirements for air exchangers are 12 air changes per hour (ACH). For comparison, a typical room in a home with no open windows is .35 ACH.

The massage studio should have a roughly estimated 12 air changes per hour (ACH)*

The bathroom should have a roughly estimated 11 ACH.*

* A huge caveat here: I am not an airflow professional! I based my estimates on an excellent article published in Associated BodyWork and Massage Professionals’ monthly magazine, “How To Improve Treatment Room Air Quality: From Covid Protections to CO2 Concerns” by Julie Tudor. It’s a complex area of study. For example, air doesn’t flow equally to all areas of a room. And ACH varies greatly based on things like wind speed. But there are generalizations you can make based on number of open windows, and in the case of air purifiers, more specific calculations using the size of the room and fan speed. And that’s what I’ve done.

Me: “Managed Risk” Living, and Newly Vaccinated. For a few months now, I’ve followed the Microcovid Project standard to manage the risk I pose to others, and vice versa. (Learn more at Microcovid.org.) I plan to continue following this to protect the unvaccinated people in my life. I have been fully vaccinated - massage therapists were designated in the final phase of healthcare workers. As of reopening, I’ve had my 2nd dose plus 2 weeks have passed. A March 2021 real world study of vaccinations in Israel found that the vaccine I got (Pfizer) was 94% effective at preventing asymptomatic infections - meaning that I should be far less likely than the general population to be able to pass Covid to someone else. 

Touchless Access to Things Like Soap and Paper Towels. I upgraded to all motion sensor-triggered paper towel and soap dispensers, and step pedal trash cans. I hope to also upgrade to a touchless faucet in the bathroom at some point, but I’m not quite there yet. So, if you’d prefer, there’s a touchless hand sanitizer dispenser.

Surfaces Disinfected Between Clients. Client facing surfaces are disinfected between every session. All soft items (pillows, and the massage table) have new, tougher covers that can withstand EPA cleaners between clients. Sheets are disinfected in a high temperature commercial laundry, and stored outside the massage area. Likewise, used linens are stored in airtight containers, in a separate room, away from the massage studio and from clean items. In case of any accidental touches, your practitioner changes shirts between every client.

Everyone In The Massage Studio Will Be Wearing Masks and Be Symptom Free. Anyone entering the massage space will wear a mask the entire time they are present, regardless of vaccination status. Your practitioner will be masked, and so will all clients. All clients are asked just before their session to report any symptoms they are experiencing. Alternatively, your massage therapist will not work if experiencing any symptoms.

For your comfort, I’m happy to substitute side lying position for face down, to allow clients better breathability while wearing face masks.

Do You Have Mobility issues? Please note that there’s a flight of stairs to reach the massage studio. It was the one negative tradeoff of the new massage space. Please check out the massage team at nearby Core Wellness instead - they have elevator access.

Staying Closed For a While Longer

January 26, 2021 - In light of Governor Gavin Newson’s lifting of the stay at home order on Jan 25, and Alameda County’s return to the Purple Tier, massage services are allowed to resume, both indoor and outdoor. However, I’ve decided to remain closed for a bit to wait and see what happens. Unless the state or county has other things to say about it, I plan to resume massage services in March or April.

Here’s a bit of my thought process, and why I’ve chosen to do this.

Hello, Atmospheric River! When I resume massage services, I’d prefer to offer outdoor massage. (The new indoor space isn’t ready yet, so isn’t an option just now anyway.) But you may have noticed, it’s COLD! And rainy! Forecasts are for an extended period of cold, windy, and rainy weather - which are incompatible with outdoor massage in a tent that’s open on three sides! March or April should see a return to more reasonable weather for outdoor services.

Things are riskier than when I was last open. Our ICU numbers are out of the critical zone (yay!), but our overall numbers, like percentage of test positivity, are far greater than when we went into shut down back in December. I’d love to see those numbers inch downward.

New variants are a wild card. The more contagious British variant is projected to be the dominant form of virus in the US by the end of March. I have a sneaking suspicion that we are going to see a swift return to lockdown when / if that happens. Each time a business shuts down and reopens, there are costs associated with that. Given that many small businesses are working on a small fraction of their usual revenue when allowed to be open, we have to be extra wise about how we allocate our resources.

The silver lining: I’ll be back! Just not today. thanks for your patience and understanding.

If you are in immediate need of care for muscular issues, please contact Core Wellness. As a chiropractic office with massage therapists on staff, they can see you regardless of shutdown status.

Stay safe and be well!

- Andrea

Indoor Massage Studio Moving To Santa Clara Ave

I have exciting news! I’m moving the indoor massage studio a few blocks away!

I expect to continue to offer outdoor massage when I first re-open, because I think both my clients and I have found our comfort zone there during covid. But when we are ready to move indoors, I will have some amazing new digs!

At my home, my tenant of over a decade saved up enough money to buy her own place (woo hoo! congrats!) This left the best possible massage studio open and available, at the exact time that my lease was up at the old Mandana Blvd location.

It is just a few blocks away from the old location, has a separate private entrance, private bathroom, great ventilation and an HVAC system separate from my home. It should also be quieter, without all those cars lining up at the traffic light outside the window at 5pm! Lower volumes of people coming in and out, and no more shared hallway and restroom with other offices allows me to feel very confident about disinfection practices in times of covid and beyond.

If you came for an outdoor massage, you have already seen the location.

I’m making a lot of upgrades to the space, and it won’t be ready for a while. But wow, it feels so good to invest in the future! 

Note that I have a new business phone number 510-604-2005 that accepts texts, as well as phone calls. And the new address, 326 Santa Clara Avenue Unit A, will be updating online in the coming weeks.

Extending Our Temporary Closure

Happy 2021, everyone!

In anticipation of Alameda County’s extension of pandemic closure dates, I am blocking off the calendar for another three weeks. I’ve arbitrarily chosen Feb 2 as a re-opening date, but this may change or extend based on pandemic metrics, like ICU capacity. If you are booked for a session that I cannot fulfill for this reason, I’ll contact you individually to let you know when the county announces dates.

If you are in urgent need of a massage during this time, check with Core Wellness in Oakland. They are doing medical massage indoors, defined as massage prescribed by a doctor, and they can operate during shut downs.

Though I’m qualified to do medical massage, I’ve chosen not to pursue it. So very few of my clients have prescriptions for massage, and I don’t have existing partnerships with individuals that can refer medical massage clients. The amount of set up time for outdoor massage - where I feel most comfortable right now -would outweigh the benefits.

And that’s ok. I’m doing fine. I’m actually engrossed in some exciting developments for the future! Hint: The massage studio is getting an upgrade. …So stay tuned to this space!

Temporarily Closing Due to Pandemic Winter Shutdown. See you in 2021!

In accordance with Alameda county directives, the massage studio is temporarily closing for four weeks, from Monday, Dec 7, through January 3.

If you are in urgent need of a massage during this time, check with your favorite chiropractor’s office. Medical massage, defined as massage prescribed by a doctor, is still allowed to operate. Many chiropractors have massage therapists that work in their offices. They can write you a prescription for massage to address the pain you are experiencing. I’m a big fan of Dr. Carolyn Finnegan and her staff, at Core Wellness in Oakland.

The massage calendar is blocked off through the end of the year, but January 3 and beyond is open in anticipation of returning to work at that time. Feel free to book a January victory massage for yourself. If regulations change, I’ll let you know and reschedule appointments as needed.

Gift certificates are also available online. They can be redeemed in 2021 when we reopen. (In the absence of being able to plan ahead in a pandemic, I had stopped selling gift certificates. Now, with a vaccine on the horizon, they are available once again!)

Be well, and Happy Holidays. I look forward to seeing you in the New Year!

— Andrea