James Thompson RST

Practitioner Bio

Picture: My family and I have recently moved to the Victoria area, after living in Vancouver for 12 years. The study of shiatsu came naturally, if belatedly, to me, and I found wonderful teachers at the Sourcepoint Shiatsu Centre. People have always fascinated me, and it was another aspect of us - language - that brought me out here in the first place. I joined the linguistics department at UBC, completing a PhD in 2012. Graduate school was an amazing experience, but it did not lead to a career path that worked for me.I've been giving massage since I was 12 years old.

My grandmother was my first patient - with lupus, osteoporosis, and chronic pain (among other issues), she was always in need of some healing touch. I not only found that I could help ease her pain somewhat, but also that I enjoyed helping in this way. It seemed like my hands just knew where to go, and it was gratifying to see a positive response.I've been giving massage ever since, but had always felt that I was lacking a knowledge base from which to work.

After completing the PhD and entering a period of significant life change, I felt the time was right to fill that void. Shiatsu appealed to me for a number of reasons - its view of the body and mind as an inseparable unit, which broadens the scope of practice to include things like anxiety, emotional imbalance, and depression; the fact that intuition is as important to the practice as a firm grasp of anatomy and physiology; the ability to address specific issues while still treating the entire body.

Zen shiatsu is a powerful tool, but also a sturdy platform on which to base a life-time of study and practice. I look forward to growing in my understanding of the human body-mind, and in my ability to help people reach an optimum level of health. It is my sincere hope that you will choose to be a part of that lifelong process.

Cancellation Policy

24 hours notice

Hours