Today we’d like to introduce you to Wednesday Brown.
Hi Wednesday; thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
My story begins with me working in healthcare for over 10 years, right after graduating high school. I started as a CNA, and although being around older adults, I helped with their daily activities and listening to their stories of how they navigated the world and just being a granddaughter, a daughter, and or a niece figure to them that brought me great joy and delight. However, that career came with many mental and physical struggles for me. I decided one day to journal and follow a different path of living to discover my true passion, in a way of me being able to still help others, and that would also bring calmness to my life. I decided to book myself a massage. I had never had one before, and I was nervous, but I saw plenty of movies, which looked like a lovely experience. I went to a place that wasn’t run as a chain, and the experience was phenomenal. I felt I was being cared for by a loving aunt or mother figure. I was where I needed to be. I didn’t understand that a stranger could safely touch and manipulate my body to help me achieve deep relaxation that I other rise haven’t been able to experience before due to severe anxiety. One day while living with my parents, my mother came home with a massage table, and I thought to myself, hmmm, very interesting, I asked her what made her buy a massage table, and she informed me it was to help my dad with his pain. Later that day, I decided to journal to see if I could come up with a career that would better suit me, and as I was writing, I remembered that my father used to pay my sister and I $1 each to massage a foot. Then the memory rushed back to me, and I recall the joy my dad had and some pain relief he had felt with being diabetic and how special those foot massages were to him then.
An accident occurred as I was working as a Certified Nurses Aid, and I physically couldn’t do the job anymore; that was the last sign that I needed to know I wasn’t living in my purpose. I decided to research becoming a Licensed Massage Therapist and attended a 600-hour course where I learned different massage modalities and became Reiki certified. I knew from the very first day of school I was exactly where I needed to be, and now my dad gets to experience full body massage services from me with love and expertise.
Can you talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way? Would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
I would love to say my life has been smooth and unaltered by pain but would that be the true experience of living as a human being in this existence, I believe it’s safe to say we all have had some struggle and or struggles, but it molds us into the persons we are today.
Looking back, my struggles regarding being in school and navigating my world were fascinating. I have been diagnosed with Bipolar Disorder and had been medicated for this successfully at that time for maybe 6 months, but then I hurt myself at my previous job while working as a CNA, and I couldn’t work anymore. My insurance went away, which meant no more medication. Slowly my behaviors started to change. I didn’t notice it then but looking back now, I can see where things weren’t “right” it became hard for me to concentrate in class, and I had so much anxiety I would have to take deep breath’s when I could remember and reach out to those new friends around me. My behaviors were very erratic, and they fueled me to make some questionable choices. With my mind being in the state, it was when it came down to clinics and classroom trades massage was IT for me. My mind was calm, and I understood I was in someone’s personal space. I am, with permission, touching someone’s body, and they trust me to care for them and pay attention to their needs. Only during that time could I fully calm my mind and dive into what I needed to do. So as far as challenges go, my mind was it, and If my mind isn’t in check, I can not perform my job 100% effectively and as well as I would love to.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Eccentric Healing Plus is a place that I call my own the name alone sums up my personality so much. Eccentric being me, I learned that word from my sister as I dress very differently than the “norm” my sister saw an outfit I was wearing one day and said, “I love your outfit. You are, your style is very eccentric”. I fell in love with that word that day. Healing, as a Massage Therapist and a Reiki Practitioner is in my hands, and that’s what I love to do. Plus, meaning my business has room to expand in many ways.
I am a licensed massage therapist specializing in Swedish Massage, Myofascial Release, Deep Touch(Tissue), Prenatal Massage and Reiki energy healing, an energy work originating in Japan in which charged hands hover and or are placed over the client’s body, is used to bring awareness to the area(s) and to move stagnate energy through the body.
What sets me apart from others is my everything. I add love to each service I provide for my clients, each session is modified to fit the person’s needs, and no one massage is alike. My look is different, as well as my treatment room. I’m for one, a black woman with different colored dreadlocks or locs as I like to call them, tattoos, and piercings. My room decor screams color, light, and happiness with a few hippie vibes. My room says a lot about my personality, and my look reminds others that I am human like them, living in my passion, and extremely grateful that they chose me to help them in their care. No one look says this is a what a healer looks like but some stereotypes show healers looking a certain way. That’s not the case for me, so I refer to myself as The Eccentric Healer.
I am proud to be a Licensed Massage Therapist & Reiki Practitioner, taking up space in this field and educating other black and brown people that this isn’t a luxury but a necessity to a fruitful life. I hope clients feel great and when they get up from my massage table to remember to carry that smile with them throughout the day. This is a lifestyle. There are healthier ways to heal the mind, body, and spirit. Add some things to your health plan and feel the difference in how you navigate the world. I want readers to know to never give up on their dreams and feed that inner child and that passion. We all should wake up happy and excited about our days and careers, and if you feel disconnected from self, seek professional help; there is no shame in self-preservation. Massage Therapy is one of those things we need every day. Human beings need safe and healthy touch to survive! Let’s have healthy habits.
Where we are in life is often partly because of others. Who/what else deserves credit for how your story turned out?
I have to go with the beautiful woman who birthed me, my mother, Rosie Westerfield. No matter what I wanted to do and how I navigated the world, my mother has always been my cheerleader and my number 1 go-to. She has so much love and compassion in her heart. I tell her often that I have the best mother in the world. My dad, Henry Westerfield, also falls into the number one spot. People say I’m just like my father. And I’m going to and have always taken that as a compliment. My dad is a somewhat quiet guy and can say the fewest of words, and those words would impact my life in the most profound ways. My parents have loved me since the very moment I became a thought in their minds, and without their love(tough or gentle) and support, I wouldn’t be here today writing these beautiful words about them. They always remind me that I have a home, and they have a home with me, too, in my heart.
I have to say something about my daughter because if I ever feel like I have doubted myself, I look at her, and she smiles, reminding me that it’s all okay.
My partner, Christian, has supported me since we met and fell in love. We both created a beautiful child together, and he has helped me come up with ideas for my shop and has helped me with the IT part of it as he is super intelligent and has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science & Cyber Security. He is my rock, my go-to, and my number 1 Cheerleader. I am grateful for him every day.
Lastly, I would have to mention a dear friend of mine, Clara Vaughn. She and I met in Massage School, and she showed me what true friendship is. I have never had a friend so supportive of me, and I am so supportive of her as well. She really roots for my success, and she will always be the friend I turn to for anything.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.eccentrichealingplus.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/eccentrichealingplus/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eccentric.hippie
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCassRez4mQJ9N2xTTmcwQZw
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/eccentric-healing-plus-creve-coeur?uid=p1RD_xh_Ix8BVYYji5_XFQ&utm_campaign=www_business_share_popup&utm_medium=copy_link&utm_source=(direct)
Image Credits
Christian Nagel Solana Nagel
