Dancing to the Rhythm Within Podcast

Breathe, Stretch, and Play: Navigating Stress with Raven Santiago

• Tiffany Olszuk • Season 1 • Episode 4

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Get ready for an uplifting episode! Join Tiffany as she chats with Raven Santiago, a passionate massage therapist and health coach, about tackling stress. 

Key topics include:

  • Spotting sneaky physical signs of stress and what to do about them (and the one sign you may have missed! 😮)
  • The incredible benefits of breathwork and stretching as stress-busters

Tune in for a delightful mix of practical tips and playful insights! 

About Raven: Raven Santiago is a certified health coach and licensed massage therapist with a rich educational background in integrative medicine. Known for her holistic approach to health and well-being, Raven has become a trusted figure in the wellness community. Her journey into the world of healing began with a deep fascination for how lifestyle choices directly impact physical and mental health. From nutrition to exercise, to stress management and mindfulness, Raven is dedicated to helping her clients discover a path to a healthier, happier life.

Connect with Raven: Instagram - Feelgoodbodyworks

Connect with Tiffany: www.porpoisefulwellness.com  

Want the ocean-themed affirmation cards from the show? Check them out here! 

Tiffany:

Hey friends, I have a question for you. When is the last time you laughed in a conversation? Maybe you're in need of some laughs or some good vibes. And if that's the case, this episode is for you. I sit down with Raven Santiago, a massage therapist and health coach, to talk about sneaky signs of stress and what to do about them. We keep it lighthearted and give you some practical tips for catching stress before it spirals and managing it when it inevitably does show up in your life. It's definitely a fun one and I hope you enjoy it. Well, welcome to the Dancing to the Rhythm Within podcast, Raven. It's so great to have you.

Raven:

Thank you for having me.

Tiffany:

Yes, of course. So I thought to help ground this session, I could pull an affirmation card for us. How does that sound?

Raven:

That's awesome. Let's do it.

Tiffany:

All right. So I have my Porpoise Full Wellness deck here full of all these vibrant ocean theme cards. Um, I'm just shuffling them.

Raven:

I have seen the cards before. They are gorgeous.

Tiffany:

Well, thank you. So, lately, two cards have been calling to me when I do these affirmation card pulls. So the first one says, Infinite Possibilities Surround Me, it's this one, um, but this beautiful, looks like a, sunrise. And then the other one says, I Am Playful.

Raven:

I love it.

Tiffany:

I love it. I love it. It's a little, uh, beluga whale playing with, uh,

Raven:

I think that resonates with me today, actually, because of what we're going to talk about, but then also this is my first time being on a podcast and, you know, I was a little nervous, but we can be playful.

Tiffany:

Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. Yeah. I think that's a sign for me to the playfulness. Cause I think in growing a business and being a coach, you're always. It's looking for your next client or the opportunity, and sometimes it's hard to be like, I'm going to be playful when you're pushing, pushing, pushing. And so it's sort of a, it's a good reminder. Definitely.

Raven:

Yeah.

Tiffany:

I think the other one kind of goes hand in hand, the infinite possibilities surround me. So it's, saying to keep an eye out for those. It's actually timely, I think, because we're going to talk about stress on this podcast.

Raven:

And not taking things too serious, right? Like that kind of goes hand in hand.

Tiffany:

Yeah. I find these affirmation card decks really fun because it's always a chance to pause, but also it's always the cards that you need to see.

Raven:

Do you have a routine with them?

Tiffany:

Yeah, for a while, when I was transitioning from my corporate job, I was doing an affirmation card pull after I did a gratitude journal practice, and so, really simple practice, I just wrote down three things I'm grateful for, and then, I also took a look at my calendar for the day, and I wrote down what my priorities were, and then I pulled an affirmation card, so, even though I was looking at all my priorities, and that could be, A time where I could get stressed. I tried to counter that with the affirmation card and the gratitude. So anytime I looked at my planner, I would see what I was grateful for and then have the cards on my, on my desk. Yeah, I did that for a while and now that I'm saying it out loud, I'm going, okay, I should really go back to doing that. Yeah. So welcome again, Raven. So happy to have you here. Raven Santiago is a massage therapist and a health coach and does all these great things. Do you want to tell us a little bit about yourself?

Raven:

Yeah, I am so excited to be here. I have a huge smile on my face. my name is Raven. I started my career not knowing what the hell I wanted to do. I had no direction. I just knew there was always more. So my undergrad, I studied English. I thought I wanted to be a teacher. Didn't work out. Didn't want to teach. Um, then I wanted to change to nutrition because I started a new lifestyle, but I would be in school for another three years. So that didn't really work out. And I found my grad. Program. And that was an integrative health and holistic medicine. And I fell in love. In one of my classes I had to do a project on complimentary therapies and in that class or in the project, I mean, my topic was massage therapy. So I ended up falling in love with massage therapy, going to trade school and then graduating both grad school and trade at the same time. And then six months later, became licensed in massage therapy, a year later, started my own practice and fast forward to now I co own healing house where we focus on also aspects of holistic health.

Tiffany:

Thanks for sharing. And how cool that being in a class could change your direction.

Raven:

Seriously, I mean, any advice that I would give someone. Who is maybe lost or doesn't know just keep doing things just

Tiffany:

yeah

Raven:

Because it'll find you yeah,

Tiffany:

yeah They they say I remember when I was in school to like keep exploring keep exploring, but I think I was very at the time sort of type A where I was like, I need to check the box for all my classes. I need to get my degree. And you don't really take time to say well, how is this class impacting me? Am I actually interested in this?

Raven:

Or if you're, if you're taking the class because of influence, cause someone else wants you to take it. And then you find out years later, wait a minute, I don't even like this. And so it's just good to listen to yourself. If something's not working, move on, find something that you do like. It is scary, but I promise it works out.

Tiffany:

Yeah. It sounds like it worked out for you. I love that. So tell us a little bit more about the healing house. For, for those of you listening, I also work with Raven at the healing house. I teach a dance class and the environment is so welcoming and I just feel like I can be my authentic self there. And when I teach, it's one of the most fun times for me to teach because the energy is so good. People are just picking up on the moves and just having a good time and laughing and, um, It's so great. So tell us more about what inspired you to open the wellness studio.

Raven:

So, your actual Intro to you working there is one of the things that inspired me. I wanted to create a place where people felt like they could be themselves and not feel the pressure of trying to fit some type of mold or, you know, society's standards. We really wanted to create a space where people felt safe to explore their health in a way that's different than, you know, getting blood work or going to the gym or you know, those annual checkups with professionals, we really wanted to create a community, create events where there's opportunity to be creative and to really connect. So our inspiration was really just to create this little safe haven and we did.

Tiffany:

Yeah, it seems like a theme of exploration and allowing people to Explore different sides of their health because I think there's a lot of, in the healthcare system right now where we feel like we have to do, like you said, the blood work, we have to go to our PCP, we have to do all these things, but A lot of the time there's so much more to it than that, um, and things that are our healthcare system or primary care physicians can't always provide. And so I just feel like the community you're building is fantastic and I'm excited to see where it goes.

Raven:

Yes. Yes. So are we.

Tiffany:

Yeah. So another thing I know we were talking about before we decided to do a podcast episode together... you're a health coach, I'm a health coach, you're a massage therapist. A lot of the things that we see are kind of stress related. And so people come to us and they're burnt out or you're maybe having a client, um, in a massage session that, you know, you can tell they're really stressed out. And so. I guess as a massage therapist, do you have tips for recognizing when your body is stressed out? Cause we go about our day always in this hustle and bustle, I feel like. And then eventually our body's just like, Hey, over here, I'm really stressed out. And then you, then you feel like your neck is out of whack or your back is out of whack. So I don't know if you have tips for like, before it gets to that point where you're like in pain, how can you recognize when your body's starting to stress out?

Raven:

So absolutely, there are a lot of signs, and signs that we don't think about. So as a massage therapist, we're always taught in school to observe your client when they come in. So observe the way that they walk, ask them questions about their job or any other thing about their physical appearance that we can see. Chapped lips is one of the biggest ways that you can tell if someone is stressed.

Tiffany:

Wow.

Raven:

And if you're not drinking water, it's either you're too busy or not thinking about it. Maybe you're going to other sources of hydration that isn't water. And so you're making it a little bit worse that way by maybe sugar intake or caffeine intake because you're trying to find some type of, You know, like something that fills that. That's one, headaches are another one. This could be a tension headache. I mean, people come in and think it's their sinuses. Oh, I'm so stuffed up when really it's the tension that they're carrying in their shoulders. People. tend to carry their stress either in their traps like the shoulder area or in their lower back. So you can have someone who has no disc issues, no injuries, perfectly healthy, but a really painful either upper shoulders or lower back and most of the time it's stress. We start talking a little bit and they tell me about their job or stuff that's going on at home. And then instantly I know what the source is and we kind of develop a game plan from there.

Tiffany:

Wow. That's so interesting. I've been in the wellness field for a little while now and I'm like, okay, chapped lips, Oh God, maybe I'm super stressed right now.

Raven:

Brain fog is another one. I mean, that's more of like a mental health thing, but you know, some of my clients get on my table and they just go and go and tell and talk and vent. And I mean, I'm not really, when they're doing that, I'm not. giving any like mental therapy advice or anything like that. But I do hear them and after the session is over, I always suggest something that would help. My master's, like I said, is in integrative health. So I am very familiar with a lot of Alternative routes other than prescription or over the counter medication, and a lot of them do help.

Tiffany:

So you're an expert it sounds like in the holistic space, so If people are starting to feel stressed and they want to prevent themselves from spiraling, is there a small thing that they can do to try to get back in alignment before it's like, Oh my gosh, my back is killing me and I can't walk up the stairs?

Raven:

So, this sounds so cliche and I hate to say it out loud. Um, But breathe. Breath work is incredible. When you feel like you're starting to panic or you need to like really have a reset, find a quiet space, lower the lights, be very intentional with your breath, and calm your nervous system. I can't stress it enough. When we learn to calm our nervous system, we learn to manage other stressful situations. So that way when they're presented to us, we can navigate them a little bit better and we don't have those spirals as much. I mean, we're all human and we'll spiral at one point, but breathing really does help. And if that sounds like it's something that, you know, it sounds silly. Okay. See one of us as a health coach, and we will show you that it's not silly, but another thing that you can do is just taking a walk outside. Take a walk outside. If it's cold out, bundle up, get comfortable, make it at least a 30 minute walk, bring a loved one, walk a pet, but just spend time with yourself and then you'll start to reflect on what's going on and you'll start to become more body aware.

Tiffany:

Yeah, yeah. I think that body awareness is really key. And the more you can tap into that, the more ease that you're going to start to feel. And so you mentioned the breath work, and I think that's such an easy entry point to releasing all that stress that can be held in the nervous system. And it doesn't even have to be, I think. There can be a misconception about, oh, I have to sit in meditation and be in lotus position or something like that.

Raven:

Uh, we have to be here and, you know, namaste, it doesn't have to be that way, even though that is phenomenal. It doesn't have to be as intense as we think. I think a lot of people will avoid doing recovery or, stress relieving activities because they think it's like, Oh, I don't have time for that, but we have time for it. If we have time for our phones and social media, if we have time to binge watch Netflix, if we have time to take out the garbage, we have time for it.

Tiffany:

absolutely. And a lot of the time when you're doing breath work you can do that while you're taking out the garbage or while you're doing something else and yeah, I like to do it when I'm in the car And so I don't recommend doing like a full on meditation when you're driving because that could be dangerous But if you're at a stoplight You know breathing in on a count of two Exhaling on a count of four something really simple or just paying attention to the rhythm of your breath.

Raven:

Yeah,

Tiffany:

actually really help especially When people are rushing around trying to get places. So, uh, yeah, yeah. Um, so are there any other tips that you have for working through stress? Like what's your go to?

Raven:

Yeah. So stretching helps me because it forces me to focus on my breath and be intentional with my time. So I can't really stretch and multitask. I can't do the dishes and get a proper stretch in. I mean, I could probably stretch my hamstring or quad really quickly, but what I mean by stretching is get a comfortable space on the floor or on your bed and really lay out and stretch your muscles and feel it. So sometimes people will do like a three to five minute stretch and be like, okay, I stretched. Sometimes you sweat during a stretch. It should feel a little bit like a workout. It doesn't have to be. But when you are in an intentional stretch, you will release so much tension and As a massage therapist, I'm always on my feet. I'm always working on someone else, whether that be a sports massage or deep tissue. So my body, I can feel the stress, building up and building up. So if I go a long time without stretching, my body will be like, um, Hello. Is anyone home? Yeah. And it will remind me because I'll start having symptoms where I feel like I need to you know, crack my back or stand up every, few minutes. And once I start feeling those things in my body, I'm like, all right, Raven, get on the floor. It's time.

Tiffany:

Yeah. So not being afraid to stretch out whatever way that feels good to you. You mentioned people do it for three minutes and they're like, okay, I'm done. And it's sort of like, if we can get rid of that idea of checking the box, like, Oh, I did it. It's another thing to do. It might feel like a more of a release. And so I'm going to try that.

Raven:

Also, I just want to say, when you feel like you're stressed and you may be spiraling, you're not alone. Always seek some type of help, whether that is from a loved one, a mentor, a massage therapist. You can always book an appointment with a massage therapist or with a health coach. Because if you don't know, how can you fix it? We don't know what to do or haven't felt that before. Google doesn't have all the answers. I mean, it's technically, but you'll find the answers a lot better through someone who is experienced. So, Before we move past that, I just want to say, you are not alone. We all, we're all human. We all get stressed and we all get better at dealing with stress once you're able to pinpoint it.

Tiffany:

Thank you for sharing that. We're so conditioned to go, go, go, go, go, and, you know, climb the ladder of success and all the things and sometimes I think it can be viewed as a weakness to get the support, but people like Raven or myself absolutely want to help you get back in alignment and back into balance and whatever that means to you. And so that's a really, really great point. So thank you. And then, um, I like to always ask my guests, before we close out the podcast uh, so my business is purposeful wellness coaching like the dolphin. So I like to ask them what their purpose is or their purpose, and what really drives them and motivates them. So what's your purpose, Raven?

Raven:

So this again is so cheesy, but I really just want to make the world a better place. And I think it starts from within right and figuring out what is going on with you and working on yourself because then you start to really understand other people better and once you're able to understand people better then you can help them and i feel like that's kind of how my journey has progressed so my lifestyle changed i started to understand myself better i started to work through some traumas that i had in childhood We kind of keep on pushing and then even, you know, getting more educated with, you know, anatomy, everything that I can do in my massage therapy practice, continuing education course courses, and now with health coaching, um, the fulfillment that I feel when people. Reach a milestone in their journey, even just starting a journey and being committed to starting something is so fulfilling and I never want to stop feeling that because I know that I'm, leaving something with them, even if it's just one little piece of advice, or we have a good conversation, or that was the best massage ever or whatever it was. I feel like I'm doing my job here on earth.

Tiffany:

Yes, yes, I feel like my heart was just like expanding when you're saying that because it's you're describing taking what you've learned from your own journey and wanting to share it with others and continuing to better yourself and then sharing that with others. And that has a ripple effect. And so it's such a incredible mission. And it resonates so strongly with me. So, thank you for sharing that. Yes. Of course. Yeah. So I think that wraps up this episode, but Raven, where can people find you if they want a massage or some health coaching?

Raven:

On Instagram is feel good body works. That's where you can find everything with massage therapy and health coaching. You can shoot me a DM or book directly through the link in my bio. And yeah.

Tiffany:

Yeah. Thank you again Raven

Raven:

Thank you so much for having me. It was a pleasure. I can't wait to do it again.

Tiffany:

Hey friends. Thank you so much for listening to today's episode. If you enjoyed the episode, keep the good energy flowing and share it with someone who would also enjoy it. And check out the show notes for more resources. If you'd like to find out more about what I do at Purposeful Wellness Coaching, join the Purposeful Wellness Pod by signing up for my free newsletter. Visit PurposefulWellness. com for details. That's P O R P O I S E F U L Wellness. com.