Mara Nicandro, NMT NCTMB

Bye bye back pain!
For years I’ve assumed that my spine gets misaligned when I over exert myself, and hence I’d suffer a week or two in pain. Mara’s patience and unparalleled understanding of muscular anatomy helped me realize that I have a few extremely over active muscles that turn off my core in simple postures, so my lower back muscles must work too hard. With some simple messages and a few simple exercises, I feel like I’m reborn!
For anyone dealing with any sort of chronic pain or imbalance, I HIGHLY recommend seeing Mara. She will change your life!

Mara is a dream! I have been seeing her for shoulder and neck issues related to several broken bones. I initially went to a physical therapist with whom I made some progress, then went to an ART (Active Release Therapist) with whom I made additional progress, but I was still unable to use my arm and shoulder correctly. I was also still in pain. It wasn’t until I started to work with Mara that I really began to see leaps and bounds in my progress.
She has a way of finding the underlying muscular problems that are causing your issues. Her massages are functional massages; ones where she moves your arm or leg in a certain way to feel how the muscles work. Once she feels the problem, she massages it out and readjusts your body so that it is back to working properly.
I saw another massage therapist for several weeks before Mara and made slim to no progress. I switched to Mara and immediately saw results. When I describe her to my friends, I refer to her almost as a ninja; she finds the places in your body that are causing you your pain and without you even realizing it, she fixes you.
Before I saw Mara I was in constant pain and had limited mobility on my left side. I was unable to perform many tasks with the left side of my body and was completely unable to sleep on my left side. After working with her for a few months, I am pain free, can sleep on that side, and am making many strength training strides on my left side.
I was pretty banged up after my accident, so continue to see her on a weekly basis, but her appointments mean so much to me, my body, and my health that I will literally reschedule things around my appointments.
I highly recommend her for any muscular body ailments. Her bedside manner is very warm. She listens to what you are saying, and is in constant communication with you to see how you are feeling. You’ll walk away from her table feeling like a new (and better) person!

I initially saw Mara for chronic knee pain. I have had physical therapy for IT Band issues, but have been too stubborn to give up running. I started working with a trainer to build strength, but needed more than just hard workouts to address the underlying issues. While the treatments are painful (she is a master at finding where all my pain points are), they have helped a great deal.
As an added bonus, I have had chronic shoulder and neck pain for over 10 years with at least a few instances each month where I can hardly move my neck and had limited mobility raising my right arm. However, since I have been seeing Mara, I have not had a single day of pain in my shoulders and neck (about 2.5 months).
Mara gives a lot of information and exercises to do outside of appointments to continue to build on what she is doing during the sessions. My only regret is that I did not find her sooner.

I have had a lot of messages from places like Massage Envy and they were always nice and relaxing, but never seemed to add up to me feeling better. Just after a few sessions with Mara I could tell the joints were starting to move correctly and pain in my knee was gone. It is a very different experience. She is very deliberate and focuses time on the muscles that effect my mobility. You can tell during a session that she really knows what she is doing and there is a method to how she moves through your body. Sometimes at massage envy it just feels like they are rubbing any muscle they can hit, which is nice, but not the same focus that Mara puts on the places that need the most work.
She has already helped me with a knee problem and I look forward to seeing her next because I just hurt my ankle. You can really tell she cares about you and I would suggest her to anyone. So if you are looking for a solution to a problem you are having with your body try Mara out, you won’t be disappointed.

I’ve had occasional lower back issues for years. After the birth of my daughter last year, the occasional back spasm turned into a chronic issue. After re-​injuring it two weekends in a row, I realized the old rest and heat tricks weren’t going to cut it. My right hip began creeping up higher and higher and I began worrying that I was going to be permanently impacted. I googled and googled and came to think I had a lateral pelvic tilt and then read up on Neuromusucular Therapy. Mara’s name came up in a search of local practitioners and her reviews on the Elemental Health page were excellent.
I appreciated that Mara allowed me to express total panic about my back. She even hugged me when I started crying! She then took time to assess my posture and positioning, talk to me about the way I move and the lifestyle I have. She also didn’t expect me to radically alter my life, something you can’t really do with a one year old. There was no «Well, you just can’t pick your daughter up.» Instead, she also talked about longer term habits and how NMT can help realign the misaligned. The massage was incredible. Rather than a routine from a masseuse, this was a targeted approach that involved stopping to assess how my muscles were engaged and then working on areas that needed work… not just rubbing my shoulders because it feels good. It felt purposeful and effective.
We discussed a multi-​visit approach that would allow me to gradually work on exercises while allowing the NMT work to do its thing. I’ve had one follow up and was equally impressed. We’ve set a treatment path that feels thorough without being excessive and thoughtful towards the life I live. She’s been great about communicating when I’ve needed to reschedule and just makes things easy.
I was skeptical that anything could help and convinced I was headed towards a life of constant pain and limited mobility – not what you want to be imagining as someone in their 30s. I am now convinced that Mara is a gifted practitioner and someone who knows what she’s doing. I am glad to have found her and glad to be working with her. I don’t think I’ll ever get a massage from anyone else.