Bodywork & Massage – Karen Gramberg

Karen is nothing short of amazing and I’m ashamed it’s taken me so long to write this review. I’ve gone to see her with very specific neck and shoulder issues to straight up relaxation massages and she never fails to deliver. Her space is warm and inviting.
I always go into an appointment knowing exactly what it is i want worked on or what i feel my problem spot is and during my session Karen magically finds the root cause of my problem areas and it’s rarely ever where i think it is. I always leave thinking, «how did she know where to go?» as i blissfully make my way down the steps out of ActivSpace. A sign of a truly talented bodyworker.

Karen has been healing/​relaxing/​restoring me going on 5 years now. I have come to her in various states of injury/​anxiety/​depression and she always sends me on my way restored, centered and at peace.
Initially I went to Karen because she used to be a computer nerd like myself and I was curious (read: jealous) after hearing the story of her leaving the rat race. Turns out she was a network engineer. Props. She doesn’t talk about it much, but Karen left because she got a calling to heal. You say «hippie», I say «shut up.» You don’t walk from the San Fran tech scene and the $ that comes with it to sign up for massage school on a whim. A «calling» was right. This woman has a GIFT! As her plethora of 5 star reviews attest. Do yourself, your wrecked body and anxious mind a favor… see Karen.

WOW is an understatement! I had a soccer injury from July 2012… probably from not warming up properly, going into sprint and start, stop, change of direction actions with cold muscles. I describe my injury as some sort of «groin» pull or tear. I laid off it for a couple months and then got impatient thinking it was time to go for very slow and light 1-​mile jog/​walks which only brought back the intensity of the pain. I have been jog/​walking lousy 1-​mile distances with pain for the past 2 months thinking that eventually the pain would go away and that the jog/​walking was good for whatever it was that was wrong to just keep my legs «moving.» I could never really go farther than a mile before realizing I needed to stop. The pain would really stab me when I was on my back doing any sort of ab exercises where I would have to extend my leg, like scissor kick, flutter kick, bicycle-​type crunches, or crunches on a decline bench (which was impossible) etc. The worst pain could be felt when I would try the type of plank position where I’m down on my forearms with my legs outstretched and then I would try and lift the arm and leg of my good side up so that my bad side is trying to support the position. I couldn’t even lift my good side up a millimeter for even a millisecond before collapsing. Karen Gramberg mainly massaged and anchor/​stretched my psoas muscle, and it was like a miracle that I could do those ab exercises and that plank position that I haven’t been able to do since July immediately after I got off her table! I feel brand new! I can’t wait to go for a long run and play soccer again… with a proper warm up of course. :)
THANK YOU KAREN! YOU ARE A MIRACLE WORKER!

I have a cranky sciatic nerve, tight psoas and temperamental back. Twice in the past month I’ve turned myself over to Karen’s magical, highly skilled hands to alleviate my discomfort. She has a very keen sense of the body and is truly passionate about discovering and accessing the source of pain.
The last time we met, Karen observed me walking before and after my massage (wow, huge difference!) and spent extra time coaching me on how to properly sit (harder than it sounds!). She’s a wonderfully warm, wise and witty woman who truly cares about her clients and their well-​being.

Karen is great. She’s an excellent and caring massage therapist and is super nice!
I’d highly recommend her and I am constantly telling folks to go to her.

Karen Gramberg is an excellent and skilled masseuse. My previous masseuse moved and recommended Karen and I’m glad she did. Karen listens, make suggestions, and ultimately helps muscles relax and release their tension. Karen is not only expert at solving specific problem areas but also helps me with overall relief.

I got a gift certificate for a 60 minute massage with Karen, we decided to focus on relaxation. It sure worked! I completely floated away and felt amazing upon departure. Highly recommended.

Overall an amazing experience. I came in with lower back pain and EXTREME tightness in my hamstring. She had a great approach, spending time to discuss the issue and show me posture improvements and stretches. It helped somewhat and when she called two days later I told her it was still painful. She made an exception to fit me in for a second session when she wasn’t normally open, spent another 45 minutes on the same issue and it has now been 100% fine for almost two months! I appreciated her customer focus, great skills and patience. Overall a great experience!

Wow! Karen and her hands of golden warmth and sonar (they find every knot), Karen really knows how to make the tension just melt away– like a cold stick of butter from the fridge does when placed in a window under the sun.
I love that she can just look at you and figure out what’s going on for you and adjust it. I sometimes leave her office a half inch taller (no JOKE!). She’s Incredibly skilled, warm hearted to boot and in my book, with a wonderful sense of humor!

I’m a little skeptical about the methodology/​phenomenology of body work, though body workers clearly are on to something and can successfully address joint/​muscle/​connective tissues issues that traditional western medicine is very hard put to even diagnose.
In any event, I was in a bad way with a knee problem that surfaced a little while after stopping dance class (go figure). The problem was getting worse the longer I rested it.
I tried Gramberg simply because she works out of the same building I’m in, and I was panicking over the state of things and wanted to see someone right away.
To make a longer story not so long, my knee immediately and dramatically responded. Very hard for me to see it as a coincidence. I’ve never had that dramatic response after seeing a body worker before.
I’ve since seen her twice more, both times with good results.
She’s a warm, thoughtful, intellectual practitioner with a very good touch. I could not recommend her more.

Karen is a relaxing masseuse and an excellent body worker. I started going to her right after my shoulder surgery. My surgeon had just told me that my physical therapist was crap and I was on my way to a «frozen shoulder». While waiting a few weeks to get into a new PT, I went to Karen to help loosen up my arm. She did amazing work and gave me some at home exercises. When I finally got into the PT, he was surprised at how much better I was doing then the surgeon’s note implied. Plus, her warm massage table and little office is very cozy and relaxing. She has an amazing positive energy and makes you feel instantly at home.

Karen is one of my teachers at San Francisco School of Massage and when we had our arms and hands class, I asked her about my sore wrist. She gave me a bit of advice and I decided to schedule a session with her.
Her space at ActivSpace is really cute — warm and cozy with some great interior touches. Her sheets are SUPER soft too (bonus).
This was the first massage where I never shivered on the table and it was COOLD outside that night.
My wrist hasn’t felt this good in a long time — she totally fixed it. I have my own work to do on it but she really worked a lot of the tension out of it.
She also stayed a little later with me and showed me some great exercises I can do to help engage my core while riding my bike and since I’m training for the lifecycle ride (
), this is very important.
She’s also an excellent teacher!

Karen works WITH your body, NOT on your body. Guiding me and my structure to better body health and alignment. She lead me to a proper diagnosis and on the road correct treatment and healing.
After years (10+) of neck and right arm pain, coutless western medical appointments and frustration; I finally have found relief! Karen was the only one to take the time to listen, evaluate, narrow solutions and in general take a proactive approach to solving and relieving my pain and inflamation issues. She urged me to get an MRI and lined out some helpful exercises and stretches. Through her knowledgable Body Work and my diligence to do her prescribed exercises and stretches. I am so happy to say I am feeling — much better, and looking forward to feeling even better.

I can’t wait for my next massage! Karen is fantastic. She is extremely knowledgeable and very skilled in massage therapy. This is the best massage I’ve ever had and I have had many!
I highly recommend her.