Kristi Millner, B.Sc., RMT
Kristi has been a Registered Massage Therapist since 2006, after attending WCCMT in Victoria. She joined Madrona that year, the following year took over the practice as clinic owner. Since then she has expanded the practice to include 3 more RMT’s and Registered Acupuncture. She finds her career extremely gratifying and is always amazed with what Massage Therapy can do for people.
In her years of practice and continuing education she has applied a variety of different methods, including Myofascial Release, Trigger Point Release, Swedish and Pregnancy Massage to name a few. She strongly believes that the effects of massage therapy are cumulative and help with preventative measures. People become more “body aware” once they start taking better care of themselves and reduce bad postural and lifestyle habits.
Kristi loves yoga, running, photography, the great outdoors, her dogs and having a healthy lifestyle because as she says “you only get one body and you need to take care of it”. You may often see her being walked by one or both of her Weimaraners (Liezl and Rex) around the streets and beautiful parks of Sidney.
Wendy Courtemanche, R.Ac.
Wendy Courtemanche moved to Victoria in 2001 to pursue her dream of becoming a Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine. Wendy is still in the process of completing her education and has been a Registered Acupuncturist since 2011. She joined the Madrona team in April 2013. She has a gentle touch and makes patients feel at ease.
Wendy initially studied at the International College of Traditional Chinese Medicine in Victoria and transferred to the Canadian College of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine in her third year. She has five more courses to complete to receive her Doctor of Traditional Chinese Medicine diploma.
She has completed extra training in facial rejuvenation acupuncture, navel acupuncture and NADA, which is a protocol utilized to alleviate stress and help people struggling with drug and alcohol detoxification.
Her personal philosophy … she strives for radiant health, vitality, energy, ease (as opposed to dis-ease), wellness and a good quality of life. She believes in empowering her clients to take responsibility for their health and their treatments and in doing so, create an active, healthy lifestyle for themselves on all levels.
Wendy Courtemanche is a licensed, registered Acupuncturist in the province of British Columbia. She is a current member in good standing with the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine and Acupuncturists of British Columbia (CTCMA) as well as a member of the British Columbia Qualified Acupuncturists and TCM Practitioners Association.
Lorna Nicolson, RMT
Lorna graduated from the West Coast College of Massage Therapy in 2010 and has worked as an RMT both overseas as well as locally ever since. She also taught at the College part time for two years before going on Mat Leave and loved the opportunity of being able to share her knowledge and experience with the next generation of practitioners.
Lorna uses a wide variety of techniques in her treatments, the combination of which depends on each patient’s needs and goals. Lorna’s focus is to treat with a holistic approach, addressing compensatory issues as well as bringing increased awareness to the body. She treats every patient thoughtfully and specifically, promoting healthy movement and self-healing. Lorna believes that the relationship between each person and their own body is crucial for a positive treatment outcome, and is here to help to facilitate that relationship and to aid in bringing it to a place of healthy living. Lorna’s treatments are deeply therapeutic and at the same time bring a relaxing sense of calm, which she finds even more important for her patients in these uncertain times than ever before.
Lorna is returning to work part time after having her second baby, and is excited to be joining the team at Madrona now that she lives on the beautiful Saanich Peninsula. When not at work, Lorna spends her time exploring the local parks and beaches with her boys, learning to grow food in her garden, and making music with her family.
Sharon Martin, RMT
Sharon joined the clinic in February 2017 after moving to Sidney with her family. Check out Sharon's bio on her website http://www.massageworksbc.com
Emma Gannon, RMT
Emma graduated from the 2,200 hour Massage Therapy program at WCCMT Victoria in April 2019. She sparked her passion for Massage Therapy at UVic while studying human anatomy. She has been dedicated to martial arts for over a decade, which has also led her down the path of understanding the human body, biomechanics and the connection between the mind and body. Raised in Sidney, she adores the peninsula and the beauty of Vancouver Island and is very excited to be building her career and serving her home town and aspires to make a positive contribution to the Massage Therapy profession.
Jon Dawson, RMT
Jon graduated from the 2200 hour Massage Therapy program at WCCMT in August 2019. Jon has had a long-standing interest in massage therapy ever since it helped him recover from a workplace injury at the end of high school. He works from a viewpoint that our bodies have an innate ability to grow and remodel given the appropriate stimuli, working with a relaxation focus (parasympathetic activation) while addressing specific biomechanical issues. With a deep curiosity about the interconnected nature of the human organism, he strives to leave a positive impact on those around him.
Jon has called Sidney home since 2016, living with his 3 sons and exploring what the west coast has to offer. Jon enjoys kayaking, hiking, wildcrafting, yoga, and painting. He looks forward to serving the community.
Shannon Dobell-Walker, RMT
Shannon graduated from the West Coast College of Massage Therapy in 2009, completing the 3,000 hour program. She passed her board exams with honours from the College of Massage Therapists of British Columbia in January of 2010. Shannon has also continued to educate herself in many different areas of massage therapy including Reconciling Biomechanics with Pain Science, Advance Stretching, Core Strengthening for Low Back Pain, any many others. Shannon treats people with a wide range of concerns, including; sprains, strains or overuse injuries, TMJ Syndrome, chronic pain, digestive problems, systemic conditions such as arthritis and MS and headaches
She is motivated to help people achieve their best, whether that is recovery from an injury, excel in a sport or maintaining a healthy body. Her treatments can range from deep tissue, trigger point release to relaxation massage and myofascial release. Her goal for every massage is to have her patients leave her treatment room feeling better than when they arrived and on their way to better health.
Shannon moved to beautiful Sidney in the summer of 2015 with her family and is very excited about exploring the peninsula with her husband and two young children. Shannon enjoys cycling, running and most definitely gardening on her time off.
Liezl
Liezl the Wonderful Weimaraner (it’s tough word to pronounce, say it with me…Weim-ar-aner) has been a part of Madrona since she was 9 weeks old back in 2008. Since then she has provided our patients with joy, hugs and cuddles. She will be the first to show you where the cookies are and also tell you that just a few minutes petting a dog will lower your blood pressure, heart rate and epinephrine levels. You’ll see she plays an important role here as Therapy Dog. She can start your relaxation process the minute you walk in the door. She sometimes has to share the spotlight with her little brother Rex but that just means double the love (and treats)! And she doesn’t mind if she has to stay in her crate if you are allergic, she loves her naps.