Healing Yourself

It’s something to be thankful for when you can say that you’re blessed with the perfect ensemble of support people in your life–your friends, hairdresser, doctor, dentist, trainer, coaches, massage therapist, etc. It’s not always easy to find the perfect fit and it can sometimes take years of trial and error. Well, I’m happy to say that I may just be there.

In holding with my tradition this year : ) I would like to introduce to you another amazing person in my life, my massage therapist, Suranto Stark. In my opinion, Suranto is one of the best, and he’s given me several massages over the last several months that have been nothing short of astounding.

But that’s not why I want you to meet Suranto. The reason he’s here is because of what he has personally accomplished in healing his own injuries with his own hands, his intuition, and his determination. Not only that, Suranto wants to share his knowledge and techniques with others, so what better way to help him with this process than to introduce him to all of you!

Suranto grew up in Java, Indonesia as the son of sharecroppers. When not in school, he was working the farm without the use of mules or wagons to move farm produce, which meant that he and his family would carry their loads on their heads. Among other things, their cargo would be anything from corn, cassava, coconuts, or firewood and Suranto was carrying adult-sized loads even as a child.

Although there was a hospital nearby, Western medicine was not typically practiced in Suranto’s village, except for extreme conditions. The most common method of medicine and healing was to go to a healer for medicinal herbs and for literally hands-on treatment that often involved massage. Suranto’s first experience with healing was walking on his parents’ back when they weren’t feeling well.

Suranto referred to this method of healing as “human resources”, which I love because it describes perfectly the power we all possess but that many of us have forgotten.

Several years after coming to the United States, Suranto was pulled by the healing arts and enrolled into massage school. He also studied with a Thai master and his first patient was actually his wife, who he helped heal after a knee replacement.

Not long afterwards, he was diagnosed with cervical, bilateral, herniated discs. After having no luck with physical therapy and not wanting to undergo surgery, Suranto decided to try to heal himself. So, for three months, he carried out a series of very simple stretches and movements designed to stretch and elongate his neck.

When he went back to his orthopedic physician, he was congratulated because he had healed himself. He also recently healed a full-thickness tear of his right rotator cuff in a similar manner and now, Suranto would like to teach others his simple techniques that are also beneficial for eliminating the pains, tightness, kinks, and knots that accumulate throughout our stressful days.

To hear Suranto tell the story of his upbringing and his training and experience, watch Part 1 of How to Heal Yourself with Your Own Hands.

In Parts 2 and 3 (coming soon), Suranto demonstrates his techinques and shows how to use a few simple tools to enhance the healing process.

I hope you all enjoy! Peace and lots of love!!