MASTER OF RELAXATION. Kari Tatu of Da Vinci Therapeutic Massage says massage can be like “pure bliss and heaven.”

Every reservation against having a professional massage melts away during a session, according to Kari Tatu, owner of DaVinci Therapeutic Massage in Eau Claire. Even patients who are concerned about personal space and privacy ask themselves why they ever hesitated to book an appointment. “Massage therapy is so inexpensive in the grand scheme of things, and there’s very minimal side effects – other than maybe a little drooling and a little pure bliss and heaven,” Kari said.

I love the profession, but I love my clients.
It’s like seeing a good friend every day when they walk through those doors. Kari Tatu, Owner of Da Vinci Therapeutic Massage

Kari, a nationally certified massage therapist and member of the American Massage Therapy Association, has been in the business for more than 20 years, the majority of which has been spent serving clients in the Chippewa Valley. She works with a crew of talented, professional massage therapists with specialties including (but not limited to) Swedish, lymphatic, and deep tissue massage and even cupping.

In recent years, Kari has seen a sharp increase in interest in therapeutic massage. She attributes this in part to evolving medical research finding immense benefits in the practice. People are beginning to view massage less as a frivolous treat and more as an investment in overall health. Benefits of massage therapy include increased blood flow, improved post-op rehabilitation, and stress and chronic pain management. It’s also been found to help patients suffering from chronic headaches, lower back pain, arthritis, plantar fasciitis, fibromyalgia, and other conditions, she said. Kari receives several referrals a week from medical offices throughout the area.

“That really warms my heart because it makes me realize that the division there was between natural, holistic health, and modern health, are finally starting to come together,” she said.

During her early years in the area working at a spa, Kari found that very few men were coming in for massage, despite the fact that men she knew personally suffered from lower back, hip, and knee issues, among other maladies.

“They would never go get a massage because they didn’t want to go to a spa,” she said. By her reckoning, they were nervous to enter an environment that was targeted primarily at women.

“I wanted to be able to do something where I could offer not only women, but men, who are looking for a more therapeutic, in depth, medical massage,” Kari said. So when she opened DaVinci in 2010 in a 600 square foot office on Brackett Ave., she did her best to make it a place that would welcome men as comfortably as it does women. The current location at 3420 Mall Drive is decorated in warm gray, rich reds and soothing beige. Easy tunes float in the air along with calming aromatics.

Playing her part in holistic healing is what she loves about her work. “I love the profession, but I love my clients,” she said. “It’s like seeing a good friend every day when they walk through those doors.”