Terry Payne Finds His Calling as a Massage Therapist

Terry Payne saw himself as a healer and decided to pursue an art that society may have forgotten to be an art: Massage Therapy.

I had the pleasure of interviewing Terry Payne and was intrigued by his bohemian essence and calming demeanor. His roots originate from central California, but it was in Los Angeles where he found a passion for helping others. He found himself surrounded with groups of people, who he described were “modeling the kind of lifestyle that I wanted.” He always considered himself an artist and found his calling as a healer.

“It was my experience in LA that really helped me understand what my strengths were, gifts were, and what my passion was.”

terry payne

Upon asking what he did before he became a massage therapist, he said with a chuckle, “a little bit of everything.” He came to New York City on a whim, when he felt his life was calling him in a different direction: East. Terry stayed with a friend for some time and even worked at a runaway shelter. Eventually, he decided New York would be his new home. After settling some roots and getting familiar with the concrete jungle, he made the decision to pursue his certification in massage therapy.

The artist had finally found his paintbrush.

Terry believes massage is more than just massage. He believes it is not only an art form, but it is a healing touch which is infused with spirituality. We actually covered the history of massage therapy in another article and it turns out that Hippocrates once even defined medicine as “the art of rubbing.”

Terry Payne has been trained in Thai massage, and is currently pursuing a specialization in cranial-sacral and polarity. He has completed over 1,000 hours of training, which involved learning Swedish massage, connective tissue, shiatsu, sports massage, hydrotherapy, prenatal and elderly massage therapies. He has also studied Kinesiology, Anatomy, and Physiology, to better acquaint himself with the intricacies of the human body.

Upon asking what his philosophy to spirituality was, he told me: