Laurissa Stokes · Silver Spring, MD
A free 90-minute massage in exchange for letting me practice on you.
Fair warning: the beast is me — an ADD brain with a learning compulsion that I can't unleash on my paying clients.
Returning Volunteer?
First of all, thank you — you're a big part of how I got here. A few things are different now that I've graduated:
Everything else stays the same. Oh — and feedback is still very much welcome, just no longer required.
First Time Here?
This page travels by word of mouth, which means someone who knows me thought you'd be a good fit — and that's good enough for me. I'm a newly graduated massage therapist, and I want bodies to practice new stuff on as I learn more and more. You get a free 50-minute massage. I get 40 minutes of practicing new stuff without the pressure of satisfying a paying client. Scroll down to see exactly what that means.
Fellow Bodyworker?
You can absolutely sign up like everyone else and show up as a regular guinea pig — no bodywork exchange necessary. But if you're interested in something more collaborative, let's talk. We could do a bodywork exchange, spend time geeking out over whatever modalities we're each exploring, or follow our curiosity wherever it leads. In that case, the booking link is just to get you on the calendar or give you a sense of my availability. Feel free to skip it and reach out at laurissastokes@gmail.com.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. You get a free 50-minute massage. I get a guinea pig for 40 minutes. Fair trade.
If the idea of getting a free massage makes you feel guilty, consider this: you're not getting something for nothing — you're giving me something I can't get any other way. I have an ADD brain with a learning compulsion that I can't unleash on my paying clients. This isn't charity for either of us. It's feeding the beast. We both win.
Depending on what I'm working on at the time you book, your session may begin with one of the following:
Full-body massage using a blend of Swedish (relaxing) and deep tissue (focused) techniques. Pressure is always adjustable.
No part of the exploratory portion of the session requires disrobing — everything I'm currently practicing in that first 40 minutes works fully clothed. For the massage portion, it's your call. Most people get fully undressed because it makes it easier to work on the muscles, but many don't. If you stay clothed, I'll focus more on stretching, range-of-motion, and targeted pressure work instead of oil-based massage. Either way, you'll remain properly covered/draped at all times.
And if you'd prefer to skip the massage portion entirely and spend the full 90 minutes on a mix of exploratory work, stretching, and clothed techniques — that's a perfectly valid option too. Just let me know when you show up.
I have a spare bedroom dedicated entirely to this — massage table, proper linens and bolsters, and all the trappings of a professional setup. It's clean, quiet, and private. Not a spa, but not your average spare bedroom either.
Please do! That's how I learn.
Here's the thing — the moment you start thinking about what to bring or how much to tip, I've already complicated something that's supposed to be simple. You showing up is genuinely all I need. That's the whole point.
That said, if you absolutely cannot arrive empty-handed, I won't turn away Altoids or Blow Pops.
No problem at all. I'll ask you at the beginning of the session if there is any area you want me to avoid due to injury, sensitivity, self-consciousness, or any other reason.
That's totally fine. We can absolutely work in a side-lying position instead. With pillows and bolsters for support, side-lying can be very comfortable and still allows access to the back, hips, shoulders, and other areas.
If I've worked with you as a client at a clinic, spa, or other massage practice, I'd prefer to keep our work together in that context.
The distinction matters mostly because of what it does to my mindset. With a client, my responsibility is to make the session as good and useful for them as I can. With a Feed the Beast volunteer, I need permission to be learning — to experiment, practice, get something wrong, abandon an idea, mutter to myself, spend twenty minutes figuring something out, or whisper "fascinating" in a manner that inspires absolutely no confidence.
When someone is also a client of a practice where I work, I suspect I'll feel too much responsibility for representing that practice well to give myself the freedom to use the session that way.
Yes! Repeat volunteers are always welcome.
Sure!
I'll send it to you when you sign up. This way, my booking page can be shared freely without my home address being shared with everyone and anyone. Silver Spring, MD — near the Wheaton Metro Station.