Our Practitioners
“Thank you for visiting us online. You should know that I am very particular when it comes to receiving massage. That's why I am committed to bringing you the "Best of the Best". Its just one reason why I can offer you a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee, RISK FREE SCHEDULING. Let me introduce you to my team."
Su Crandall is a Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT) and a Certified Thai Massage Therapist (CTMT) who grow up in Thailand. Su became a Licensed Massage Therapist in California through an extensive program studying over 500-hours. Su then provided massage services at one of California's top Thai massage centers before moving to Virginia to be with her family.
In addition to her formal education and training, Su has studied countless hours with her family through the oral tradition of Thailand. Its very common in Thailand for children to learn massage from their parents. As parents finish their daily work, the children will massage the parents while receiving instruction. In this way, Thai massage has been passed down for multiple centuries and Su is part of that living oral tradition.
Su's formal and informal training prepared her well for employment in the healing arts. Su continued her training in the USA at the Thai Institute of Healing Arts in Arlington, VA. Su took the extra step of completing focused private studies with the Instructors at the Thai Institute of Healing Arts for Traditional Thai Massage.
Su's warm smile, consistent approach to delivering high quality massage, and willingness to listen to your needs makes her an obvious choice to perform your next massage. Schedule a massage with Su at (703) 522-8424 or schedule online.
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Phillip Behrns is a Certified Advanced Thai Massage Practitioner (CTMP) who has studied Thai massage to the most advanced levels at the Thai Institute of Healing Arts. Phillip's career started in western medicine where he worked closely with providing medication to patients. He decided to pursue an interest in the Thai healing arts to better understand natural medicine. His interest soon became a passion that has led to way of life for him.
Phillip has studied countless hours within the Shivagakomarpaj lineage of Thai massage following strict codes of conduct and learning standards passed down for centuries. He excelled in his studies and has developed several regular clientele that appreciate his calm approach to helping them heal.
Phillip's friendly personality and keen interest in helping others makes him a perfect choice to provide your next massage. Schedule a massage with Phillip at (703) 522-8424 or schedule online.
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Ozlem Selcuk is a Certified Advanced Thai Massage Practitioner (CTMP). Ozlem started her career in healing as a guidance counselor for school children. She later moved on to receive a master's degree in Child and Adult Psychology. Ozlem is trained in adult, child, and infant first aid and CPR.
Ozlem became a practitioner of yoga in her home country of Turkey over 15 years ago and is a meditation practitioner.
She offers Reiki as a volunteer to those in need and suffering from major catastrophic events i.e. natural disasters.
Ozlem was first introduced to Thai massage in Turkey where she instantly fell in love with the therapeutic effects she received from her session. When she arrived in the USA, Ozlem sought out training with a well known and highly reputable school, she chose the Thai Institute of Healing Arts. Ozlem studied seriously through to our advanced levels and then pursued employment to help clients in our Therapy Center.
Ozlem has a unique understanding of the body through her master's studies, formal education in Thai massage, as a practitioner of yoga and meditation as well as her experience in competing at the professional level in sports such as gymnastics, ballet, swimming, and volleyball.
Ozlem's deep knowledge of the body and how its used will allow her to help you achieve your goals with massage therapy. Schedule with Ozlem at (703) 522-8424 or schedule online.
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Sararut (Sara) Roylance is a Doctor of Massage in Thailand that has been performing massage since age 9. She first started learning massage as a child in her remote village of Udon
Thani, Thailand.
Since that time, Sara has completed formal training at several prestigious schools in Thailand with over 3000 hours of training and education. She has worked professionally in Thailand as a Massage Therapist and Instructor. Sara is currently a Senior Instructor, Director of Charitable Projects and our Director of Therapeutics with the Thai Institute of Healing Arts.
Prior to traveling to the USA, Sara was contracted by several top name Thai spas in Thailand to design their spas, train their employees, and manage their operations. While she enjoyed this work immensely, Sara's real passion is working with Guests to improve their health with Traditional Thai medical massage and related techniques. Sara is considered to be a Dr. of Massage in Thailand and is a traditional Thai medical doctoral candidate in the disciplines of doctor of herbal medicine, herbal pharmacy, and traditional OB/GYN (Thai midwifery).
More about Sara Roylance as a Senior Instructor.
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David Roylance is the Executive Director and Founder of Touch of Asia - Therapy Center and the Thai Institute of Healing Arts. David graduated from Salisbury State University with a Bachelor's Degree in Information Systems Management in 1997. He then started a career in the corporate world of Information Technology, progressing through the ranks of management. He always had a strong passion for helping others and found himself always looking for ways to help his employees grow in their career and gain further education.
David soon discovered the healing art of Thai massage on a trip to Thailand. He then studied Thai massage and became a Certified Thai Massage Practitioner in 2003 and Certified Thai Massage Instructor in 2004.
He has received recognition as a Certified Teacher of authentic Thai massage, Thai herbal massage, Advanced Techniques for Thai Massage, and Traditional Thai Herbal Medicine from the Thai Massage School Shivagakomarpaj (also known as the "Old Medicine Hospital") in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The Old Medicine Hospital is one of the most prestigious and well known Thai massage and traditional Thai medical hospitals in Thailand. Following strict cultural protocols, the Old Medicine Hospital does not issue teaching certification to anyone who is a non-Thai. David has been presented this rare certification in recognition of his dedication to Thai culture and traditional medicine. (See more about our lineage here.)
David has lived and worked with the Thai people since 2001. He has personally visited over 150 Thai temples in both the USA and Thailand. He currently lives in Thailand 3 months per year and speaks Thai. David is able to share his insights and cultural experiences from continuous interaction with the vibrant culture of Thailand including knowledge of the Thai healing arts.
David is regularly invited to venues all over the region and internationally as a guest speaker and Thai Massage Instructor. David has always felt charitable giving is an important component to any business that benefits from indigenous knowledge of another culture. Since first founding both businesses, David has initiated several charitable projects that give back to the people of Southeast Asia - especially Thailand.
More about David Roylance as our Executive Director.
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A trip to Thailand in Dec 2002 changed my life forever. People often ask, was it the culture, the sites, the sounds, the generosity of the Thai people, what was it that changed your life?…I’ll tell you what it was.
......I have got to tell you that all those aspects of Thailand and many more drastically changed my life back in Dec 2002. But what changed it more than any one singular item is the revelation I had when I received my very first Thai Massage.
See, I often struggled with back pain. Its related to an old injury I received while in college. I would wake up in the mornings with extreme lower back pain. It was so very bad that some days it kept me from work or even my hobbies and fun activities. I would be confined to my bed for at least a day or sometimes multiple days.
My visit to Thailand in Dec 2002 was supposed to be just a little 3-week trip to get acquainted with the country and enjoy some travel time. Within the first few days of my arrival to Thailand, I was introduced to Traditional Thai Massage. I went to a well-known Temple, Wat Po, that had a school and massage clinic right onsite.
“After just one Thai massage, I knew this was not only a technique that was going to help my aching back but that I wanted to learn the technique myself. I wanted to help others by sharing Thai massage.“
Not many people realize this; Thai massage has been practiced in Thailand for nearly 1000 years. Its been passed down from one generation to the next in an oral transmission. (Grand parent to Parent to Child, continuously in somewhat of a heredity cycle.)
“ It wasn’t until recently that the Western world even discovered Thai massage.“
In 2003, I launched Touch of Asia from my 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom condo. We were the very first to introduce this healing art to the Washington, DC, Virginia, Maryland area.
Now years later, we have a Healing Center that receives accolades from all across the country. We also founded the largest Thai massage school in the USA, the Thai Institute of Healing Arts.
Massage Therapists, Physical Therapists, Doctors, Nurses, Yoga Instructors, and all types of interested individuals come to learn. They travel from all over the country and international locations to receive high quality Thai massage instruction from us. (It’s been our pleasure and honor to share the Thai healing arts with others.)
“ I am very proud of the Thais and Westerners that are part of The Thai Institute family. We are very pleased to be able to offer you the very best in the healing arts. ”
Most of our staff have been performing massage from birth. Its part of the oral tradition that continues in Thailand, in our school and in our therapy centersat Touch of Asia in Sterling, VA and at the Thai Institute of Healing Arts in Arlington, VA.
“ So, whether it’s a back pain like mine or something else, neck pain, stress, headaches, muscle stiffness/soreness, chronic illness, we have the experience to help you. ”
I invite you to come get healthy through the Thai Healing Arts offered here at our massage center.
with metta (loving kindness),
David - Founder
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