The reception area at Angelic Healing Hands

Featured Business
Angelic Healing Hands

By Virginia Bruce

Angelic Healing Hands is beginning it’s tenth year in Cedar Mill. Tucked away in the office building next to McDonalds, on Murray north of Cornell, this business has helped literally thousands of people to heal from injury, relax and de-stress, and recover balance in health and life.

Owner Rod Dudley always knew he had some special talents with touch. As a young boy, his siblings would ask him to help them relax by stroking their arms. As a teenager, he was constantly getting asked to give shoulder and back massages. But he resisted taking it up as a career because he didn’t think it was possible to make a living at it. Later, when he was working as a bank teller, he noticed that some massage therapists had bigger balances than he did. So he investigated massage school, and, “the rest is history!”

The Westlawn Professional Building is located on Murray north of Cornell

Growing up in Idaho, he helped his parents run their movie theater. He worked in retail—grocery, pet stores, and Fred Meyers, which brought him to the Portland area. It was while working at the Bank of America in Cedar Mill that he began attending massage school.

After graduation, he leased a room at Cedar Mill Chiropractic. His practice soon outgrew that space, so he moved into the Westlawn Professional Building in 1999. He has been expanding ever since, and now has six treatment rooms at Westlawn plus two rooms that he leases at the Sunset Athletic Club. SAC owner Chuck Richards added these specially insulated massage rooms as part of the ongoing remodeling and expansion of the club.

All the therapists who work for Angelic Healing Hands are highly skilled, and all of them do Swedish and deep tissue massage. Some of them have special skills and training, such as sports therapy, pregnancy, hot stone, myofascial and other specialty treatments. Dudley encourages clients to try different therapists from time to time. He says, “each has their own personalities they bring to us and sometimes it takes trying a few out before you find the perfect match. It also helps to have a back-up therapist just in case you are in need and can’t get in to see your ‘favorite’ LMT.”

Rod Dudley works on a client

Most people try massage for first time because they are in pain associated with stress, injury, overuse of their bodies, or surgery. Dudley says, “people come to us for many reasons. It usually is because they have injured themselves from sports, work injuries from gardening, etc. or even employment repetitive injury. Tension in muscles more often than not is caused by stress due to life’s demands. People tend to bottle up how they feel and unfortunately mental stress finds its way into our bodies. We help your body to sort out what is causing the stress and then we are able to sort of unplug you from it long enough for you to rethink how to deal with life.”

Massage and chiropractic treatment are increasingly recommended together. Even “regular” physicians are increasingly referring patients to both types of treatment. Dudley says, “massage softens the muscle tissue to allow the chiropractor to make adjustments much more easily, also by keeping the muscles looser the joints are more likely to hold themselves in place and this allows you to see your chiropractor less.”

Benefits of massage go beyond physical healing, however. “Massage begins the process of achieving a well-balanced body that functions like a well-oiled machine. I like to think that we here at Angelic Healing Hands (AHH) bring total healing to Mind, Body, and Spirit, by incorporating our knowledge of soft tissue manipulation with environment and energy,” Dudley says.

And the relaxing environment of the clinic is a real treat. From the minute you enter from a mundane office hallway, you are in a peaceful and harmonious space with low lighting, beautiful art and wall colors, and soft music. Less like a clinic, more like a spa. Each treatment room is decorated around a theme, from Egyptian to nautical.

Couples can enjoy a massage together in the double room

Something that sets AHH apart from many clinics is their scheduling policy. “We purposely schedule at least 15 minutes between appointments—most of the time 30 minutes, just to ensure you get a full hour regardless of whether the traffic slowed you in getting here or the babysitter didn’t show up on time. We know “Life” sometimes gets in the way of “Living” and we don’t want to cause any more stress for you,” says Dudley.

They offer package pricing to encourage people to get regular therapy. Packages do not expire and may be given to friends and family if desired. To find out about the current offers. look for their ads in the Clipper magazine and Family Values direct mailings and in the Cedar Mill News. They also offer discounts to new and existing clients via their web site, www.AngelicHealingHands.com. Their regular package pricing is three one-hour massages for $180.00, five one-hour massages for $275.00 (regular prices for one-hour massage is $65.00).

Acupuncturist Brett Csordas is also located at the facility. He provides full consultations and treatment as well as the special $25 “Happy Hour” sessions on Thursday afternoons, from 4-6 pm, where clients can get a “minor tuneup” or be treated for specific conditions that don’t warrant an in-depth examination. Call the main number for more information.

Massages are generally scheduled by appointment from 8:30 am to 7 pm Monday through Saturday. They can occasionally accommodate a walk-in, but it’s best to call first. Their phone number is 503-644-6109, and the address is 1225 NW Murray, Suite 103.

NEWS HOME