Adina DeSantis, ATC/L, LMP, CKTP, CSN

About Me

My approach to recovery is shaped by my education and my own experiences with injury and illness. I grew up in a small New York City suburb. During the summers I lifeguarded and played softball. During the fall it was tennis, the winter- basketball and I played soccer and took dance classes all year round. Sports were a central part of my daily life, as was music (bassoonist and sing), and I knew how important it was to get back in the game as quick as possible. Ideally you just stay in the game.

Between my freshman and sophomore years in college I was in a severe car accident with significant injury to my spine in several places. My doctors and surgical team told me my active lifestyle was over and that I would never run, skip or jump or again.  A few years later in my senior year of college I began experiencing signs of a serious neuromuscular disease that I was apparently supposed to let continue to manifest.

I don’t think so!   Fortunately, I succeeded in fully recovering from my spinal injuries and the auto-immune disorder with the help of some amazing health care practitioners that have greatly influenced the work I do today.  Although the sports I play are different now (mountain biking, swimming, kayaking, hiking, scuba diving, yoga), I have no limitations.  But my experience is all too common in health care. Cookie cutter approaches to injury and chronic pain, as well as illness, are easy to prescribe and easy for medical teams to manage. But they’re devastating for patients.

I approach every patient individually and holistically listening to the challenges they face and their recovery goals.  I help them tap into their body’s innate ability to heal itself by restoring balance to structures, showing them how to maintain that balance with a strong body and giving them various tools to empower them to live the active life they desire.

My patients include office workers with chronic neck and shoulder pain, artists doing prolonged detailed work, cirque performers injured from backflips gone wrong, athletes needing conditioning and nutritional programs, musicians whose bodies are “stuck” in the position they hold their instruments, weekend warriors with acute or overuse injuries due to poor biomechanics, incorrect foot support or tragic accidents, and people from all walks of life suffering from mysterious or untreated pain that they’ve tolerated for too long.

If you’ve come to my website, there’s a good chance you fall into one of those categories. I offer consultations to people interested in knowing more about the treatment and wellness options available to them. This consultation is complimentary.  My goal is to help you find answers and tools to fully recover and live an active lifestyle preventing further injuries, as I have found.  If I am not the right fit for you, I will help you find someone who is.

If you feel I can help and you choose to work with me, I simply ask that you see yourself as an active partner in your recovery. When I hurt my back and neck I was young, unwise, and felt that it was the job of my Physical Therapist or Athletic Trainer to fix me.  I quickly learned that the responsibilty was MINE.  The practitioner was there to educate and guide me.  It was my job to apply it.  I can lead you in the correct direction and provide you with sustainable solutions, but the results are dependent on you.  The first step is making your appointment.

Education & Credentials

  • Bachelor of Science in Athletic Training from West Virginia Wesleyan College
  • Graduate of Brenneke School of Massage (now Cortiva Institute – Seattle)
  • Licensed Athletic Trainer and Massage Practitioner through the Washington State Department of Health
  • Licensed Massage Practitioner through the Washington State Department of Health
  • Nationally Certified Athletic Trainer through the Board of Certification for the Athletic Trainer (BOC)
  • Nationally Certified Massage Practitioner through the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Body Work (NCBTMB)
  • Certified Kinesio Taping Practitioner through the Kinesio Taping Association International (KTAI)
  • Certified Sports Nutrition Coach

Memberships

  • National Athletic Trainer’s Association (NATA)
  • American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA)
  • Kinesio Taping Association International (KTAI)
  • Washington State Sports Massage Team

Other Training

  • Advanced CPR, AED (Automated External Defibrillators) & First Aid
  • Physical therapy and sports injury protocols
  • Functional Exercises
  • Strength & Conditioning Exercises
  • Holistic Nutrition
  • Sports Nutrition
  • Biomechanics and Ergonomics
  • CranioSacral Therapy
  • Lymphatic Drainage Massage
  • Neuromuscular Re-Education Techniques
  • Structural Integration and advance Myofascial Release
  • Orthopedic Massage
  • Sports Massage
  • Reflexology
  • Herbal Remedies in Sports
  • Muscle Energy Techniques
  • Foot Orthotic Therapy
  • Low Level Photo Therapy/Infrared Therapy

Other Areas of Interest and Future Training

  • Osteopathy
  • Herbal Studies
  • Homeopathy
  • Muscle Testing (Advanced Kinesiology)
  • Nutritional Response Testing (NRT)
  • Visceral Manipulation
  • Active Isolated Stretching
  • Active Release Technique
  • Fascial Stretch Therapy