Barbara Sleik

After graduating from Soma, Barbara had a lot go on in her life that made her transition into massage take an interesting turn. She moved to Australia and got married and is now working as what is called a Remedial Massage Therapist for the Bodimind Center in North Hobart,Tasmania. She says that she loves the experience there. We, at Soma are proud of Barbara’s efforts and her quest to take the Soma brand of Clinical Massage Therapy across the world!!

I asked Barbara what she felt that Soma had done for you and she told me the following, “Soma has given me the tools needed to surpass most of my fellow Massage Therapists. The curriculum at Soma is difficult and challenging, but is so very important in the realm of alternative therapies.”

We then went over what she liked best about her career and she said, “Knowing I’m helping to relieve pain and discomfort in a person’s body. It’s the best feeling to know that through my work, people leave my care feeling refreshed and ready to live!”

I talked to her about the obstacles she faced starting up her career and as you can see, hers were different from those experienced by most of our graduates, “YES! Oh my goodness, did I have obstacles! Moving to Australia and getting married were two of the biggest steps I’ve ever taken! From there, I had to wait on my Visa so I could legally work, get my American qualifications recognized in Australia, take a First Aid course, and others too numerous to mention. But, happily… there was a light at the end of the tunnel. After so many hurdles, I finally got qualified through the Australian College of Massage in Melbourne, became a member of the AAMT, and have appropriate insurance to finally practice!