Laura Herrmann, MPH, LMT
philosophy
I work holistically with therapeutic massage, herbs, energy work, and movement to help my clients relieve stress and pain while promoting relaxation and optimal functioning in the body. Clients benefit from my ability to draw on and synthesize information from a wide range of interdisciplinary studies and experiences. I work with all kinds of caregivers, creators, healers, artists, organizers, visionaries, teachers, makers and more to help them perform their meaningful work in the world with ease. My style is nurturing, intuitive, and precise. My massage therapy mantra is ‘it doesn’t have to hurt to work’. I value excellent palpation and assessment skills and enjoy co-creating client-centered, therapist guided experiences with everyone who shows up on my table.
The name ‘lacuna’ is a nod to the gaps in available scientific understanding of the human body and human nature, which have been traditionally grappled with through myth, story, and folklore. It also reflects the spacious quality that I believe inspires creativity, growth, and healing. In Spanish, ‘la cuna’ means ‘the cradle’, ‘birthplace’, or ‘place of origin’.
Experience
I graduated from Pittsburgh School of Massage Therapy in 2013 and have been working as a licensed massage therapist in Pennsylvania since. I completed doula training with DONA international in 2017 with additional birth work training through Birthing from Within and as a traditional midwives’ assistant. As a bioregional folk herbalist, I studied for two years at the Appalachian Center for Natural Health completing both the Community Herbalist Program and the Advanced Herbalist Practitioner Program with an emphasis on nutritional health and the endocrine system. I also have an extensive background in yoga, completing my 200hr teacher training in 2010 and teaching consistently for the following eight years.
In addition to my holistic health background, I hold a dual Bachelor of Arts degree in English Literature and Linguistics from the University of Pittsburgh and a Master of Public Health degree in Community Health Sciences from Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.
This interdisciplinary academic and professional background and extensive training an experience in a variety of holistic health modalities brings distinct benefits for my clients in the form of health education, science communication, effective assessment and session planning, and advocacy.