About the therapist

How it started

About ten years ago my sister asked me to do some light renovation in her living room. I thought it would take a couple of days, but it dragged on for almost a month, and at some point I realised I couldn't lift my arm. Through friends I went to Gevorg Hovhannesyan, one of the best rehabilitation specialists in St Petersburg. A short course of eight sessions and the problem was gone. I was so impressed that I asked whether he took students. Believe it or not, he agreed to teach me.

I got my medical training at the Bekhterev Psychoneurological Institute, then spent four years working under my teacher. In that time I worked with very difficult cases: people after strokes and heart attacks, children with cerebral palsy, people recovering from serious car accidents. After that I opened my own massage studio. For many years Warm Hands was in St Petersburg; now I see clients in Dilijan.

My clients have included well-known athletes, reigning world champions and a prima ballerina of the Mariinsky Theatre. My massage is built around the way people live today.

How I work

The first session, usually an hour long, is a diagnostic one. We look for trigger points: I press on specific spots and find out where it hurts. Then the body needs to be prepared for corrective work, so we do two or three deep tissue sessions. That lets us reach the second and third layers of muscle, not just the skin and the surface.

I know around 50–60 types of massage but mostly use 13, because they work best. Everything we do follows protocols rather than guesswork. But massage is not a magic wand: it has to go together with exercise.

Some people need 5 sessions, others 10 or even 15. After that comes maintenance. Regular sessions matter once the body is ready for them.

Why regularly

A healthy back is the surest way to a long life. I go for a massage once or twice a week myself. A good session gets the blood and lymph moving and improves the body's chemistry, and as a result you sleep and eat better and have more energy.

Beyond massage

I have been drawn to art since childhood. Several teachers taught me different techniques, and a friend helped me master academic drawing. My paintings are in private collections in Russia and abroad. I believe a person should have many interests but be an expert in one field.