Meet the Therapist

Hi, I am Amber Barnes, the licensed massage therapist for The Spa Lot. The Spa Lot was a vision of Hope, Serenity, and Peace. I wanted to create a private space for people to heal. Heal from ongoing symptoms of chronic conditions. Heal muscles from working so hard. Heal your nervous system by relaxing the mind and letting everything go.

Self-care has become a passion of mine. After dealing with severe anxiety years ago, I knew if I didn’t start taking care of myself, I wouldn’t be able to take care of my children. I feel like our society thinks self-care is selfish. It’s not selfish; self-care is taking care of us first SO that we can help care for others.

This all started when I went back to school for design. I graduated from Penn State with a bachelor's degree in digital multi-media design, focusing on user experience and user interface design. Life was stressful during that time; I started noticing different things about my life that I didn’t enjoy and thought were more harmful than helpful, all because I was trying to make others happy first. I started caring for myself – going for small walks, being around nature, and appreciating the small things. In turn – I became less stressed and healthier – but I wanted to do more. I wanted to give this feeling of lightness, release, and happiness that I was feeling to other people. And I wanted to prove/show them that you could keep this feeling. Yes, we will have bad, sad, and stressful times, but we can also control how we handle that stress.

I took a step back, reflecting on what I enjoyed doing and how I could help people. Massage Therapy hit me like a Mac truck. When I was younger, I went into massage therapy – and I left it quicker than I got started to travel some. I call that my young and stupid days. But I wasn’t stupid – I just wasn’t ready to live my purpose. When I decided I wanted to go back into massage therapy, the designer in me came out. I wanted to create and give this experience I had been giving myself to others. I knew I didn’t want to massage clients in their homes. Sometimes, our homes and our personal spaces can be part of the stressors in our lives. I also didn’t want to work in a spa or building with several other clients coming in and out – all those doors closing, moving around of things – and even the client next door talking too loudly – wasn’t the experience I wanted my clients to have. I started thinking about how driving calms me. I love road trips - Then, out of the blue, I felt it would be cool to drive around a cute bus, which would be my massage studio.

That’s where The Spa Lot was born, me sitting on my back patio, listening and watching a cardinal enjoy my birdbath.

Besides massage, I love bugs, I take photos of everything along my walks, I love to travel, I love gardening, and I love to write—in fact, I have a published children’s book! And I am currently working on another book. I’m obsessed with squirrels, and when I am not working, I love to spend time with my family and friends.

Find the things that add joy to your life – that’s how peace is made.