Creative Care Unit

Being a Creative involves a lot more than training, practicing and performing. If being a Creative becomes your livelihood, at some point you will have to deal with the "administrivia" that comes with the territory. People who practice the healing arts have their own administrivia to deal with as well. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll talk with the person who teaches healers about that phrase and h...

In this episode we continue our conversation with massage therapist, author and world traveler Kelly Bowers. We talk about what makes for a good relationship with a patient, working with scars and nerve damage, and the benefits of having an office as opposed to going to a client's home.

Massage Therapy is the art and science of good touching, taking those squishy bits of the human body that have been hurt by use, overuse or abuse and making them feel better. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll take a deep dive into the world of healing touches with massage therapist and author Kelly Bowers in this episode of the Creative Care Unit.

Normally I have something kinda pithy, witty or cutesy to say about what I'm going to talk about. Unfortunately, there is no way to make this topic cuddly. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll be reliving my journey through the ups and downs of health insurance coverage and that strange and wondrous department called "billing" next time in the Creative Care Unit.

Just because a medical professional has spent many years in school and many more years in practice learning the craft of their profession, doesn't meant that they know anything about YOUR profession, particularly if your profession deals with talking to the public. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll talk about Stupid Stuff Your Medical Professional Says to You in this edition of the Creative Care Uni...

It's one thing to have your body's internal defenses fight invaders from outside of it, like germs, noise or pollution. It's quite another when the source of what's causing your body problems is originating from deep inside your own head. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll talk about stress and what it can do to a person's mind and body in this edition of Creative Care Unit. 

We live in a noisy world. Even in the most bucolic of settings, out ears are under a constant assault from the high volumes of sound produced by media, machines and more. I'm Michael E Russo, and we'll talk about how all of the "Noise, Noise, Noise!" around us effects our hearing in this edition of the Creative Care Unit.

The Voice: actors use it to create characters for the stage, films or television. Singers use it to get inside the emotions in a song. It's also a double-edged sword that can honestly reveal what's going on inside of a performer physically and emotionally. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll discuss the duality of The Voice in this episode of the Creative Care Unit.

So, here's the scenario: you're a Creative Person-an actor, musician, dancer, etc., you're over 40, and your body at some point tells you that things have irrevocably changed in your life. What do you do now? Well, if you're like me, you create a podcast and talk about it. I'm Michael E. Russo, and I'll be discussing all aspects of being an aging artist here in the Creative Care Unit. .

What makes a singer nervous? The prospect of doing what they do best in front of large groups of people? Nope. A medical professional telling you that the only way to fix a problem in your throat is to go into it with sharp objects dancing perilously close to your vocal chords? Yep. I'm Michael E. Russo, and we'll discuss my tonsillectomy and the aftermath of that operation next time in the Creati...

The two most expressive parts of an actor's physical instrument, especially if you've ever worked in films or television, are the Face and The Voice. To lose the use of one or the other is a performer's nightmare. I lost control of both within a year. I'm Michael E. Russo, and I'll talk about how that happened and how I'm dealing with the repercussion's decades later, next time in the Creative Car...