Meet the Healers of True Nature Wellness

Choosing a provider that fits your needs is a pivotal aspect of your healing plan. Take some time to learn about us in our diverse capacities. A range of modalities and spectrum of specialties is offered here, and we want to make sure you find the right fit. We know how important this has been to us in our own healing.
Scroll down to view our bios, and click on our names to view practitioner websites.

Chase Desso, LAc

he/him

​Licensed Acupuncturist
​Founder, True Nature Wellness

Dr. Shanna Butler

she/her

Licensed Psychologist
Co-Founder, True Nature Wellness

Mo Washburn, CMT

they/them

Intuitive Bodyworker

Niksen "Nik" Kurtz

they/them

Esalen Integrative Massage

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Chase's specialties include:

• Acupuncture & Chinese Herbs
• Chronic & Acute Pain, Orthopedics
• Stress, Trauma & Addictions
• Anxiety & Depression
• CranioSacral Therapy & Medical Qigong​
• Nutrition Consultation
• Cupping & Gua Sha

Chase Desso, MS, Licensed Acupuncturist
​Founder, True Nature Wellness

Grounded presence and medical scholarship are my north stars. I center the union of soma (body) and psyche (emotions, inner life, soul) in my healing practice. My work is informed by my experience in Vipassana Insight Meditation, Jungian and Depth psychology, Reclaiming Traditions, Qigong, Taoism, self-development, and social justice ideologies. I practice from a standpoint of valuing and celebrating the multicultural identities of my patients and specifically enjoy and specialize in supporting the LGBTQ communities. My method is an inclusive therapeutics with the intention to invite all of you into the room to heal. I am gentle and caring, offering the nourishing environment you need to to allow your body to heal itself. I would like to help inspire you to craft a healthy lifestyle that works for you, while also becoming more aware of your body and its needs. I perceive each individual uniquely and take great care in aiming to treat you accordingly. By embracing a hands-on, compassionate approach to healing, I address the root of an injury or illness to help you achieve health and wellness for the long-term, creating an environment for deep levels of healing to occur.

Book a session with Chase

We seek not rest but transformation. We are dancing through each other as doorways.
~Marge Piercy

Dr. Shanna Butler, Licensed Psychologist
Co-founder, True Nature Wellness
shannabutler.com

I believe in the wisdom of the heart that makes healing possible. Our path towards greater ease and understanding may look messy, it might not ascribe to the timelines we desire, but relief from suffering exists. I know this from an active engagement in my own healing journey and from witnessing and accompanying many others on their personal healing path. 
My philosophy as a psychologist is informed from many streams. My academic training included rigorous study of depth psychology and social justice traditions  For me the two are inseparable, our personal liberation is deeply intertwined with liberation for all beings which means our healing work must include the dismantling of oppressive structures both internal and external as well as the untangling of trauma and internalized distress. How this takes shape is deeply personal and grounded in the unique ingredients that comprise each of our existences.
My practice as a psychologist is also informed by my lived experiences which include the ongoing investigations of my social identities as a queer and genderqueer person and as an anti-racist ally. I value and am informed by countless wisdom traditions including Buddhism, earth based spiritualities, Taoism, energy medicine, and intuition. 

Modalities

• ​Esalen® Massage
• Deep Bodywork®
• Sports Injury Massage
•  Cranial Sacral
• Soul Motion™
• DanceAbility®

Niksen “Nik” Kurtz, CMP
bodycuriosity.com

Massage can significantly reduce pain, calm stress, improve range of motion and help you move through emotions that have been stored in your body.  Who you are and what you bring, is where each session will start.  Nik brings a nurturing and meditative touch to bodywork that allows them to sink deep into the layers of the muscles and connective tissues. Whether you are coming in for relaxation or injury rehabilitation massage, Nik uses their heart, hands and ears to listen and meet the needs of their clients.They combine deep tissue techniques with slow integrative strokes to relax your nervous system and create space for the body to do its own healing.  Nik’s bodywork practice is also greatly informed by their love of dance and use of somatic tools to support you in unwinding your body from personal, interpersonal and systemic trauma. Their intention is to leave you feeling connected and more embodied.
Nik's specialties include: Supporting nervous system regulation, alleviating lower back and hip pain, opening pectoral tightness to relax the upper back, TMJ release, diaphragm/belly/breath work, creating more flow and ease in the neck, and helping energy move smoothly throughout the entire body system.  Working with Gender Expansive / Non-binary / Trans folks, folks who Bind, those who are pre/post chest/breast surgery (Top Surgery / Mastectomy).  Nik offers exercises to put into action between sessions, encourages a routine in receiving massage and creating a regular movement practice as well as offers support in re-patterning thoughts that no longer serve you. 
*Please note, Nik is allergic to scents & fragrance and asks that you please arrive as scent and fragrance free as possible.

Mo Washburn, CMP
mowashburn.com

In my late twenties, while working at a corporate job, i had an epiphany where i realized that the way my life looked wasn’t actually in alignment with the connection my heart yearned for. At this time, I left the city where i had resided my whole life and leapt out into the unknown, cultivating connection to my intuition and gut and stepping into trust. In 2009, this led me to enroll in the Ayurveda clinical program at the Dhyana Center in Sebastopol, California. This program encouraged awareness, self-care, and brought me more physically and emotionally into alignment with my own health. It also gave me tools to begin a life of service. After this initial program, i wove in studies of swedish esalen bodywork, acupressure, interchange counseling, Arvigo techniques of  Mayan abdominal therapies, and jaw/pelvic release work.