September 5, 2017 at 3:32 p.m.
Griebel takes second career as masseuse
After having massages that relieved back pain and TMJ, Ken Griebel decided to pursue a second career as a certified massage therapist. He now works out of a chiropractic office in New Ulm. Most of his clients are seen for therapeutic reasons and pain relief from sore backs, stiff necks and other conditions. (photo by Krista Sheehan)
"It just fixed me right there so I thought, 'Wow! That really helped,'" Griebel said.
Sometime after his first massage, his dentist diagnosed him with TMJ, a painful clicking and popping of the jaw. Again, someone suggested a massage and to his surprise, it took the pain away.
"Then I realized how important massage could be and how powerful massage therapy could be to help people," Griebel said.
His experiences drew him to pursue a second career: massage therapy. Along with dairy farming with his family, Griebel now works three days a week as a certified massage therapist in New Ulm.
Griebel grew up on a dairy farm south of New Ulm. When he graduated from high school in 1978, Griebel said dairy farming was his natural path so he formed a partnership with his dad, Bob.
"I enjoy the cows," Griebel said. "It (dairy farming) was something I was comfortable doing and I got along well with my dad. We had a good relationship and it was something I felt I could do well."
The partnership grew in 1986 when Griebel's brother, Rich, joined the operation and when Griebel married his wife, Sue, in 1987. Over the years, the family worked together and the next generation - Rich's son, Joel, and Griebel's son, Keith - started helping with chores when they were old enough. Now the family milks 70 Holsteins and runs 550 acres.
After his revelation in massage therapy, receiving a massage table for a Christmas present and a push from his wife, Griebel decided to take an introductory course for massage therapy in Mankato in between milkings in the fall of 2003.
"I just took a little intro course to try to learn a little more because I didn't mind giving a little shoulder massage to my wife or my in-laws or whoever," he said. "They would say, 'Wow! You have such a good touch with your hands they are really strong.'"
While he was in school, Griebel took a job as a part time massage therapist at a hair salon in New Ulm. Although he wasn't planning on taking any more classes, Griebel needed to be a full time student in order to qualify for insurance, so he signed up for a full class load. The next fall, one of his instructors was opening a chiropractic office in New Ulm and asked if Griebel would be interested in being an independent contract massage therapist.
"I ended up going full time and getting a job that I wasn't even planning on," Griebel said. "Everything just kind of fell into place."
Griebel graduated from Sister Rosalind Gefre School of Massage in the spring of 2005 and continues to work out of the chiropractic office on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. He said he is appreciative of his family, who gave him the opportunity to take on a second career.
"Those (three) days I don't milk at night," Griebel said. "They (my family) all have to pull together and fill in when I'm not here."
While he is out in the barn, Griebel now has to be careful with his hands. He wears gloves at all times to keep away from smells and calluses.
Griebel said other dairy farmers are surprised to hear that he is also a massage therapist.
"I do get a lot of reaction to it," he said. "There are the comments about massaging udders my whole life and now I'm massaging others."
But Griebel said dairy farming is one reason he excels in massage therapy.
"It gave me nice strong hands," Griebel said.
He said one of his strengths is giving a deep tissue massage because he is physically strong. A deep tissue massage uses direct pressure, or trigger point therapy, on a specific muscle.
"On a neuromuscular level you're stopping the flow of the electrical signal that causes the muscle to contract," he said.
The communication between the brain and muscle is broken, allowing the muscles to relax, thus relieving tension and pain. Most of Griebel's clients are seen for therapeutic reasons and pain relief from sore backs, stiff necks and other conditions.
"Massage is very powerful," Griebel said. "It's not just for relaxation any more."
His wife, Sue, agrees. While Griebel was in school, she was going through a difficult time in her life dealing with Graves's disease.
"I was very full of anxiety and fears and massage took my mind off that," Sue said. "It gave my mind and my body a break. Since the mind is connected to body, it was overreacting to all these things, especially when stress chemicals were released."
While massage therapy helps his clients relieve pain, his new-found career also gives Griebel a social outlet.
"I really like being around people. I'm a people person," Griebel said. "I wasn't getting enough of that on the farm and I was just yearning for something else. With massage therapy, I get to talk to a lot of different people and meet a lot of people."
He also found another social outlet two years ago when he started an entertainment duo with friend, Ken Kamolz, which performs about once a month. The Ken and Ken Show is a variety show with comedy and music ranging from Frank Sinatra to Big and Rich. Both sing and Kamolz plays the guitar. Griebel said creating his schedule is an interesting task, especially since he also has other seasonal hobbies such as softball, bowling, wallyball and biking. But he said he doesn't mind a busy agenda.
"The hobbies are relaxing for me," he said. "I think that's what feeds me more than anything."
And Griebel said he's glad he took the time to pursue his second career in massage therapy.
"I had the opportunity with the help at home to take some time away from it (dairy farming) and do something I was interested in," Griebel said. "It really helped my mind set as far as expanding my horizons. I wanted to have something to do after I was done dairying."
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