Drift Massage — Local services in Los Angeles

Beware - Unsafe practices here caused my long-term injury.

Sammy used a technique that no other massage therapist had ever used on me before, and I ended up with a lumbar spine injury that I've been dealing with for the last 2 months and am still not recovered from. The injury occurred when he had me lay on my side. He used the edge of his elbow to vigorously swipe up and down along the muscles bordering my spine. On one stroke toward the bottom of my spine, he slipped and knocked one of my discs very hard. I shrieked in pain and paused the massage. He apologized, then finished the massage. I was ok for the remainder, but I was really feeling it on the way home.

I've been to my primary doctor, physical therapist and clinical bodywork specialist to address this. I've taken anti-inflammatories and spent hours every week doing rehab exercises. The pain is starting to finally subside 2 months later, but I still have a ways to go in restoring strength and mobility to the area. I've spent considerable money and time figuring out how to treat this. What was supposed to be a nice relaxing experience turned into a painful, expensive and emotionally + intellectually labor intensive recovery in figuring out how to get the best treatment.

I approached Sammy about this last month and, with some prodding, he did ultimately refund me for the massage, however, he did keep the generous 30% tip I had left, which I thought was in poor taste after I told him everything I'd been going through.

Aside from this, Sammy and Jareb are nice guys. I enjoyed their company which makes it hard to leave this review. But I want to make sure that they are not hurting anyone else with this technique, so I felt it was important to post this warning.

UPDATE: In response to Jareb's reply, notice how he doesn't defend the dangerous massage technique that was used on me. He should be promising you all that they will not be using that technique anymore going forward. My back still hurts daily almost 3 months later. Improvement is slow, and I'm working hard at it. If you're still reading this, there are plenty of massage therapists out there, just don't go to this one, it's pretty simple.

In response to the customer service aspect, which hardly matters compared to the fact that a seemingly well-reviewed massage therapist is out here hurting people... Sure, I'll bite. Yes I waited 3 weeks to approach them about this because they had let me know they were dealing with a family emergency, which Jareb fails to mention in his reply. Maybe I was being overly polite. When I came back to pick up my jacket and describe my situation to Sammy, he seemed a little bit sympathetic, but I had to very specifically ask if there was anything he could do about the situation, at which point he did ultimately offer a refund. It honestly didn't seem like he was going to offer me anything otherwise, so I was treading lightly.

Since posting this review they have now refunded my tip, but this still pales in comparison to what I've spent on treatment. At the end of the day, my back...

My partner and I have been going to Drift for over two years and cannot recommend it enough. Jareb & Sammy are some of the kindest, most open people we have ever met, and phenomenal at their craft. I always leave the studio feeling refreshed & revitalized. Not only that, they go far above and beyond to make the entire experience feel more like a relaxing tea date with friends than a purely transactional exchange. For those looking to target specific areas, J & S take extensive notes before every session to make sure that all your needs are taken care of. If you're in the area, stop by! You won't be...

My husband and I received a couples massage at Drift and it was fantastic! These guys know exactly what they are doing and I felt like I was in extremely safe hands. They catered the massage to my needs, they took the time to ask questions and get to know what my day to day ailments were & really targeting those areas.

The space is clean, inviting, very comfortable and well presented. They offered us a tea when we walked in and we felt immediately comfortable.

I will be purchasing one of their package deals and plan to return on a...