— — For some the pain is reason enough to fling themselves against the sharp edge of a door frame or convince small children to romp atop their backs.

For Connie G., of Amherst, doorknobs worked the best, forcing her to crouch to the level of the fixture and align it with the terrible knots in her back, in return for a fleeting moment of relief.

These days she calls her massage therapist, Jason Brubaker of North Tonawanda, who arrives at her home a few minutes later toting a massage table and a degree from the New York Institute of Massage in Williamsville.

For Connie and many other people in the technology age, long hours on the computer is the culprit.

“That would be it right there, the computer. I’m there from nine to five. I think a lot of us are not aware that our shoulders go up with the tension,” she said.

For her, like many these days, what was supposed to be only the “temporary insanity” of working two jobs to get a financial edge has become the new normal, and in addition to her computer work, she spends hours a day on her feet as an in-class drivers’ education instructor.

“It was supposed to be for two or three years but it’s not so temporary any more,” she said.

And with that comes the pain.

“I just started to feel pain everywhere and I’m thinking, ‘this just isn’t me,’ she said. “People would tell me to drink wine — how much wine can I actually drink?”

But that was before she visited the school and became a client of Brubaker’s some three years, ago.

Like her extra job, the relief she experienced after just one session, she said, lasted longer than the 24-hours or so that she expected it to. The lingering benefits continued for a week or more.

“It’s magical,” she said.

The house calls work within her busy schedule and, even better, the relaxation she feels after an hour on the table isn’t followed by a rush-hour commute home.

“Afterward I can just relax on my own,” she said.

Brubaker, 42, who is based in North Tonawanda, spent most of his life working what he calls “hard labor” in the construction industry, in factories, as a brick-layer and stone mason’s assistant, leading a life it’s fair to say offers its share of experiences about pain.

 But he was called to the profession, he said, in part because he was a kind of de-facto masseuse for his family over the years, building an acute understanding of each knot, sore spot or other hankering malady among his hard-working relatives.

Whether people chose to hire a professional like him or not, he stressed, people, like all animals, thrive on physical contact.

Being massaged, he said, can have the power to evoke a range of memories and transport clients to experiences that in some cases contributed to the tension that manifests in their muscles.

On one occasion, he said, a client started crying, for no other reason than the massage brought a feeling to the forefront that she had forgotten about.  

“Her body needed a release from the feeling,” he said. “She later sent me a thank you letter.”

The $65 per hour Brubaker charges for his house calls could be considered a small price to pay for the expertise he gained at the school, including intensive study of physiology, anatomy, myology and other courses normally included in a pre-med curriculum.

But in addition, he easily rattled off the many disciplines he draws on during a session, including Eastern arts like shiatsu, to Swedish, deep muscle techniques, sports and medical massage designed to promote healing and hot stone methods, among others.

As to what prompted him to make such a profound career change, Brubaker said it comes down to doing what feels right.

“I thought, well, I’ve always been good with my hands, labor or otherwise, so I called up the school,” he said. “I’ve always felt I was meant to help people. It almost relaxes me when I’m working on someone, it’s almost the same state it puts Connie in. I think about nothing when I’m giving a massage, except the person’s body.”

He will be offering free chair massages at the bi-annual T-NT Expo trade show the weekend of April 30 at the North Tonawanda SportsPlex at 90 Ridge Road. To make an appointment, call (716) 748-1897.