NEWTOWN – Above the bustle of Church Hill Road, there’s a calm space where Brianna Agnello has built something of her own.
Halcyon Massage & Wellness opened in July 2024, reflecting Agnello’s decade of experience and her determination to create a different type of practice.
A Southbury native, she began her journey in massage therapy, working long days at a regional massage chain before moving to smaller, boutique settings.
A personal ambition to turn her passion into a career led her to open her own studio, where she has built up a local and loyal clientele.
“I just had the drive to want to do something more,” Agnello said.
Agnello, who is also pursuing a nursing degree, often works with patients dealing with chronic pain and those in post-surgery recovery.
Unlike national chains, which can feel like a “conveyor belt of bodies,” she recalls, the experience at Halcyon is deliberately personal. Every new client begins with a detailed intake form and a conversation about both symptoms and comfort.
Her menu includes techniques like gua sha, cupping, prenatal and postnatal care, as well as sports massage. She even incorporates newer tools like LED therapy, which combines heat, suction, and light to stimulate healing in scar tissue and deep muscle layers.
There are seasonal specials, including a Halloween-themed “spooky session” that includes a full massage and a fall-scented foot scrub while listening to a spooky podcast by candlelight.
But the path to opening her own studio didn’t come without some setbacks.
A nerve injury in her elbow nearly derailed her career.
“If you have an injury in this industry, it’s like a death sentence,” she says, recalling the compressed nerve that prevented her from extending her arm.
She questioned whether or not she could continue in the industry, as doctors warned her that surgery might be the only way forward. Instead, Agnello turned to acupuncture therapy, and after weeks of treatment, she regained use of her arm.
“It was a miracle,” Agnello said.
Currently, Agnello is expanding her expertise as she pursues a nursing degree while continuing to run her own studio. She hopes that her medical training will allow her to integrate more clinical approaches into her practice, all while maintaining a more personal approach.
For now, she’s focused on making people feel at home when they walk into her studio.
While some clients enjoy a more tranquil experience, she says, it isn’t uncommon for others to use her as a sounding board for their everyday lives.
“It’s not only just body therapy, but I think a lot of it is therapy for their mind, too,” she says. “I want people to come in here and feel like they can have a conversation with me.”
With another milestone awaiting her upon completion of her degree, Agnello says she is blessed with a clientele base that has followed her along her journey. Some have stayed with her for close to a decade, and she says she cares for them like they are her own family.
“I think when I graduate and get my nursing degree, it’s going to be a big transition for me,” she said. “I don’t think I’m going to want to do anything else.”
Halcyon Massage & Wellness is located on the second floor of 20 Church Hill Road.
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