About Lorena
— Your Sunshine Coast Massage Therapist
Hi, I'm Lorena. I run Kahuna Body Work and Massage from a quiet home studio in Valdora. I'm a fully qualified remedial massage therapist Sunshine Coast residents have trusted for over a decade, and a Kahuna massage therapist Australia-wide clients seek out for traditional Hawaiian bodywork. ANTA-accredited, health fund rebate eligible, and genuinely glad you're here.
I came to this work the long way round. After more than a decade in the wellness industry — first as a client, then as a deeply curious student — I realised the practitioners who changed me most weren't the ones with the fanciest clinics. They were the ones who showed up fully present, listened with their hands, and treated each session as a small act of restoration. That's the kind of therapist I wanted to become.
I trained formally in remedial massage through Demi International, completing my Diploma so I could do the targeted, therapeutic work my clients actually needed — pain relief, injury recovery, postural correction. But I also knew there was another way of working with the body, one I'd been drawn to for years: Kahuna bodywork (sometimes spelt Ka Huna). I studied through Mette's Institute, one of the most respected Kahuna lineages in Australia, completing all three levels.
Today I work from a peaceful home studio in Valdora — surrounded by hinterland and not much else. I see clients in clinic and travel for mobile sessions across the Sunshine Coast. Some come every week for ongoing remedial care. Some book a Lorena Kahuna massage once a year as their birthday gift to themselves. Either is welcome.
What hasn't changed since day one is the way I approach every body that lies on my table: with patience, intuition, and complete focus on the person in front of me.
Trained, accredited, insured.
Massage is a regulated profession — and I take it seriously. Here's what I bring to your session, and where I trained.
Diploma of Remedial Massage
HLT52015 — the nationally recognised Australian qualification for remedial massage therapy.
Kahuna Bodywork L1–L3
All three levels of authentic Hawaiian Kahuna training, taught in the lineage of Mette Sorensen.
ANTA Accredited Member
Provider number recognised by all major Australian private health funds — claimable for rebates.
Guild Insurance
Fully covered for professional indemnity and public liability — your safety and mine.
Why I do what I do.
Bodies aren't problems to be solved. They're stories asking to be heard.
I don't believe in templated sessions. Two people walking into my studio with "tight shoulders" can need radically different things — one carries grief, the other carries a poorly set-up workstation. My job is to figure out which body I'm working with today, and meet it where it is.
That's why I trained in both remedial massage and Kahuna bodywork. Remedial is precise and clinical — it fixes things. Kahuna is fluid and energetic — it releases things. Most clients need a thoughtful blend of both. Healing isn't either/or. It's a both/and conversation between the science and the soul.
How each session unfolds.
No two sessions are identical — but the framework is consistent. Here's what to expect from start to finish, whether you book remedial, Kahuna, or mobile.
We chat first
A short conversation about what's bringing you in — pain, stress, recovery, or just a need to switch off. Honest beats polished.
I tailor the session
Pressure, focus areas, technique blend — all adjusted to your body that day. Speak up anytime; I'd rather adapt than guess.
We work together
You rest. I work. Breath, presence, skilled hands. The hour is yours — no upselling, no clock-watching, no rushing.
After-care notes
Hydration, stretches, what to notice over the next few days, and when (or if) to rebook. Then I see you out gently.
Outside the treatment room.
When I'm not in the studio, you'll find me walking the headlands at Coolum, cooking long lunches for friends, or knee-deep in another continuing-education weekend. I'll never stop learning this craft — there's always a new technique, a new modality, another angle on the body.
The Sunshine Coast has been home for years. I love that my clients are also my neighbours — the same yoga teachers, the tradies who fix my fence, the parents at school pickup. There's a particular kind of trust that comes from working in your own community, and I don't take it lightly.
Let's begin.
Choose your modality, pick a time that works, and I'll see you in the studio — or at your door. Live availability online, full pricing here, or send a message if you'd rather chat first.