1.I went to Nelson based on other yelp reviews and was not disappointed. I got the really deep massage that previous therapists have promised but couldn’t quite deliver. Nelson was flexible, creative and communicative in his approach to the persistent pain around my scapula, providing a massage that both went deep at the roots of my pain, and was soothing and relaxing too. I learned a bit of anatomy and got some good suggestions for dealing with my overworked muscles on my own. I will definitely go back to Nelson, and will recommend him to friends and colleagues too.V.R. – San Francisco

2.I came to Nelson because I was having terrible stiffness in my neck due to lifting weights and sleeping. As I was walking in, Nelson immediately could tell what was bothering me, and was quick to point out the muscles that needed to be massaged.

Nelson worked magic on me, really grinding out the muscle knots in my upper back/ shoulder, using his full body weight, which no offense I don’t think a female masseuse would have been able to do. By the end of the massage my neck’s range of motion was nearly fully returned.
Additionally, Nelson was a sweet and caring man, he was in no rush and really made me feel welcomed. I could tell he had real concern for my health. Highly recommended and I plan to come back again in the near future. Obrigado, Nelson!Josh, M. – Monteclair NJ.

3.Wow! Nelson is a gifted massage therapist who communicates, helps my body heal and makes me laugh. Even sometimes through the pain. Nelson understands the damage modern work does to some of us and he is magic at working out those tensions and suggesting other ways to manuever. He has really helped me listen more to my body, be more aware of how I sit and stand. I really look forward to seeing him every few weeks.  Many thanks, Nelson. See you soon. Dara – San Francisco

4. I sent this email a few weeks back.  I just went to see Nelson again yesterday and he asked if I would post it.  Don’t know why I didn’t think of that myself.  He continues to work with me on the table like no one else I’ve ever experience.   You gotta experience it for yourself.  Here’s the email:
   Hi Nelson,
   I just gotta tell you again how wonderful it was to have you work on me with such gusto and care today.  The rest of my day was amazing.  I think a major shift took place on the table there with you.  I feel more open to my passion and my vitality.   I’m so grateful for you and the healing gift that you offer.    No one has ever had the guts or energy to help me penetrate my armor the way you did today.  Thanks again, Peter Bernard

5.When I arrived he was friendly and conversational, gently gathering information about my preferences and allowing me to relax and feel a little more un-pressured. I understood very quickly that my comfort was most important to him.

Nelson understands when to be firm and where a more gentle touch is needed. He has a funny, endearing manner and, in my case, cleverly distracted me with conversation while working the tension out of tougher spots.
Nelson is great at what he does. I’m really looking forward to seeing him again and would gladly recommend him to anyone looking for a massage. I’d even say that Nelson gave me the best massage I’ve ever had.  Olly, F. – San Francisco

6.I went in for a massage, and came out feeling as if I had had a life transforming encounter. Nelson is extraordinarily gifted as a body worker. He took time to inquire into my physical ailments, and connected intuitively with exactly what some of the issues were beneath the physical problem areas. I learned invaluable lessons about stress, and how to create more peace and well being in my body. He skillfully helped me move through the painful places in my arms and hands, and I left feeling more invigorated, rested, and at peace. It wasn’t simply a massage, it was a journey. For which I am deeply grateful. I recommend Nelson highly!  Helen K. – Berkeley

7.Nelson is becoming my go to solution for tuning up my body from running and CrossFit.  He has a really great touch which he can use to great physical benefit on a spectrum from relaxation to active improvement of muscle tissue with pressure.  Great body work for those who want to have healthy tissue. Dave N. – San Francisco

8.I’m going for my second massage tomorrow. After my last massage with Nelson I felt very grounded and balanced. He really understood my body and how it works. Probably better than I did. The hot stones he used really helped my muscles relax and he has a good firm massage technique. I recommend. Tiia,   – San Francisco

9.Nelson is truly wonderful. Setting an appointment with him was extremely simple. I called him on Wednesday and we set up an appointment for Saturday. Done.

He’s extremely knowledgeable and skilled, especially where I need treatment the most (knots in my upper back). At the end of the session, my whole body was left feeling lighter and more relaxed. Nelson is a master at his craft and I am definitely seeing Nelson again. I would recommend him to all of my family and friends and I suggest you give him a call NOW!  Ray, Z. – Outer Sunset, San Francisco

10.I went to Nelson in November 2013 for back pain I’d had for over six months that even acupuncture hadn’t helped. He suggested certain exercises and gave a great massage. He radiated positive energy and thoughts. My back has been so much better since then  and that’s been over five months! I credit his healing hands and words! I just went back to him because of stomach and dizziness issues. I believe I am on the road to recovery. Thank you Nelson your intuitive Massage Humana! I truly recommend you!  Martha, M. – San Francisco

11.I discovered Nelson through Lifebooker and would definitely recommend him.  I have a lot of muscular-skeletal issues and am extremely particular about my massages, preferring deep tissue work over a light touch, which, while perhaps relaxing, simply doesn’t get the job done.  In fact, I find it extremely disappointing and frustrating when I get a massage, expecting to have my kinks and knots worked out, only to have them barely glossed over.  Nelson, on the other hand, not only gave a wonderful deep-tissue massage, but, most importantly, knew exactly where to go to elicit the best result.  (I was ooh’ing and ah’ing a lot!)  He also knew how to get at the tight knots in my neck, which very few massage therapists are skilled at doing.  Frankie, W. – San Francisco

12.Nelson is quite remarkable. I bought a three pack of massages off Lifebooker and went to the salon. it was a bit confusing as the massages took place at of Ele Ele Salon on Guererro Street (previous address) and the salon is next door to the nail salon which has the same name, so I walked in there at first and all the nail ladies looked at me like deer in headlights and didn’t understand what I was referring to when I asked for Nelson. The massage was nothing short of incredible. First, he looked at my bone structure and discussed my posture and activities in life with me so I could get a better understanding of where my neck discomfort stemmed from. He made the space very comfortable with good energy despite the fact that its a little side room in the back of the salon and isn’t “spa” like but Nelson uses hot stones, has relaxing music, and all the skills needed to make you feel transported into a dimension of tranquility. On the third and final massage the only complaint I have is the man I assumed to be the salon owner was on the phone speaking very loudly and there are 2 doors between the rooms but very thin walls and I could hear his entire conversation which really took away from the massage experience. It didn’t happen the first two times though. I will def. be going back to Nelson. Linzy, R. – L.A.

13.We’re on our way to San Francisco!!!  Why?!? Well our destination of choice use to be Santa Barbara, but we ” can’t get no satisfaction”.  Our massage therapist Nelson Olivera relocated to S.F. from Santa Barbara and we HAVE to follow him there. My husband and I have just about given up on ever finding a therapist for massage as skilled, effective and as intuitive as Nelson. So San Francisco here we come…..  Natalie R. – Stevenson Ranch, CA

14.In trying to compensate for an ongoing problem with my left hip – I created a worse problem for my right knee.  The knee problem was caused mainly by all the climbing various hills in San Francisco. Nelson helped a lot with very deep muscle work plus the hot stone treatment.  One of the best massages ever and the price is very fair.  I wish Nelson lived in Florida – I’d get a massage every two weeks.  Pat C. – Sarasota – FL

15.Nelson gave me a massage yesterday.  I mentioned that my neck was pretty tight.  He worked with it a little, and then pointed out that I could move it better than before.  I forgot about it.  This morning I woke up and in the middle of the morning commute, looking around at the cars, I realized that it had a LOT more freedom of motion.  Thank you Nelson!  He’s a great masseur in many ways.

Stuart, A – Berkeley, CA

16.I’ve had over a dozen massages with Nelson, and every one has been a work of art in the medium of touch. Sometimes it’s a pastoral landscape scene, sometimes it’s a symphony, and sometimes it’s a lullaby – but he always manages to know exactly what I need. He has a combination of talent, training, experience, and some magical ability to tap into exactly what I’m feeling that by far exceeds any of the other massage therapists I have seen. After seeing him exclusively for a while, I decided to try a few others to make sure I wasn’t getting complacent. They were fine, but they weren’t Nelson. Now, I may sound overly effusive. It may just be that I have found someone who resonates correctly with me and my body. But he doesn’t just work on intuition – he actively encourages response during the massage, and is very interested in what’s going on with your body before the massage begins. As others have said, he uses a mix of pressures, from light and soothing to deep and sometimes painful (in that really good way where you know things are getting cleared out). Once, when I had infrequent but severe wrist pain, he felt my forearms and then asked if I thought I could take some pain. I trust this man more than I think I know, so I told him to go ahead. He gently jammed his thumbs into my forearm, which hurt a lot, and stopped when I said I couldn’t take any more. The next day, the pain was gone and it hasn’t been back since. The man is a wonder, he’s incredibly personable and kind, he knows his business, and I don’t know where he gets the energy to treat client after client with the care of a parent or a close personal friend. I’d like to buy the entire bay area a massage with Nelson – and with his reasonable prices, if I ever get a job at Google (yeah right) I just might do that.

Bonus: he’s multilingual, I know he speaks his native Portuguese as well as English fluently, plus I think more. He’s great to chat with, but if you just want to silently absorb the chill music, he’s down for that too.

(ps don’t be freaked out if he uses his feet, he does this amazing lower back thing with them sometimes. though if you’re a foot-o-phobe, probably let him know if he doesn’t ask.) Nathan – San Francisco

17.Nelson works at a couple of different locations so ask him and see where he is renting for a place close to you.  Like me, he is looking for the best place for the price for the best service.

I’ve had two massages from Nelson to date and will be coming back for more.  I like a light touch moving up to a lot of pressure.  Other masseurs cannot do it without awakening pain.  Nelson is able to without the pain.  He is aware of you, appreciates additional vocal or movement feedback – I’ll give a thumbs up when something is particularly good.  (I gave a lot of thumbs up.)  Slow, strong, wave like -fluid.   When I flip on my back, the massage is not as intense because there is less muscle.  He adjusts, ending with some pinpointed vibration.  Great job. Graham, B. – San Francisco

18.Nelson is awesome! People need to know about him.

Bongo, B. – San Francisco

19.Want a great body work session AND deep conversations about life and living? Nelson is your healer. His work is impeccable: consistently effective, adapted to what you need that day and beyond, mix of methods he figures out–with you–that is most well suited for what ails you.

He works both in SF Mission and Aptos. Get to him as soon as you need him….. Margot – Berkeley

20.The second Nelson puts his hands and feet on me I feel a relaxation overcome me.  Like magic.  This is a value a great message.

21.Nelson is really a Five Star, He does “Trigger Points” and specializes in therapeutic massage for pain relief.  I can’t survive without his massage at least once or twice a month. Thank you Nelson. Odilon, V. – San Francisco

22.Nelson Olivera has a rare combination of fluidity, precision, strength, and know-how to work out the most stubborn of knots where I hold my stress; I feel integrated into my whole body after one of his massages. Kirsten, R. – Berkeley