NHI Graduate Jenn Taylor with “American Idiot” cast members Tony Vincent ("St. Jimmy") and Christina Sajous ("Extraordinary Girl").

Jenn Taylor, a student of National Holistic Institute, is very excited about providing massage to the cast of American Idiot, a new musical based on the eponymous Green Day album.  She is completing her externship through the Saint Francis Center for Sports Medicine in Walnut Creek, under the supervision of DPT Patricia Commer.  NHI Student Life & Career Coordinator Aviana Lynn recently had the opportunity to visit with Jenn about the experience.

Jenn has extensive background in theatre and dance, including work with the famous Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat production years ago.  However, the opportunity to massage with American Idiot was a serendipitous one.  Jenn signed up with the Sports Center before their involvement with the show.  It came as a pleasant surprise when she learned she would practice her massage skills in such a familiar atmosphere as the Berkeley Repertory Theatre which hosted the musical’s world premiere.

Jenn describes the show as very high-energy, and lots of fun to watch.  The actors really give it their all, “basically giving themselves whiplash over and over again” during many of the dance moves.  Because of this physical intensity, the cast is super-appreciative of the massage that Jenn provides before and after the performances.

As dancers, “they really appreciate knowing what’s going on with their bodies.”  Jenn, whose mother is also an NHI-trained massage therapist, enjoys using what she’s learned here at NHI to educate the performers about possible issues, while simultaneously providing them with a little relaxation.

The cast has been so enthusiastic that there may be a paid position in Jenn’s future.  With the theatre managers expressing interest in having her provide massage therapy for future productions, Jenn may well return to the performance world once again – this time practicing her new love of massage therapy.

For the holidays this year, the National Holistic Institute Emeryville Campus again invited seniors from the Emeryville Senior Center to come and enjoy a free massage from our students during our Holiday Senior Center Day.  Group 16 students provided relaxing and therapeutic Swedish massages to 30 senior attendees!  Lisa Mendiola-Flores supervised clinic again this year, and she made everything go wonderfully smoothly.

Student Life & Career Coordinator Aviana Lynn heard from many seniors that the students did an excellent job, and all clients seemed relaxed and happy after their massages.  A couple of them even went so far as to write a thank you note on the dry-erase board in the Student Resource Center.

NHI provided holiday eggnog, cider, and cookies, which many of the seniors enjoyed while chatting with each other after their massages.  The morning was a great success!

We look forward to keeping this NHI holiday tradition going in years to come!

Recently, a group of four enthusiastic National Holistic Institute students volunteered in the annual Emery Bay Coastal Cleanup in Emeryville. Along with NHI Student Life and Career Coordinator Aviana Lynn, the students spent 2 hours walking the local coastline picking up trash and debris.

Afterwards, the students donned their NHI apparel and provided an hour of chair massage to the other volunteer participants – including Emeryville Assemblywoman Nancy Skinner. All in all, it was a very productive, eye-opening day. Everyone was excited to help increase awareness about the environment, as well as provide a relaxing reward to those involved!

And every 2-3 months, a group of NHI students visit the Be Still Meditation Retreat at Jack London Aquatic Center in Oakland. Here they provide two hours of chair massage to attendees of this relaxation-focused event.

These are just two of the many events NHI participates in every year. Look for NHI volunteers in your community! 

With the help of National Holistic Institute staff, students, and graduates alike, we were able to make a big contribution to the 2009 California Massage & Bodywork Convention sponsored by the American Massage Therapy Association California chapter.  We provided a total of 27 volunteer massage therapists from all 4 Northern California NHI campuses, over both convention days.

Volunteers had the opportunity to network with other massage therapists, hand out business cards, receive tips, audit classes for free, and experience the exciting atmosphere of a CMTA event!  Our Student Life & Career Coordinator, Aviana Lynn, did a great job coordinating this effort.

According to the American Massage Therapy Association, 44% of consumers over 65 years of age got their last massage for medical reasons.  This age group has tripled its use of massage over the last 10 years.  Massage is fast becoming a vital part of the health needs for seniors.

National Holistic Institute has reached out to seniors for a long time.  NHI Emeryville’s “Senior Center Day” during the recent holidays drew over 40 seniors from the Emeryville Senior Center!  They came to enjoy a free Shiatsu-style massage.

Student Life & Career Coordinator Aviana Lynn writes, ”Many seniors reported that their massages by the junior students were ‘fabulous,’ and they were eager to schedule future massages with the NHI student clinic as well as purchase gift cards for the enjoyment of friends and relatives.”

Holiday eggnog and pastries were provided by NHI, and many of the seniors were seen munching and chatting away long after their massages were over!