This week’s blog post is brought to you courtesy of Johnathan Levy, NHI student and author of The Book of Sun Chaser: Life As Eye See It. For many, NHI is not only a place to learn about massage therapy, but also a place to grow as an individual. A lot of our students take advantage of the flexibility of being a massage therapist by pursuing their passions alongside massage and healing.  Reggie Wright for example, continues along his path of being a musician as well as a massage therapist, the two constantly feeding and supplementing each other.

Johnathan has taken the opportunity to learn from the holistic and connective power of massage therapy and has included many snippets of advice, inspiration and wisdom that anyone, including his fellow massage therapists, could benefit from.

The Book of Sun Chaser: Life As Eye See It, is a collection of profoundly simplistic, divinely appointed, life inspired wisdoms, insights, and knowledge transcribed with an intention and purpose to motivate, encourage, challenge, question, inspire, illuminate and help. As I mention in my book, all that I have ever gone through, experienced, learned, been privy to, etc. I share in the most genuine and sincere hope that it can help another. Topics incorporated in The Book of Sun Chaser, include the concepts of Natural versus Super-Natural, Reacting versus Responding, Balance, Harmony, Energy, Self – Fulfillment, and a host of other topics designed to improve quality of life physically and metaphysically.

The concept of Natural versus Super-Natural refers to living a life of mediocrity, never truly pushing oneself, settling versus living a life of striving for excellence in everything that you make yourself available to. Reacting versus Responding refers to acting rashly and hastily off of emotion versus thinking before you act, speak, and or do, acting off an intelligent decision.  Balance, in life, in all aspects: mentally, physically, spiritually, and emotionally, resulting in increased Harmony in your life.  Also, being aware of your Energy and the Energy of your environment, whether it is positive and uplifting or negative and detrimental. And Self-Fulfillment, truly taking the time out to discover who you are and what makes you happy and fulfilled.

All of the mentioned principles and topics are all vital towards becoming a better human being. And by becoming a better human being, you will become better at what you apply yourself to.  A specific example of this being Massage Therapy. These principles, which mirror principles and knowledge shared at the National Holistic Institute of Massage Therapy, allow me as a Massage Therapist to be more grounded and in a state of peace; providing me greater control over my intention, awareness, understanding of various modalities, ailments, energy (Chi), emotional state, etc. Producing a more enjoyable and therapeutic session for my clients as well as myself.

Massage Therapy has directly improved my life experiences by allowing me to gain more knowledge of the human body, how it works, and how I can impact it. Thus increasing my ability to improve my quality of life, my ability to deliver aid, and heal in another form. As well as being an excellent networking tool. The world of Massage Therapy has exposed me to a more diverse and expanded segment of society. Another real life benefit of Massage Therapy is that it allows me to have greater control over my schedule and life. I am able to have the option now of when I want to “work” or devote time to other endeavors. Massage Therapy has in essence removed the constrictions, allowing me greater flexibility. This greater flexibility encourages and provides a platform for greater personal fulfillment.

~Johnathan Levy

At NHI we pride ourselves in making Anatomy fun and easy to learn for everyone.  We are fortunate enough to have a great collaborative relationship with the publishers of our Anatomy book we use, Trail Guide to the Body.  The staff at Trail Guide to the Body is happy to train our faculty on any new learning tools and advances in the field of Anatomy.  The Trail Guide is such a user friendly book, and now we have a companion Student Workbook and on-line tools for students and teachers alike.  Learning anatomy has never been easier and more rewarding!  And it is so much fun to learn about our own bodies work and then the bodies of our future massage clients!

Rhoni Hirst from Trail Guide to the Body recently wrote a warm email to NHI’s President and Vice President, sharing her regard for the devotion that our mentors showed toward the curriculum.

“Hi Mason and Tim,

I am not sure if you are aware but I have been holding some short trainings with your instructors regarding the complimentary online tools we offer for the Trail Guide to the Body text. We have 3 trainings completed and we have 3 more to go.

I spoke with Melissa this morning about how impressed I am with your crew and thought I would share this with you as well. Melissa has expressed how beneficial the trainings have been for the instructors and I told her how inspirational they have been for me… [I am amazed by] the focus, interest and enthusiasm I hear and feel from your instructors. It is very obvious to me that your instructors feel connected and know that they are a part of something bigger than just the classes they teach individually. There is also no doubt that this is filtering directly into your students as well.

I am sure it is not easy to keep such a big program so well connected but I have to tell you that, whatever you are doing over there, is working! Kudos to all of you!”

We feel honored to hear such wonderful words and would like to thank Rhoni for doing such a wonderful job bringing us up to speed on the latest Anatomy learning tools.  We’d also like to congratulate all of our mentors who were in the training sessions with Rhoni for showing their NHI spirit.  Here’s to many years ahead working with the Trail Guide to the Body and to making Anatomy accessible for everyone!

~National Holistic Institute

This week, we bring you a post from a few of our graduates – Gathering all they have learned at NHI, the San Jose campus alumni opened the Silicon Valley Massage Therapy Group, LLC.  Their doors opened to the public in November of 2011 and they are on their way to a thriving new business. Their mission? “Exceptional body work, Exceptional results”… and we know they mean what they say. Without further ado, please allow us to introduce NHI grad Bard Williams of SV Massage Therapy Group:

“NHI isn’t just a place to get a world-class education as a massage therapist – it’s also an incubator for new entrepreneurs.  As graduates we all have our dreams of how we might use our new skills – maybe a thriving private practice, working in an elegant spa, or following a sports team. There are lots of options!  As a marketing exec and “serial entrepreneur”, I’ve always liked the challenge of building a business from the ground up.  A massage practice has lots of moving parts and the process seemed nearly impossible at the beginning and I quickly realized that several heads were way better than one.  I didn’t have to look far – two other really talented therapists were sitting right next to me in class!  So, on 11/1/11, three NHI-San Jose students, Mayke Weiber, Javier Nikaido and I, launched the Silicon Valley Massage Therapy Group.

So, it’s official.  We’re a “Silicon Valley startup” with big dreams.  We quickly expanded the team to include fellow NHI student Sharon Lee whose amazing skills, positive energy and administrative talents helped us stay grounded and organized.  We found an amazing location and worked through the process of licensing and getting the space ready. Then, as we each became CAMTC certified, we picked up more NHI students and alumni as therapists or to help with reception work.  All of us continue to learn about the business of massage therapy. Luckily, we’ve got the support of classmates, our NHI instructors, friends, family and a whole bunch of people who appreciate our skills.

Now we’re all focused on attracting clients and building the practice. It’s so good to put into action the things we learned at NHI – from business and marketing to great bodywork, we all feel very prepared to move ahead with our dreams of a successful practice. We invite you to book a session with us online at www.svmassagetherapy.com or give us a call at (408) 260–CALM (2256), or contact us about employment opportunities at info@svmassagetherapy.com. Mention this blog post and we’ll give you a nice discount.”

 

Our 400 hour Advanced Neuromuscular Therapy Program has been growing rapidly since Cynthia Ribeiro (AMTA President-Elect) formulated the curriculum with NHI from her own popular Advanced Neuromuscular courses.  The program builds on the skills and knowledge that students who completed a comprehensive massage therapy program have already aquired.  This extra education puts graduates ahead of the competition and prepares them to be confident and knowledgeable in massage positions that require a deeper understanding of the science and anatomy behind massage therapy.

Hear from our graduates and instructors as they give you their personal perspective on how the program can open doors

Graduates of the Advanced Neuromuscular Therapy Program will be able to evaluate and differentiate between myofascial pain or dysfunction, as opposed to injury, and to employ effective techniques to address these issues with significant client results. They will be able to work as Massage Therapists in Pain Management settings such as Hospitals, Doctors’ offices, Physical Therapists’ offices, Rehabilitation Centers, in high-end spas and resorts, with sports teams and Sports Medicine settings, and as private practitioners with independent or referral-based clients.

To learn more about the program or contact an Admissions Representative,
Visit  http://nhi.edu/contact/index.html
or
Call  (800) 315-3552

I recently celebrated ten years of teaching at the National Holistic Institute, and this gave me an occasion to consider some of the life-enriching aspects of a career in bodywork.

Consider this: have you ever had a job you disliked? Perhaps you’ve even had a job you hated?!  If the answer is “yes”, then you already know what a drain it can be to have to work a job when your heart just isn’t in it. But then there is the economy! In this financial day and age, there are plenty of people who would settle for any work! Work can cause stress, to be sure… but not working can stress us even more.

So having work, it seems – particularly, work we can be passionate about – is a blessing.

The term “work” has interesting connotations. In some contexts, work could be synonymous with something arduous, something unpleasant. But in the spiritual tradition of Alchemy, the term “Work” has a very different implication: transformation! Not simply the transformation of lead into gold, the Magnum Opus, or ‘Great Work’, of the alchemists was about transformation generally – darkness into light, ignorance into knowledge, matter into spirit.

I would argue that, in this Alchemical Way, work we love can transform us, teaching us the lessons and providing us with the challenges we need to progress along the Path of our lives. Bodywork especially, with its emphasis on self-knowledge, compassion, safe space, and connection to another person, causes us to get real, to honestly confront our fears and limitations… and to overcome them so that we can continue to facilitate the healing of our bodies, our communities, and our planet.

Work that you love can transform you. Do you have Work You Love?

~William Mathis
Mentor, NHI Petaluma Campus