This seminar applies all-new research from the fields of neurobiology and the social nervous system for all practitioners working in the healthcare field and especially massage therapists. Participants will learn specific empathetic skills of attunement and resonance which repairs damaged neurological pathways due to trauma.

This graduate-level training features leading-edge bodywork methods and theory that will allow you to bring your clients to greater levels of structural balance and body-mind integration. This dynamic combination provides new ways to image the body in its patterns of  organization, and to develop strategies that can address chronic musculoskeletal problems.

We offer our heartfelt congratulations to the students of Class 64 at the Body Therapy Institute, who began their educational journey in the Massage Therapy Diploma Program in March, and who graduated on October 29, 2014. We acknowledge their diligent work, and wish them well as they move into this new phase of their lives and careers!

Front Row: Nikki Fallon, Jennifer Fisher, Elyse Ewald, Polissena Campitelli, Debbie Garner-Transou, Angie Dix, Scarlett Pell, Cathy Murphy, Heather George.

Middle Row: Jessica Tysinger, Sara Gebhardt, Chloe Leona, Katherine Ellestad, Rachael Ballengee, Susan Linn, Brooke Griffith, Jane Stolper, Robin Montunnas.

Back Row: Liam O’Neill, Tonya Mason, Byran Walker, Eric Rodriguez, Sandra Kay Jordan, Jennifer Warren, Lori Edmonds, Andrew Wilson, Shane Hawkins.

BTI students and graduates learned about employment opportunities at a special Job Fair held on campus on October 1.

Representatives were on hand from Massage Envy, The Grove Park Inn & Spa, Hand and Stone, Skin Sense Day Spa, Dragonfly Health & Fitness and Balance Day Spa.

Our students and grads are highly sought-after by massage employers. This event was specifically designed to bring them together, so that relationships could be forged that lead to new career opportunities.

Justin Smith, Director of Recruiting and Development for Massage Envy in North Carolina, said, “It’s always a pleasure to come to BTI. I find the students here to be engaging and highly professional.”

At the recent AMTA National Convention in Denver, a group of trailblazers came together who all hold Massage License #1 in their respective states.

This honor is generally given to the person who has spearheaded the effort to secure licensure in that state. This was a first gathering for this group (left to right):

• Maureen Mulhall, LMT, Illinois
• BTI Founder & Co-director Rick Rosen, LMBT, North Carolina
• Jane Johnson, LMT, Georgia
• Paul Weston, LMT, Idaho
• Beverly May, CMT (who gets special credit for staying with the process for more than 20 years until California finally got state regulation)
• AMTA National President Nancy Porambo, LMT, Pennsylvania
• Deb Kimmet, LMT, Montana

All of these people still remain active, whether serving on their state massage board or holding other leadership positions in the field. 44 states plus the District of Columbia now have laws to regulate the practice of massage therapy. In each state, it’s taken a coordinated group effort to not only get a law passed, but to support the process of forming a new state board and developing the administrative rules that spell out the regulations for the board, schools and therapists alike.

This September, Body Therapy Institute begins its 32nd year of training massage therapists. From the early days as the first school to offer professional massage education in the Carolinas, BTI has become a national leader in the field.

We welcome our newest group of students in our Massage Therapy Diploma Program who began Class 65 last week. Here’s a photo taken after they completed their first full weekend of training, in the course called Introduction to Embodied Touch:

1st Row: Diana Currin, Sarah Galfano, Carrie Iandola, Emily Gardner-Hill, Marisol Legaria, Paty Kelly, Augustina Pablo Baldwin.
2nd Row: Ryan Prather, Gabi Prohn, Jeff Fife, Nathan Toptine, Jillian Diffenbaugh, Jill Peden, Paula Wald, Kathleen Wyatt.
3rd Row: Kristin Posson, Kate Dallas, Julie Anderson, Chantee Antar-Joyner, Michele Edwards, Amy Purcell.
4th Row: Christy Porter, Gabriele Gambill, Morgana Moore, Alex Barbato.
5th Row: Cadie DuPaul, Melinda Hunt, Bill Wright, Haley Booterbaugh, Regina Marie Letonek.
(not pictured: Jenni Reiff)

The Center for Embodied Teacher Education offers the country’s leading teacher certification program for massage, somatic and healthcare educators. Gain a solid foundation in the knowledge and skills required for effective teaching — while exploring the dynamic relationship between philosophy and methodology in an embodied learning environment.

Michael J. Shea, PhD is one of the preeminent educators and authors in the fields of somatic psychology, myofascial release and craniosacral therapy. He’s been presenting continuing education seminars and advanced training programs at the Body Therapy Institute over the past 25 years, and teaches throughout North America and Europe. He is author of the five volumes of Biodynamic Craniosacral Therapy (published by North Atlantic Books), which is considered the definitive reference on both theory and application of this leading-edge approach to whole-person healing.

Dr. Shea will be returning to BTI July 31-August 2 to present a new seminar entitled Craniosacral Therapy: Working Heart to Heart. This work is based on a new paradigm in craniosacral therapy called cardiopathy. “Cardio” means heart and vascular system. “Path” means to feel. Thus, a cardiopathic approach is to feel the health of the heart and vascular system in one’s self and the client with Primary Respiration and stillness. Cardiopathy is about delicate palpation skills. In this class, students will learn how and when to blend all previous learning in craniosacral therapy for the most effective treatment for the client.

This course, which is designed for both new and experienced craniosacral therapists, builds the framework for the whole cardiopathic approach to craniosacral therapy. Students will learn to cultivate the perceptual-touch necessary for sensing both deep metabolism of the autonomic nervous system and cardiovascular physiology. A dynamic new palpation skill to contact the entire vascular tree will be taught.

He received his master’s degree in Buddhist Psychology at Naropa University, and a doctorate in Somatic Psychology at The Union Institute. Dr. Shea was certified in 1986 as one of the first Full Instructors of CranioSacral Therapy by the Upledger Institute and was an advanced Rolfer for 20 years. As a formal student of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, his teaching style is grounded in his spiritual practice of developing compassion with the use of manual therapy. For many years he has also apprenticed with a medicine man on the Navajo reservation in Arizona. From these traditions, he brings a unique cross-cultural perspective to teaching health and healing.

You can get more information about Dr. Shea’s work from his website, www.michaelsheateaching.com.

For a complete workshop description and registration, go to this page on the BTI Website:
https://bti.edu/continuing-education/craniosacral-therapy

FREE SEATED MASSAGE and refreshments! Enjoy the beauty of a summer evening at South Wind Farm, and experience the relaxing touch of massage therapy. Learn more about our renowned Massage Therapy Diploma Program. Those attending will receive complimentary registration for an Introductory Massage Workshop at BTI (a $50 value).

On June 5-7, BTI is honored to again sponsor an Introduction to Traditional Hawaiian Healing Arts with S. Pualani Gillespie. This three-day workshop (open to the public) is a rare opportunity to experience a living tradition that will inform and deeply inspire you.

“Aunty Pua” Gillespie, raised in the Hawaiian culture as a young child, learned the concepts of Hawaiian dance, chant and massage from her family. Her lifelong career as a Registered Nurse Practitioner, and always a student of the healing arts, Aunty Pua was a patient and student of Aunty Margaret Machado (pioneer of Lomilimi massage) since 1989. Following her retirement from the field of Nursing in 1997, Aunty Pua began a full-time massage career and eventually returned to the Big Island of Hawaii in 2001 when she began teaching with the Machado family at their Beach house on Kealakekua Bay.

Since the passing of Aunty Margaret in 2009, Aunty Pua has continued to teach the sacred principles of Aunty Margaret as well as share the Traditional Bodywork principles with students from six continents. She feels it is her gift and mission to keep the traditional healing message alive and share the true meaning of Aloha with her colleagues in the healing arts family. In addition to her work in these traditional realms, she serves as a member of the AMTA National Board of Directors, and is dedicated to the process of bringing massage therapy into the domain of integrative healthcare.

In this unique workshop, you will learn about the teachings of the ancient Hawaiian Healing Arts that date back to the 16th century as Magellan documented them in his ship’s logs as he sailed through Polynesia. It is an opportunity to discover the True Heart of the Hawaiian Spirit of Aloha – the “living water” of unconditional love and acceptance that is the foundation for healing.

These methods have been carried forward in an unbroken chain and are still used today by the Kupuna (elders) from Hawaii Island (also known as the Big Island).

You will experience the flow of healing water – Mana Wai Ola – through Chant, Body Stretching and Lomilomi Massage – techniques that have been carefully handed down through the Hawaiian families and have survived the Western influence of the 19th and 20th centuries.

Traditional Hawaiian Healing Practices are rarely shared outside the Hawaiian Islands – and are not found on DVDs or in social media as they are sacred and respectful of the culture.

The sacred principles of Pule, Ho`oponopono and Aloha as taught by the legendary Aunty Margaret Machado (1916-2009) will be shared with the permission of the Machado family.

This workshop will include ceremony, instruction in bodytherapy, as well as time for reflection and spiritual integration. These experiences will combine to enrich you with a balance of mind-body surrounded by unconditional love and acceptance. You will leave with a new enlightenment and spirit to bring to your practice as well as life-changing principles to use as you walk your daily path.

NOTE: This is the only North American workshop being taught this year by Aunty Pua. The photos shown here were taken at last year’s workshop at BTI.

Contact the BTI Office at 919-663-3111 to register for this workshop, or use the secure Registration Form on this website.