I did my initial Massage Therapy Training in Atlanta.  It was a 1250 hour  course, taught apprenticeship style.  I spent my first 5 years in practice working with an honest-to-god adjusting osteopath and an orthopedic surgeon inside an orthopedic surgery group. It was an incredible experience and really expanded my education in both knowledge and application.  We treated a lot of people with unexplained chronic pain. People who hurt, all the time, often without any apparent physical cause.  No apparent pathology, nothing I (or the doctors) could trace.  Traditional medical tests often came up negative or inconclusive, and thus I began a long journey of discovery. 

Many types of pain, including chronic pain, are in fact muscular in origin, or are triggered by commonly overlooked, and easily treatable influences.

Othopedic and range of motion muscle testing is both muscle specific and scientific, allowing you to quickly see what muscles are impairing movement and causing pain.  From there, observing and palpating movement patterns reveals adhesions that reduce joint movement and flexibility.  Once you understand how it all interacts, it's much easier to treat.  We see remarkable results in our chronic pain patients, many of whom are able to reduce or eliminate their use of prescription painkillers (under medical approval and supervision) as they progress in their treatment. With Deep Tissue release of Trigger Points and adhesions, we release the muscle tension and dysfunctional holding patterns. Adding Neuro-muscular re-education techniques helps break the cycle of holding patterns and the pain they create, letting the body move naturally, often restoring normal function.

I expect my clients to feel relief in their first session. Sometimes there is some soreness, but they should feel a noticeable improvement in the quality of their movement.  If I can't get consistent and significant improvement in 3 sessions, I'll do my best to send the client to someone who can. I just don't see the point in living with pain if it can be avoided. 

Painkillers may make you feel better, but they won't make you healthy.

Sometimes a client comes along who shows no improvement at all, even with advanced testing and therapy techniqes. This prompted me to look into a number of alternative healing ideas and techniques over the last 20 years.    I have come to believe that some people who don't heal well have an unresolved or unreleased  emotional issue related to the injury or surgery.  The problem is, the physical symptoms are very real, so you can't just tell someone "it's all in your head", because it isn't.  Besides, it's a VERY insulting thing to say.  My research led me to Hypnosis as a way to help clients release unresolved emotions. After a few years of trying different Hypnotherapists and analyzing their methods, I decided to become certified.  That led me to Katherine Zimmerman, a Hypnotherapist and Teacher, who conducted much of my training, and told me about EFT.  EFT stands for Emotional Freedom Techniques, and it is the fastest way I've ever seen to remove fear and trauma.  I've used it on everything from accident victims who hated to drive, to people who just hate heights, spiders, rats, closed spaces etc. 

In 1991, I moved west, (AZ) and began teaching Massage Therapy in 92 as a guest instructor for Pima Medical Institute.  I was part of the Law & Legislation Committee when the laws for Massage Therapists in Phoenix were re-written. I spent most of this time in private practice, and teaching the public about what is involved in different types of massage.  The heat eventually got to me, and I moved to California. I began doing some legislative work in CA along with private practice, and I ran a therapeutic clinic in Sacramento.  Housing prices being what they are in California, we decided to move to a more affordable part of the country, and settled on NC.  Getting my license took almost 6 months, but the ordeal is finally over and I can get back to doing what I love.  I continue to teach seminars and workshops on a variety of subjects related to Massage Therapy, Stress Reduction, PTSD, and EFT.

About Continuing Education:

There is a lot of debate and controversy over "distance education" in massage. I love this field, and there is a lot I still want to learn.  I've continued my studies in orthopedic and medical massage, both in and out of classrooms. The techniques I'm interested in will keep me in classes for years to come. I do a LOT of reading, but reading a book will not make you proficient in any technique that requires palpation to assess and deliver.   Once I've heard and read about a technique, if I'm still interested, I'll find someone who is trained for it, and experience it for myself.  If I like it, and would like to add it to my practice, I sign up for the class.    Every class listed on the Education list was an in person class.  I firmly believe that techniques that rely on palpation skills to deliver the best results should not be taught any other way.  Our profession is not well served by distance education alone.

I'm currently a memeber of the ABMP, the USMMA, and the IHF. 

I received my National Certification in Medical Massage Therapy in 2005.