Author: Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

NC Licensed Massage and Bodywork Professional #7619; MA Gifted Talented Education/English from Appalachian State University; Mixed-media Artist
Massage & Bodywork

Massage when Money Is Tight

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller
money stress
Stress can wreak havoc on the body. Massage can help relieve stressors and initiate the parasympathetic "rest and digest" response. Image by Renjith Krishnan at FreeDigitalPhotos.net. To see Renjith's portfolio, click the link at the end of the post.

If the economic downturn and summer vacation expenses have got you thinking that you need to cut back on spending, you are not alone. But if you’re thinking, “Massages are a luxury that I can easily forego,” think again. Massages are an investment in your health.

The recent discussion in Congress about the drain on our country’s resources by healthcare costs has made us aware that poor health is expensive. Besides lost workdays, the costs of visits to the doctor and medications can mount up even if you are insured.

That’s not even putting a value on the time you spend in waiting room or on the quality of life lost when you are debilitated by pain and disease.

Receiving massage from a capable, qualified massage therapist can relieve pain and greatly improve your physical and emotional health.

Therapeutic massage:

  • Increases circulation thereby benefiting the organs and muscles on a cellular level by increasing their oxygen and nutrient supply;
  • Stimulates the lymphatics thus supporting the body’s natural immune response;
  • Flushes toxins from the tissues;
  • Stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system, improving the “rest and digest” response (and calming “fight or flight”);
  • Loosens adhesions in the fascia and tissues;
  • Relieves chronic pain;
  • Provides “safe touch” for people who don’t otherwise receive tactile contact (touch helps reduce stress);
  • Relieves anxiety and emotional stressors;
  • Releases endorphins to promote feelings of well-being and reduce depression.

Wow! With all the benefits of massage, it looks like Congress would add that the the healthcare package!

The fact is we are living in the greatest economic downturn since the Great Depression. And besides the financial stressors and threats of job loss, we are coping with the ordinary demands that plague us anytime, such as the demands of families, friendships, loss, transitions, illness, pain, and similar circumstances.

Massage can help you deal with these stressors and can help you maximize the return on your other self-care measures.

Regular massages are a sound investments. Pain and stress are expensive. Getting a massage is an investment in your future health.

Image: renjith krishnan / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Continuing Education, Tapestry Life Resource

Usui Reiki II Class Offered

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller
Reiki kanji and hands
Reiki is a powerful energy healing modality that anyone can learn.

Now that I’ve received my NCBTMB Approved Provider number (451254-10), I am pleased to announce that I will be teaching an Usui Reiki II class on August 7, 2010, at the Wepner Wellness Center, LLC, in Newton, from 9 AM – 6 PM for 8 CE hours for licensed massage and bodyworkers. However, you can take the class whether or not you are a LMBT if you have the Usui Reiki I prerequisite.

The cost is $150 if you register by July 23, and $200 thereafter. 

Reiki is the first modality I learned. In fact, I probably would never have considered massage school if it hadn’t been for Reiki. One of the students whom I know will be attending this Reiki II class just told me today that she is enrolling in massage school in the fall. Including myself, she is the third person I know who came to massage and bodywork by way of Reiki.

Reiki (pronounced ray-key) is an energy modality that was developed during the last century by Dr. Mikao Usui, a Japanese healer. (The history of Reiki is readily available online and is both interesting and controversial.) The word itself means “universal life energy”, and Reiki is administered by “laying-on hands”. It is a simple and powerful technique that can be learned by anyone. It is passed from teacher to student by attunement. 

The thing that continues to excite me about Reiki is that first of all, it works, and secondly, that experiments in quantum physics are proving this beyond doubt. I use Reiki nearly every day on myself, my clents, and even my dog and my plants. Furthermore, what Dr. Usui, other Eastern healers and their patients, and countless Reiki practitioners have proven by experience is now being proven in Western laboratories through double-blind studies.

One of the things that quantum physicists have proven is the existance of the Zero-Point Field, which is a substructure of energetic frequency (sometimes wave and sometimes particle) that underpins the universe. The Zero-Point Field also functions as a recording medium of everything, providing a means for everything to communicate with everything else. When you consider that on a subatomic level, cells and DNA also communicate through frequencies unrelated to the physical nervous system and that they also communicate directly with the Zero-Point Field, you have the basis for how Reiki works. 

Reiki makes use of the energy from the Zero-Point Field to balance the Human Energy Field. The attunements that Reiki healers receive (and that students will receive in my class) set intentions that, incredibly, are part of the record of the Zero-Point Field and serve to insure that Reiki does no harm to the healer or the client. It seems that the more people who hold and intention over time, the greater the probablility that the intention becomes “fixed” and affects the physical universe from its quantum origin.

Reiki kanji
The Reiki kanji: the top symbol is "rei" or "universal", and the bottom symbol is "ki" or "life force"."

If this seems to resonate with your own understanding of how things work and you’d like to take the class, please contact me through my website or my email link. 

The Usui Reiki II course outline includes:

  • Atunement to the Usui Reiki II symbols
  • Meanings and uses if the Usui Reiki II symbols
  • Self-healing teachniques
  • Working with clients and distance healing
  • Building a Reiki practice
  • Ethical considerations
  • Hands-on practice
  • Certificate of attendance
Massage & Bodywork

Join Your Professional Organization

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

I attended the AMTA-NC Conference (American Massage Therapy Association) in Hickory over the past weekend. It was a wonderful experience. I took some wonderful continuing education— one on Deep Tissue Made Easy taught by Eric Stephenson was especially good— made some new friends and visited with old ones, and met some vendors with whom I’ll probably continue to do business.

Before I became a massage therapist, I was a teacher. I have always belonged to my professional organizations, and I find it hard to understand when others don’t. The reason I most often hear is that the professional groups are too expensive. However, I would counter that it is more expensive not to join. I certainly get direct personal value for my money, and I have a voice on a state and national level that I wouldn’t have otherwise.

For example, this first of two AMTA-NC Conferences this year cost me $200, which was $100 less than for attendees who were not AMTA members. For that I got 15 hours of usable continuing education. I went to the AMTA volunteer luncheon, so I ate one meal free, and the night before I went to the AMTA social that had heavy hors d’oeuvres and let that be my dinner. During both these meals, I interacted with other AMTA massage therapists and felt the kind of cameraderie that comes from being with people who share the same passion. The conference was held in my town, so I didn’t have to get a motel room. The fall 2009 Conference was in a nearby city, and again I drove. The next one will be in Cary, which will mean I have to find a place to stay, but those two nights won’t be too much extra considering I will have gotten 45 hours of continuing education for about $600, networked with other MTs who may send me referrals, and met teachers, vendors and MTs who can give me usable ideas that I can apply to my business now. As a member, I can also go to any of the district continuing education offerings in the state and learn other techniques for a reasonable cost. I can even check out videos of different modalities from the AMTA-NC library for free and further expand my knowledge base.

On a state and national level, the AMTA supports me by lobbying for legislation that maintains the integrity of massage therapists as professionals and balances the amount of regulation between what keeps us safe and reputable and what limits our ability to do our jobs. So far, I have no grievances with how this is being done or with how I am being informed of what is happening. I am glad someone is fighting for me.

There are other benefits I get from AMTA that are similar to the ones I get as a retired member of NCAE (North Carolina Association of Educators) and NEA (National Education Association). These include liability insurance, other insurance offers (particularly important for MTs as they are offer group rates for people who are very often self-employed), discounts on products and services, and legislative updates.

As a retired educator, I was recently elected vice president of the Catawba County Retired School Personnel. My job will be mostly to find programs for our meetings. CCRSP is the local unit of the North Carolina Retired School Personnel and is connected to the NCAE and the NEA, both of which I was a member from the time I took my first teaching position in 1973.

For my entire teaching career, NCAE fought for higher salaries, lower class sizes, a research-based curriculum model, and better conditions for students and teachers. I never minded paying my dues, and during the best years, I worked in schools that had a 100% membership. That simple fact gave us more clout with the local adminstration and school board, the state legislature, and Congress. Sadly, many teachers in the schools currently do not belong to NCAE/NEA. I see many of the reforms for which we fought by going to Raleigh, marching, and speaking directly to legislators falling like a house of cards. I have no doubt that those who stand together are stronger than those who stand apart.

That said, I’d like to encourage you to join your professional organizations, no matter what your profession. It is my experience that these organizations try to self-regulate the profession in ways that maintain the integrity of the members and to keep unnecessary legislation from doing for us what we should be doing for ourselves. Likewise, it provides a network of other professionals enabling us to learn from each other and support each other. Finally, it give us a voice that comes from the very people who are most affected by regulations and who understand and care about the professions they love. That seems a bargain to me.

Self-Care & Finding True Nature

Forgiving Ourselves

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller
man in shadow
Getting free of our superego’s constant criticism can enable us to relate more authentically with ourselves and others.

I always look forward to the Easter season. When I was working in the public schools, I got a week’s vacation, and that was worth something in itself. But now that I’m a massage therapist and not teaching, I still look forward to Easter. Maybe more so this year because the winter was so cold.

Easter heralds spring and new life. Not a little of its charm, I think, is its coming after the season of Lent when we are charged to look into our own hearts and to acknowledge the ways we have fallen short in our lives. Somehow, as it is meant to do, Easter morning redeems that forty days of introspection, and everything feels crisp, clean, and possible.

One of the challenges of Lent and Easter is to forgive the people who have taken advantage of us, who have broken faith, who have ignored our wishes and needs. That is easier for me to do when I remember to live in the present moment and don’t constantly replay the tapes of my past. Indeed, living in the present cures more than just my victim mentality.

Still, when it comes right down to it, the hardest person for me to forgive is the one who looks back from the mirror each morning. I guess part of our hardwiring as human beings includes a superego voice whose sole purpose it to judge and criticize our every thought and move–to make us feel bad about ourselves.

Of course, occasionally the superego pats us on the back and tells us how much better we are than some other poor slob, but that kind of narcissism is just as deadly to our self-forgiveness as the constant critical voice.

Indeed, if we are honest, we often don’t forgive others because they have in fact hit the very sore spot that our superego has been attacking our whole lives. 

The only way we can be free to forgive ourselves (and others) is to tell the superego to shut up! When I first started trying to do this, I was met with even more guilt and shame because it felt to me like I was telling my mother to shut up, which was not a good idea in my childhood home. A wise friend helped me see that the difference was that my mother’s criticism came from a place of love, but my superego has no emotions. Its purpose it to make me feel rotten about myself or rotten about everyone else.

Originally, my superego may have started as the voice of my mother trying to protect me, and its function may have been to protect me. But I have outgrown its scare tactics and its self-righteous analysis of events. I am not a child anymore. I have experience of my own to draw upon. I don’t need protecting and certainly not by a disembodied, cold, cruel imitation of someone who actually had my best interests at heart. I can tell it to shut up!

Once my superego is silenced, I begin to see that whether my mistakes of the past were made from ignorance, fear, anger, or even hatred, they came from a place that now deserves compassion. (Surprisingly, I also see the same is true for others.) I can begin to atone for my mistakes, either directly if it is possible, or indirectly if direct recompense would make matters worse. I can begin to acknowledge my weaknesses and also begin to see my strengths. I can get in touch with something inside myself that is good and true. I can begin to really like that person in the mirror. 

The critical voice of the superego is not honest conscience. My Enneagram teacher, Don Riso, told me that you will know the difference between the two by their fruits. My conscience tells me what is good, decent and right. My superego attacks no matter what decision I make. It is just as relentless when I am gentle and kind as it is when I am forceful and cruel.

When I silence my superego, I can begin to allow a deeper place to open inside. That is the place of my true self. It is a place that knows what is good and true and beautiful because that is its own nature. It is connected to Source. It can be found in the silence that comes when I tell my superego, “Shut Up!”

Massage & Bodywork, Tapestry Life Resource

Intention

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

fractal
Image from TrixiePixGraphic.com Free Fractals

During our February couples massage special, I met a client who has since become a colleague and a friend.

During our first massage session, she was interested in my Theta Healing work, which I was happy to talk about since I had just finished the Advanced Theta Healing class in Greensboro. She said it nicely complemented her work with Matrix Energetics and suggested we do a phone session trade. I eagerly agreed as it gave me an opportunity to practice my skills and receive work myself. This marked the beginning of a ride I am finding immensely exciting.

My friend is correct that the Theta Healing work and the Matrix Energetics work have some similarities. In our first and second sessions, we have both cleared some limiting belief patterns she using Matrix Energetics with me and I using Theta Healing with her. We’ve also read the first books in the other’s disciplinemdash; I read Matrix Energetics by Richard Bartlett, and she read Theta Healing by Vianna Stibal so we both have an idea about what the other is referencing.

I have enjoyed Bartlett’s decidedly more scientific approach to the idea of healing in an instant. He uses ideas developed by quantum physicists to explain his work. He provides the “brain candy” I need to understand is happening when seeming miracles happen. My friend has enjoyed Stibal’s more spiritual style and finds structure in the explanation of the seven planes. We plan to continue our phone sessions.

The work has sparked me to read more about quantum physics and the inquiry into consciousness, the effect of the observer on the outcome, and the Zero-point field of random, conscious energy that may hold the key to destroy the notion that there is no God. At the very least, it confirms that we are all connected and that whatever we do affects everything else.

I began reading The Field, by Lynn McTaggart just after Bartlett’s first book. McTaggart is a journalist reporting on the scientific research into the mysterious field and its implications for us as healers and as humans living on this planet. If you like this sort of scientific confirmation of what the mystics has said since the dawn of time, I urge you to read it and then comment.

This is not the place for me to try to explain Zero-point theory though perhaps I will talk about it more in later blogs. For now, others can explain the theory more concisely and eloquently. What I want to say here is that what we think when we interact with another matters. If I, as a massage therapist, touch a client with the intention of helping him/her out of pain, that result is more likely to occur than if I give the massage thinking about the fee I will collect at the end of it. My intention influences outcome.

I am excited by the implications of this work and my research. This I have felt were true are being proven true in quantum physics. The science has far-ranging spiritual implications, and I am excited to learn more.

Massage & Bodywork, Tapestry Life Resource

Taking Care of Winter Feet

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

 

eight toesCooler weather means losing the sandals and stuffing our feet back into socks, hosiery, and closed-toe shoes and boots. It is likely that your feet will protest, and by the end of the day, they may ache from their confinement.

Keeping your feet flexible can combat many of the aches as well as postural problems. I was surprised when my chiropractor, Dr. Matt Crouse of Crouse Chiropractic, told me that my tilted pelvis and neck problems were a result of my over-pronated, flat feet. It makes sense; the feet are your body’s foundation. If something is amiss with them, it can affect the alignment of your whole body.

The foot is an amazing structure. Each foot has 26 bones (together the feet account for a quarter of all the bones in your body), 33 joints, and over a hundred muscles, tendons, and ligaments. Both strong and delicate, this complex structure takes an incredible amount of stress with each step we take.

If your feet are bound up in shoes all day, and you don’t counter the stress with exercise, the bones and muscles can degenerate and lose tone. Likewise, the joints and tendons can freeze up rather than gliding freely as they should.

So how do we care for our feet in the fall and winter months?

Practice foot exercises and stretches.

  • A simple stretch is to sit in a chair or on the floor and thread your fingers through the toes. Press gently between each toe to relax and release the tension of the foot muscles. The gently pull on the end of the toe and wiggle it to stimulate chi. Finally, rub your fist down the foot from the ball to the heel to release the plantar fascia.
  • Pick up a pencil or other objects with your toes.
  • Raise your body up and down on your tiptoes.
  • Fill a plastic bottle with water and freeze it. Place the frozen bottle on the floor, and roll your foot over the bottle. (You can also do this with a ball—a golf ball is particularly good.)
  • Write the alphabet in the air with your toes.
  • Using a scarf, towel, or resistance band under the ball of the foot, pull the foot back in a dorsiflexed position and hold 10 seconds.

Alternate shoes each day.
Changing shoes each day allows the shoe to dry out and extends their life. Your shoes absorb about a quarter cup of perspiration each day. You can wear the same brand shoe, but I’ve found that if I change styles each day, my flat feet are happier.

Invest in a good pair of athletic shoes for exercise.
Buy the right shoe for your exercise. If you play tennis, buy tennis shoes, not running shoes and vice-versa. Buy the right shoe for your gait. Feet that over-pronate need a different shoe than feet that over-supinate. (See article in our newsletter Warp & Weft ) Replace athletic shoes when they wear-out; athletic shoes lose their support over time.

Wear moisture-absorbing socks.
Foot moisture can lead to blisters, fungus, and foul odor. Socks and foot powder can help. If blister are an ongoing problem, try putting a thin layer of petroleum jelly on your foot as a preventative.

Have your gait and foot-strike analyzed. Buy custom orthotics if necessary to correct.
Postural analysis, shoe-wear analysis, digital foot/gait scanners, and bone density evaluations can give you a great deal of information about your feet. See your chiropractor, podiatrist or doctor. Some shoe stores now have digital foot/gait scanners, and if it has been a while since you had your foot measured for size, you should have that done again as well.

Keep your feet clean.
Moisture and dirt can cause fungal infections and gritty abrasions. Don’t forget to dry between the toes.

With proper care, you can avoid both foot problems and their attendant structural effects like low back and shoulder/neck pain. Take care of your feet this winter.

Miscellaneous

Take a “Stay-cation”: Cool things to do at home.

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

I had hoped to send this out with my newsletter, but time is wasting so I’m going to blog it until the newsletter is finished. Don’t miss these fun things to do in western NC during August and September.

Warp & Weft Newsletter article:
I had a positive reaction to my stay-cation column last month, so I decided to extend it into August and September.

I’ve added more cool things to do in our own neighborhood. Daytrips are fun for the whole family or just as a break for yourself.

I’ve only repeated events that occur in August or continue on additional dates. Check our archives for the older article in the July newsletter.

Ongoing

old salem children<Old Salem, Winston-Salem Old Salem was founded in 1766 by the Moravians. The settlers were respected for their architecture, and visitors enjoy seeing the attention to detail the Moravians gave to the buildings in the Old Town, where costumed tradespeople recreate the life of the 18th century community. The site also includes four unique museums and eleven period gardens. If you’ve only visited Old Salem with a school group, you’ll enjoy seeing it at a more leisurely pace. It’s open Tues. -Sun.

Pack Place Located in downtown Asheville, Pack Place is the home of the Asheville Art Museum, Colburn Earth Science Museum, Diana Wortham Theater, YMI Cultural Center, and The Health Adventure. They have a variety of exhibits and activities, the admission is reasonable, and although they are getting a facelift, they are open throughout the week in the summer.

Western NC Nature Center Also in Asheville off I-40 exit 53B, the WNC Nature Center has a main exhibit area, a predator habitat, an otter habitat, nocturnal hall, petting area, nature trail, and educational farm. It offers many programs for children and adults. It provides a home for injured, orphaned or imprinted animals that could not survive on their own; this facility is also one of 28 in the country participating in the red wolf re-introduction program.

Emerald Village, Little Switzerland My ancestors are from Little Switzerland, so I am partial to the place. Emerald Village is a gem mine where you can dig for your own gems, watch artisans shape the gems into jewelry, or tour the exhibit of gems and minerals native to the area. There’s an indoor and outdoor area, and they guarantee you’ll find a gem. The cost is reasonable, and it’s a different sort of outing for the family.

Special Events
47th Art in the Park, Blowing Rock, Aug. 15, Sept. 12, Oct. 3 Blowing Rock is fun anytime, and the temperature is usually about 10 degrees cooler than it is in Hickory. The little village has shops, antique stores, restaurants, and an outlet park on the main highway. Art in the Park, which happens once a month in the spring and summer, is a special treat with about 100 juried artists and craftspeople exhibiting jewelry, pottery, woodworking, painting, photography, fiber and glass. The times are 10am -5pm in downtown Blowing Rock. Make a day of it.

120th Soldiers’ Reunion, Newton, Aug. 13-23 The Soldiers Reunion in Newton features different events each day. The most well-known is on Thurs., Aug. 20, when all-day activities on the square around the Old Courhouse culminate in a Parade at 5 pm. Other popular events include the Crusin’ Car Show on Aug. 16, Beach Music on Aug. 18, and a street dance on Aug. 19. For a full schedule, click the link above.
Note: Julie and I will be doing chair massage on Aug. 20 all day until the parade. Come and check out our booth.

Mile High Kite Festival, Beech Mountain, Sept. 6 Beech Mountain is the highest city in the eastern US, so it’s cool in the summer. The Kite Festival is an annual event during the Labor Day weekend that offers kite enthusiasts the rare chance to fly a kite at a mile above sea level. Richmond Air Force, Wings Across Carolina Kiting and Okra Society Kiting Clubs will be exhibiting. and kite building and decorating clinics will be offered, so be sure to bring your supplies.

Massage & Bodywork

Learning Hot Stones Massage

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

Last month I went to two continuing ed classes in one week. I attended a hot stones class taught by Darinda Davis at the Privai Academy in Asheville, and then I was a teaching assistant at the Craniosacral Therapy I class in Raleigh taught by Tad Wanveer of the Upledger Institute. Both were amazing.

I wanted to go to the hot stones class because I wanted to learn the safety protocol. I’ve had hot stones massage and watched videos. I felt reasonably confident that I could give the massage (although my gracefulness in applying the stones needs more practice), but I wanted to be sure that I understood about temperatures and cleaning so that I would not only give a good hot stones massage, but a safe one.

Darinda Davis was a wonderful teacher. She covered all the things I wanted to learn and more. I learned to heat the stones with both wet heat in a roaster and dry heat with a griddle. I learned to season my stones with oil, much like one might season an iron frying pan, and to place them in the roaster according to their intended use. I learned how to set and gauge the temperature of the roaster and stones for safe application and how to clean the stones during and after the massage.

Most importantly, I learned to apply the hot stones to my client in a manner that minimizes discomfort and injury and maximizes pleasure and health benefits.

Since the class, I’ve given five hot stones massages to my most regular clients who graciously consented to be my practice guinea pigs.  All of  them enjoyed the way the heat of the stones penetrated to the bone. One said that the massage made her feel more energized than my normal Swedish massage. Another left the office, talked about the massage at her next stop, and made a referral for me. 

I’m still working on a graceful application, but I am confident of understanding the safety issues. I’ve really enjoyed doing these massages– even in the hot weeks of August. In fact, I plan to take Darinda’s Advanced Hot Stones Massage class in the fall and Janet Blevins’ Advanced Native American Hot Stones Massage and her Facial Massage with Gemstones in November at the Southern Spa and Salon Conference.

I love learning new things. Learning the safe way to do a hot stones massage has been great fun, and giving the massages expands my expertise and lets me offer my clients more relaxation and a greater health benefit through a different modality

.

Massage & Bodywork

Mixing Modalities

Suzanne Hollifield-Eller

I recently joined an Internet social network that asked what modalities I used in my massage and bodywork practice.

The question caught me a little off-guard. I use everything I know with every massage.

By that, I mean that every modality that I’ve learned (and The Whole You, where I attended massage school, taught us a wide range of techniques and modalities) helps me analyze and determine what tools I have for giving the best massage for the client’s

individual needs.

For example, if someone comes in complaining of lower back pain, I ask questions to determine the cause (if  known), the level and quality of the pain, the duration of the pain, when and where it hurts,  what level of pressure the client prefers, and what outcome he/she is hoping to achieve. I also observe posture and range of motion before the client ever comes to the table.

Depending on those answers, I might decide that Neuromuscular Therapy is needed to release trigger points, or I might decide that Craniosacral Therapy is more likely to release fascia and energy cysts without causing the client additional pain and discomfort. While I am working, I may  use Reiki or Polarity to balance the energy and Touch for Health techniques to test the treatment and further balance the body and emotions.

It is my experience that nothing we learn is really useless. Every time I read an article in a massage journal or get a massage myself, I learn something valuable about the way the human body responds to informed touch. I make it a point to learn and practice something new every week  so that my abilities grow and my clients benefit.

I never give the same massage twice. It’s what keeps this work exciting.