Newsletter: November 2006

Welcome
It is with great pleasure that we announce the re-birth of the BCMT newsletter and share with you the inaugural issue of Green Chi. We have chosen this name for all the wonderful things that these words represent and how they connect with BCMT's place in the massage therapy world today. Green Chi is a title that embodies healing & wellness, flow & balance. Green is the color of nature; it symbolizes growth, harmony and safety. The color green has great healing power. Chi is the life force energy that is needed to sustain all life; it is the universal flow of energy, the vital energy and spirit for all living things. We hope you enjoy our first and future issues of Green Chi.

BCMT Alumni Story: Susan Gladstone
I graduated from BCMT in March of 2000. October of 2001 I gave birth to a little girl with a breathing disorder that caused her to stop breathing when she fell asleep. She was given liquid caffeine and oxygen for her health condition, which made her a very jittery and tired baby. I gave my baby a massage every day for the year that she was sick. I was able to see a huge difference in her relaxation and massage helped her get the sleep that she needed. Michelle Kolakowski referred a Postpartum CMT to me, who, not only helped me, but helped my mother, my sister and my husband through regularly-scheduled massage for nearly a year.

One month after my baby, Lorelei, had overcome her health problem, I found two softball-sized malignant tumors growing on the outside of my stomach. Because of my body awareness, I found the cancer myself, when my OB and GP both said that I was just a woman whose body "would never be the same after having a child", and considered my symptoms as "nothing more than sleep deprivation". I could palpate the tumors. I continued looking for doctors until I finally was diagnosed with a terminal cancer that most people never know they have. I was lucky enough to get this diagnosed before it killed me, unlike most other GIST patients.

Unfortunately, my story doesn't end there. I have had eight abdominal surgeries since the original diagnosis. I have spent up to seven weeks at a time in the hospital, and went through eleven months of chemotherapy.

My daughter has been greatly affected by having a sick mommy. She has been diagnosed with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Again, massage has been one of the very few ways that I've ever been able to calm her, and over time, I believe it is helping her tremendously with her mental health and security. Together, we regularly practice breathing techniques that I learned in massage school, and over time, she has become as much of a "Massage Junkie" as her Mama J.

During the past four years of cancer treatments, I have utilized the talents and kindness of many CMTs. I think it is easy for people to get into a routine of their work and lose touch with the importance of it. I know for a fact that I would not be alive today if not for the massage I have received during these times. Offsetting the painful, medical touch with sensitive, caring touch has meant the world to me. I hope that all practitioners out there will hold on to the thought that they really are touching LIVES, and not just BODIES. It really makes a powerful difference.

In the Spotlight - Aspen Sullivan
It is only fitting, that, in this inaugural issue of Green Chi, we profile BCMT’s Alumni Manager, Aspen Michelle Sullivan. Many of you have spoken with Aspen by phone or have had contact with her through e-mail. Aspen has said on many occasions how good it feels to be able to provide guidance or assistance to our alumni whenever they contact her. In turn, she is genuinely grateful for the unwavering support of the alumni who participate in Career Night as speakers and who are available and accessible to prospective students.

One of the highlights for Aspen this past year was BCMT’s 30th Birthday Party where she had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with many of you. When asked what she would like the alumni to know about her, her enthusiastic response was, “I genuinely love working with the alumni and I want them to know that I am here for them!” She also wants the alumni to know that she hears, on a regular basis, compliments of the professionalism and the outstanding hands-on work of BCMT graduates from their student internship site directors to current and past employers. Aspen is a passionate supporter of the massage therapy profession and she is constantly seeking new opportunities for BCMT’s alumni. Aspen and BCMT’s Placement Coordinator, Nancy Specian, are working together to build relationships with businesses that have yet to hire our amazing BCMT graduates as well as those that do.

In addition to her role as Alumni Manager, Aspen is also the Community Internship Manager and a representative for BCMT at the Boulder Chamber of Commerce. As the Community Internship Manager, Aspen coordinates all of the student internships, community service projects and special events, such as the Bolder Boulder. Just as Aspen is always seeking out new opportunities for alumni, she is always searching for new venues for student internships. Aspen supervises fourteen internship supervisors and oversees the office of the Placement Coordinator.

If you have yet to contact Aspen, please take a moment to do so. She would love to hear from you! She is most generous with her time and her ideas (of which she has many!). Aspen promises that there’s a lot more to come! Join your Alumni Association……..check out the website…..it’s all there…..for you! For more information on the Alumni Association please [ click here ]

We Bought the Building!
We are pleased to announce the purchase of our campus, the college building and surrounding land, on Longbow Drive in Boulder , Colorado . This purchase is a testament to our determination to continue as an independent, not-for-profit massage college. For our students, this purchase means longevity, security and support throughout their education as current and future massage therapists of the world.

Our lease was scheduled to terminate at the end of June 2007. We found that we had three options, we could renegotiate the lease, move to another building, or purchase the building. Fairly quickly it was decided that moving was not a viable option. If BCMT could buy the building, then we would be making a profound statement about securing our presence in the local and global massage therapy community. We had the good fortune of having tenacious Board Member and retired banker, Stanley Guralnick, and skilled investment banker, Russ Caldwell, working on our behalf. Through their determination and expertise this dream has become a reality for BCMT. We closed on the purchase October 10 th and we are now the proud owner of a 31,000 square foot, state-of-the-art massage therapy training facility.

Thank you to the BCMT community for all your support throughout the years, we have a bright future ahead.

Continuing Education
Below is a listing of all winter quarter courses by program:

100-Hour Spa Elements Certificate Program
Hydrotherapy: January 13 - 14
Stone Massage: February 9 - 11
Aromatherapy and Herbal Applications: March 9 - 11

100-Hour The Art of Zen Certificate Program  
Masunaga's Meridian Extensions in the Leg: January 27-28
Masunaga's Meridian Extensions in the Arm: March 3 – 4

125-Hour Prenatal, Labor, Postpartum Certificate Program
Massage for Healthy Pregnancies: February 24 – 25
Massage for New Mothers: March 10 – 11

150-Hour Orthopedic and Sports Massage Certificate Program
Core Techniques & Foundations of Orthopedic and Sports Massage: January 19 – 21
Massage Therapy Management of Inflammation: The Acute Phase Through Rehabilitation: February 9 – 11
Neurovascular Compression Syndromes of the Upper and Lower Extremities: March 9 – 11

75-Hour Energy Healing Certificate Program
Vibrational Healing: February 2 – 4
Chi Kung Healing: March 2 – 4

100-Hour Canine Massage Certificate Program
Fundamental Techniques and Theories of Canine Massage: February 2 – 4
Pathologies and Clinical Application of Canine Massage: March 16 - 18

In addition to the certificate programs, BCMT offers several one-day, five-day or weekend continuing education classes:

Foot Reflexology: February 10
Hand Reflexology: March 17
Beginning Canine Massage: March 31
Comfort Touch Massage for the Elderly and the Ill: March 17 – 18
Therapeutic Movement in Bodywork: February 24 – 25

For further information our continuing education coordinator
ph: 303.530.2100 or 1.800.442.5131 (Outside Colorado )
e: continuinged@bcmt.org