SWIHA Blog

At Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, we dedicate ourselves daily to our mission of inspiring individuals to discover their gifts and graces and support them as they share their talents with the world in a loving and profitable way. It was this idea that resonated with SWIHA graduate, Melissa Richardson:  “I didn't want to work for anyone else,” she says, “I wanted to make my own way and chart my own course. I had my own ideas of how I wanted to participate and give to the world.”

Melissa is a licensed Massage Therapist in Buffalo, New York. She loves what she does and one day realized that, while she was making a difference for her clients, she felt she was only helping them temporarily and in a physical way.

Stories have been used in every culture, every language, to connect us to a larger self and universal truths. Whether they are myths, songs, paintings, or traditions, storytelling helps form a common goal, honor sacrifices, and pass down knowledge. They also have the ability to transport us to another time, place, or body and allow us to empathize with an experience we’ve never had.

There are two pretty amazing women who are leaving quite a legacy by capturing the stories of hundreds of women of all ages in a series of books. Living Brave...Finishing Strong is the fourth book of the Living Brave series by Dr. Hilda Villaverde and Mary Beth Stern.

As a massage therapist, you are consistently educating yourself on new techniques and modalities to better serve your clients. After all, you have been called to be a healer and improve the lives of others! You’re already aware of the transformative effect that bodywork has, and today we’ll look at some reason you may want to consider adding Hypnotherapy to your skill set to truly integrate mind-body-soul wellness.

“I've had a few starts and stops over the years,” says Amanda Dodd, a graduate of the Mind Body Wellness and Integrative Healing Arts programs, “what I really want is to be of service in a profound and healing way for others because it salves my soul. It's giving something that I haven't received in my own life.”

Amanda has been a holistic practitioner with many modalities for over a decade, practicing Reiki, Angel Card Readings and Mediumship. However, she always struggled to really launch herself out into the world with confidence.

Their world felt uneasy.  The normal pace and cadence of their lives were replaced with furtive looks and anguished disbelief mixed with panicked wonderment.   Everything seemed to have changed in an instant without warning, and now, there was no telling when it would return to the familiar and constant.    Does this description sound like your world today?

This is the description of the City of Jerusalem during the Week of Passover when Jesus the Christ was presented as the Passover Lamb.  Those who were Christ-followers were shaking their heads in disbelief wondering, “Was this same man who performed miracles right before our eyes who now, seemingly unrecognizable, is standing before us as in complete vulnerability?”

Dear Greater SWIHA Community,

As the new reality of social distancing, stay-at-home edicts, and increased pessimism has overtaken the media, we have become more committed than ever to stay energetically close and virtually connected.

Here’s what we are doing:

What do we do after experiencing a tragedy? How do we come back from a major setback? Is there hope after living a life of self-destruction and despair? Is it possible to heal and move forward in a positive direction after our deepest hurts? By taking the initiative to make positive changes, to let go, and to say ‘yes’ to transformation and growth, we can connect with our truest self, and spare ourselves even more suffering.

The Environmental Working Group (EWG) is an activist group that researches and advocates for reducing toxic chemicals and drinking water pollutants as well as corporate accountability for releasing such things into the environment. Each year, they review testing from the U.S Department of Agriculture regarding pesticide residue and release two lists: “The Clean Fifteen” and “The Dirty Dozen”. This year's ranking of pesticide contamination takes into account 47 varieties of fruits and vegetables based on 43,000 plus data points.

Our bodies are filled with electrical and chemical impulses that keep our brain and body in constant communication. Most of the time, we actively decipher the information and can quickly interpret it; a common example of this is when we accidentally touch a hot surface, our body moves away without conscious thought to do so.

However, in traumatic situations, our body can’t tell the difference between physical danger and emotional distress. It logs the memory deep within our tissues, which triggers the body to release the same chemical and electrical impulses anytime a sound, smell, sight or sensation comes along that reminds our subconscious of the trauma. The primal part of the brain believes its body to be in physical danger, which is why trauma survivors have physical symptoms for weeks, months and, many times, years.

Dear Great Community of SWIHA,

Please, above all, let us choose to be alert, conscious and calm as we seek to respond to the COVID-19 (Novel coronavirus). Let us not get consumed in doom, gloom or panic.

Like so many other organizations and colleges in the country, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts is taking the occurrence of the COVID-19 (Novel coronavirus) very seriously.  We have consciously chosen to remain calm and cautious.