30 years ago this year, with a prayer and a small loan from my husband, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, came into existence. Starting with two classrooms and 6 students, the college has grown to 16 classrooms, in three buildings, serving nearly 600 on-campus students, and nearly as many online students across the country.
As a longtime student of A Course In Miracles, one day long ago I prayed in earnest what is known as the ‘miracle prayer’: “What would you have me do? Where would you have me go? What would you have me say, and to whom?” From that prayer came the vision of creating a place where individuals could come to discover their gifts, where education would not be a “cookie cutter” experience and where individual expression and diversity was encouraged and honored. Starting as a massage college, SWIHA is striving 30 years later by offering 16 Certificates of Excellences, 10 different diplomas, Associates in Healing Arts, and over 300 individual continuing education classes.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
SWIHA,
KC Miller,
Massage School,
Southwest Institute of Natural Aesthetics,
Arizona,
spirit of yoga,
Tempe,
Yoga studio,
Holistic Education,
Arizona Yoga Studio,
Arizona Massage School,
Thirty Years,
ACCET,
Massage Clinic,
Thirty Year Anniversary,
Thirty and Thriving
What was your life like before SWIHA? What led you to SWIHA and to your particular program of study? Why are you passionate about this modality?
Before SWIHA, I was a Chef who worked long hours at a fine dining farm-to-table restaurant & was a hairstylist on the side. I love to cook and especially loved embracing the sustainability aspect of sourcing our ingredients and how everything connected full circle. Although I loved cooking, as many people know kitchens can be quite a challenging and sometimes toxic environment to be submerged in. At that point in my life, I was deeply depressed and longed to do something that felt more fulfilling to my soul. For me, this "cycle of depression" triggered an awakening of sorts. I began venturing my journey of "internal" personal development (outside my physical fitness) and sought out schools that spoke to my soul path. After studying myself and creating a boatload of interests, everything on my list pointed to holistic health and wellness. I discovered SWIHA at the beginning of my journey and finally answered the call to enroll 10 years later!
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Holistic Nutrition,
holistic entrepreneur,
SWIHA,
Mindfulness,
Intuition,
Spirit,
Holistic wellness,
Arizona,
Tempe,
community,
Holistic Education,
conscious community,
GRIT,
Divine Timing,
Holistic Health and Wellness Coaching,
Holistic Health and Wellness Coach,
Spiritual Wellbeing,
Microbiome
It is easy to feel self-doubt when you are an aspiring entrepreneur. Imposter syndrome starts to creep into your mind and you begin to feel like you aren’t up to the challenge that a once “eager you” was so excited about. You may even feel the need to protect yourself, stay where you are comfortable, and not really put yourself or your business out there. When this happens, you start holding yourself back from your most true and highest potential. What can you do now? There are many ways to push yourself forward even when it feels uncomfortable! Learn how to ditch your self-doubts with the power of mantras.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
holistic entrepreneur,
SWIHA,
Meditation,
Arizona,
mantra,
Tempe,
Om,
mantras,
Holistic Education,
Perspective,
mantra meditation,
Leap of Faith
“Don’t downgrade your dream just to fit your reality. Upgrade your conviction to match your destiny.” - Unknown
Sometimes, dreams can seem too big or scary to achieve. That the road and work will be long and hard, and sometimes even unachievable. Well, what if I told you the only thing standing in your way is you? Rebecca Merrill, Southwest Institute of Healing Arts Great Graduate of the Holistic Nutrition Wellness Practitioner Diploma program, didn’t let that stop her. Although the thoughts of not accomplishing her dreams and goals crossed her mind, she didn’t let that get in her way of living her true purpose of serving others in a meaningful way. Rebecca asserts, “Three years ago, I didn't think where I'm at now was possible. I'm proud of how far I've come and can't wait to see where this journey takes me next.”
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Holistic Nutrition,
Great Graduate,
SWIHA,
Holistic wellness,
balance,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Nutrition Coach,
Holistic Education,
Holistic Nutrition Wellness Practitioner,
Health and Wellness,
Health and Wellness Coach
“It was all about taking the leap of faith. It said that the fear that stops us from doing what we really want, is often not based on reality. We shape our fears in our heads, yet things are so much easier than we think.” - Effrosyni Moschoudi, The Flow
Life can often give us a bad hand, and we try out best to navigate through it. It can often be compared to a valley, with high highs and low lows. With the right energy and motivation, we can lift ourselves out of these hardships, and into what we were born to do. Great Graduate, Michelle Brown, of the Integrative Healing Arts Practitioner program, has done just that. Michelle describes some of the hardships she had to go through to get her to SWIHA, and how her life has drastically changed since she made the decision to enroll.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Great Graduate,
SWIHA,
entrepreneur,
Hypnotherapy,
Arizona,
Tempe,
integrative healing arts practitioner,
IHAP,
Holistic Education,
Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapy
Happy National Cabbage Day! With this fabulous calendar holiday, let’s celebrate with some delicious Sauerkraut and Kimchi recipes! Before we get started, it’s important to learn a little more about fermented foods. What are fermented foods? Are they even good for you? Can you eat them? Should you eat them? In many ways, fermented foods can seem a little scary, or overwhelming if you are not used to eating them. They tend to have a really intense taste, however, so worth trying!
Food fermentation is a process that takes advantage of bacteria to alter ingredients. As mentioned before, this process often leads to fairly strong tastes, textures, and flavors. The bacteria partially breaks down the food, which is what creates this flavor and provides various health benefits too! The process in which the bacteria breaks down the food allows for the nutrients to be easier to digest, which in turn, gives you access to more nutrients than normal. Discussed further in the Holistic Nutrition: Raw Food Cuisine class offered here at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, research suggests that this is a great approach for health overall and has many potential health benefits for humans.
Now, let’s dive into the recipes!
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Holistic Nutrition,
SWIHA,
Whole Foods,
Recipe,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Raw Foods,
Holistic Education,
National Cabbage Day,
Saurkraut Recipe,
Kimchi Recipe,
Food Fermentation,
Gut Microbiome,
Raw Food Cuisine
Breath and life… when we enter this world we take our first breath, and when we leave this world, we take our last. Breathing seems like it is the most natural bodily function, as we don’t have to think about breathing, every second of every day. However, breath controls so much more in our life than we are aware of. Pranayama. In Sanskrit, Prana translates to “vital life force” and Yama translates to “gain control”. In yoga, breath is associated with Prana, and many ancient breath techniques were born which involve learning how to control your breath with different styles and lengths. When we learn more about the art of breathing, we may be able to take more control of our lives, and not just save our peace for the yoga mat.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
SWIHA,
Yoga Teacher Training,
Breathing Techniques,
yoga,
Arizona,
Breath,
YTT,
Tempe,
Yogi,
Yoga studio,
Holistic Education,
Calm,
My Spirit of Yoga,
Bellows Breath,
Alternate Nostril Breathing,
Tranquility
The concept of energy is very prevalent in the wellness space for entrepreneurs. Your energy and vibes as a business owner have more of an effect on your business than you may realize. When we aren’t careful, or intentional, our energy can affect others and our business in a way we may not have intended. Oftentimes, when things go awry, we look to outside forces that may be causing our goals to not come to fruition. In reality, we should be looking within, and evaluating/reflecting our energy and world. If you don’t like what you see, change something about it! There are so many factors that come into play. When looking to shift your energy, reflect on these 5 traits below, as many successful entrepreneurs in the wellness industry attain these values.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
holistic entrepreneur,
SWIHA,
Arizona,
Tempe,
Boundaries,
Holistic Education,
Wellness Industry,
Smart Goals,
Health and Wellness,
Purpose,
Energy,
Wellness Entrepreneur,
Perseverance,
Vibes,
Integrity,
Bravery
Journaling is about creating clarity, prioritizing your energy, and provides an opportunity for positive self-talk. It is also an amazing way to see how much you’ve grown, changes in mindset, and your progress toward your goals.
Through documenting our thoughts and feelings, we advance our self-awareness and self-control. It gives us the ability to analyze how we are currently showing up in the world and provides us the opportunity to feel empowered in our decisions.
Consider these 10 ways below on how to utilize journaling as Svadhyaya, or self-reflection, either through life, or especially during your experience of going through Yoga Teacher Training. Ultimately, your journal is a place to practice vulnerability and honesty, and bring that in to the world to truly live yoga!
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Topics:
Gratitude,
yoga,
Mindfulness,
journaling,
Yoga Teacher Training,
Yoga Sutras,
Arizona,
YTT,
Tempe,
Yogi,
yoga teacher,
Sacred Space,
Holistic Education,
Ahimsa,
Self-Awareness,
Gratitude Journal,
My Spirit of Yoga,
Svadhyaya,
Self-Control,
Principles of Yoga,
Alter,
Satya,
Self-Reflection
“The power of intention is the power to manifest, to create, to live a life of unlimited abundance, and to attract into your life the right people at the right moments.” - Wayne Dyer
Great Graduate Kami Pollvogt, of the Life Coaching Program here at Southwest Institute of Healing Arts, worked in corporate America for over twenty years. When her company downsized and eliminated her department, she was left wondering what she wanted to do with her life. For the first time in a long time, the possibilities were endless. Kami knew she had a passion for human psychology. Kami states, “I found I loved it and realized that all my life I was curious about human behavior and really liked helping others with achieving greater awareness of who they are”. This life revelation in 2016 brought Kami life lessons of self-awareness, living life with intention, and her journey to SWIHA.
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Topics:
Southwest Institute of Healing Arts,
Life Coaching,
SWIHA,
Mindfulness,
Holistic Healing,
life coach,
Holistic wellness,
Arizona,
coaching,
Tempe,
Holistic Education,
Group Coaching,
Intention,
Self-Awareness,
Art Therapy,
Holistic Coach
