NEW! Acupressure Mat Clinic
Supervised Acupressure Student Clinic continues through June 30, 2009. Tuesday evenings 6:45pm & 8:15pm Four Saturday mornings remaining 9:45am & 11:15am SPECIAL SPRING DISCOUNT Beginning April 18th $50 / TWO treatments (bring a friend!) By appointment: CALL 617.697.1477
NEW! Acupressure Certification Class - Beginning September 2009 Registration deadline July 15, 2009
Become an Acupressure Therapist certified practitioner with the American Organization for Asian Bodywork Therapy (AOBTA). Classes will meet two nights a week and one weekend a month for 16 months. Classes will be scheduled for Tues. Fri . nights 6:30-9:30pm. This is a strong academic program in Chinese medicine and energy theory using the Acupoints of the major channels of the body. Don't miss this opportunity to develop your healing ability. Special Note: After more than 30 years of teaching, Barbara Blanchard, Certified Instructor of Acupressure (AOBTA), will limit the courses she will teach in the core program. Take this opportunity to study with her and benefit from her experience in energy work by enrolling now in the September 2009 program. Call for more information. 617.697.1477.
Adjunct Therapies	10 weeks, Apr. 6 - June 29, 2009 Mondays, 6:30pm-9:30pm (no classes Apr. 20, May 25, 2009)
Prerequisite: Knowledge of meridian system and bodywork experience. Adjunct therapies to the practice of Asian bodywork therapy include magnet therapy, moxabustion (a special Asian herbal heat therapy), herbal liniments and poultices, cupping and gua sha. The history, theory and principles of technique will be presented through lecture, demonstration, and practical application. Emphasis will be placed on hands-on practice so that participants will feel confident enough to be able to use these techniques in his/her practice. Adjunct therapies are important complementary tools for practitioners to use to enhance their treatments and to promote healing in between sessions. An introductory kit will be available for a materials fee of $60 that will include magnets, moxa, herbal plasters, liniment and supplies for gua sha. This will enable you to practice adjunct therapy techniques immediately while ordering additional supplies. Instructor: Barbara Blanchard and guest instructors. $240 (+$60 materials fee), 30 CE hrs Registration Deadline: March 16, 2009.
By Special Invitation! Emotional Dynamic and Chinese Medicine	Saturday, May 16, 2009 10am-5:30pm
Character and emotion are a much discussed topic in Chinese medicine and Cindy Banker's explanation of the "ce-40 character profile" provides one of the most sophisticated approaches to the subject. In this seminar Cindy will explain how Chinese Medical principles evolved from political strategy and Taoist practices into the sophisticated view finally encompassed by Chinese medicine's eight principle paradigm. Learn how to use the ce-40 character profile as an easy assessment tool, both for their clients and for themselves. Understand the eight categories described in the ce40 test and how they represent meridians. Students in the field of Chinese Medicine will be able to easily apply what they have learned for either acupuncture or ABT treatment strategies, for both physical and psychological applications as revealed by the ce40 test. Advanced practitioners will appreciate the detailed and complete descriptions of how the five phases; six divisions and eight principles are all fully addressed. Everyone will have a lot of fun during the seminar as they learn how to unleash the full potential of their own creative process! Instructors: Cindy Banker MA, DIpl ABT, CI-ABT(AOBTA) began studying alternative healing in the early 1970's. She learned shiatsu with Shizuko Yamamoto and macrobiotic theory with Michio Kushi. After teaching shiatsu at the Kushi Institue she joined Barbara Blanchard and Kiku Zutrau-Miyazaki to found the New England Shiatsu Center. One of the originators of Five Element Shiatsu, Cindy has taught many Chinese medical theory and six division workshops locally and at national conventions. She has academic degrees in the field of Chinese Medicine and has presented her own original translation work at Chinese Medical Text Reading Workshops at Harvard and Princeton Universities. She maintains a private practice in Brookline, MA. $135 early registration by May 1, 2009 ($155 after), 6.5 CE hrs Registration Deadline: May 12, 2009
Breath & Movement the Dance from Within	Sunday May 17, 2009 9:30am-4:00pm
In this workshop we will learn breathing and visualization techniques from the Japanese dance Butoh tradition. With simple and slow paced exercises we will create an intuitive and personalized quality of movement that evolves from within the body's core. We will engage and strengthen the muscles closest to the bones and we will experience the internal meridian pathways. We will learn the very gentle winding and unwinding of the joints that stimulates Chi and renews the tissues increasing blood flow. Music will guide the slow internal quality of the movements, transforming a dance from within the body into an individualized and dynamic meditative experience that expands one's awareness and healing sensitivity. We will aid the release of tension and Chi flow using shiatsu pressure therapy techniques. Instructor: Alessandra Mariano is an ABT diplomat of the Charles River Institute of Shiatsu. Her formative background in the Fine Arts and dance has evolved and merged with the concepts of Asian medicine and philosophy expanding her pursuit of the body/mind connection into the field of the visual and healing arts. Alessandra Mariano has studied with Butoh dancer and choreographer Maureen Fleming. . $110, 5 CE hrs Registration deadline: May 12, 2009
Chair Acupressure Workshop	Sunday, June 7 & 28, 2009 9:00am-5:30pm
Prerequisite: Knowledge of the Acupoints Learn a complete Acupressure form for the back for seated position in a massage chair. Emphasis is on incorporating Acupressure points for energetic release of the shoulders, back and hips. This is an intensive workshop with limited enrollment. Instructor: Isabel Balmaseda, M.Ed., ABT, Lic. Ac. has been a movement educator for twenty years at PerkinsSchool for the Blind in Watertown, MA where she has taught visually impaired adolescents. Isabel works at the Massachusetts Hospital School in Canton, MA where she heads the pain management clinic and provides Acupuncture and Acupressure services to adolescents with physical disabilities. She is the supervisor for the Acupressure Therapy Institute's off-site student clinic at Mass. Hospital School, Canton, MA and the Chair Acupressure Clinic at ATI. . $195, 13 CE hrs Registration deadline: May 15, 2009

 

Student Clinic: Summer/Fall Chair Acupressure	Mondays, July 6 - Oct. 5, 2009 6:30pm-9:30pm
A Chair Acupressure session involves being seated in a special massage chair that supports the arms, neck and head and allows relaxation of the back and shoulders. The recipient wears loose clothing. Treatment includes release of tension especially in the neck, shoulders and back using meridian stretching, shiatsu finger-pressure and other energetic Japanese techniques. A session is usually 30-40 minutes. To learn more about Chair Acupressure treatments, please visit the Student Clinic page. $25 / 30 min. or $90 for series of 4. By appointment only. Call us to schedule an appointment.
The Chakra System: Practical Application for Bodyworkers Rescheduled as a two-day workshop!	Sat. & Sun. July 11 & 12, 2009 9am-5pm
The chakra system from the Ayurvedic Tradition offers an effective evaluation and treatment modality that can be used in bodywork. Traditional Chinese Medicine and Ayurveda have many things in common. We¹ll explore the similarities and differences that make working with chakras a good complement to any bodywork session. In this workshop you will learn:   - Qi Gong exercises to integrate yinyang theory and chakras   - Manual techniques to work with chakras and their spinning directions   - Using tsubos as chakras   - Overview of common symptoms that can be resolved with chakra/meridian combination   - Case history discussions Instructor: Diego Sanchez M.R.S.S.(UK), Dip. ABT (NCCAOM), CP (AOBTA), NY LMT is a practitioner and instructor of Zen Shiatsu with more than 12 years of experience. He was formerly on the Integrative Medicine team of the renowned surgeon Dr. Mehmet Oz of Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. He's written the chapter on "Energy Based Bodywork Therapies" for the latest edition of Massage Therapy Principles and Practice book and directed the documentary "The Human Potential," based on Pauline Sasaki's teaching materials. He teaches regularly in Europe and has a private practice in New York City (www.sohoshiatsu.com) and in Uruguay. He's done extensive training with Gregory Antyuhin, a shaman from the Caucasus (Russia). Inquire about booking private treatment sessions with Diego! $225, 14 CE hrs Registration Deadline: June 22, 2009
Western Body Eastern Mind Integrated Anatomy & Physiology	Six weekends: Sat. & Sun., 9am-6pm July 18-19, Aug. 15-16, Sept. 26-27, Oct. 10-11, Nov. 21-22, Dec. 19-20, 2009
A&P is taught so that it is relevant to your practice as an Asian Bodywork Therapist, and, for other bodyworkers, an excellent introduction to the theory of Chinese medicine. Format includes lecture, meditation, theater, and palpation with handouts and working charts. Texts: Human Anatomy & Physiology, 6th ed. Elaine N. Marieb ISBN 0805358462X, The Anatomy Coloring Book, 3rd ed. ISBN0-8053-5086-1. Instructor: Deborah Valentine Smith, ABT & CI (AOBTA) has been a student and practitioner of Asian Bodywork Therapy for 30 years and has taught in ABT schools, massage schools, alternative learning centers and many other venues for 23 years. $1550 ($1450 early registration by June 1, 2009), 100 CE hrs. 100-page A&P course manual: $25
Ethics	Dates TBD
Discussion of ethical issues that every bodyworker should be prepared to address. A 4-hr independent research report is required for successful completion of this course. Instructor: Lisa Lipson. $195, 13 CE hrs
Business and Practice Management NEW Distance Learning Course!	Fall, dates TBD Mix of onsite and online, self-study classes
Learn the nuts & bolts of setting up your own practice, legal and licensing requirements, advertising opportunities, marketing strategies and more. An 8-hr independent project is required that will help you immediately in your business. Instructor: Susan Liao is a graduate of the Cortive Institute-Muscular Therapy Institute and has 8 years of professional experience working in the marketing & advertising industries with focus on small business management and networking within the alternative health and wellness communitities. $280, 20 CE hrs

 

The Acupressure Therapy Institute is approved by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) as a continuing education provider under Category A. Professional Development Activities (PDAs) for the National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (NCCAOM) recertification are also available.