Silicone Cupping is a powerful tool to add to your massage practice. Using cups, you can relax muscles, release fascial tension, and bring circulation to tense areas. It can be integrated into most massages and brings great results to most clients. The cups can often help tissues release faster than traditional massage with less strain and fatigue to the massage therapist.

This is a course in dynamic/moving cupping. By moving the cups, one can learn so much about the layers in the muscles, gaining detail about any adhesions or hesitation of movement. The cups also clarify the relationships between the area with tension and the rest of the system. Dynamic cupping can be a great aide for assessment, treatment planning, and therapeutic work for your clients.

Please purchase flexible suction cups prior to the course; there are many types available. Sets are generally available in 4, 6, or 8. There are several styles that can work depending on your preference, the link below is one example. I’ve chosen these due to their optimum flexibility - cups that are too stiff can give the client a stinging or pinching feeling, cups that are too soft don’t provide enough suction to be helpful.

Gua Sha is a powerful technique that has been practiced with Traditional Chinese Medicine for thousands of years. It can release fascial and muscle tension, bring circulation, and improve the flow of energy in the body. The massage therapist uses a round-edged tool to scrape the skin or apply pressure to an area. This can help areas of congestion, tension, or tight muscle to release effectively.

Please purchase a Gua Sha tool prior to the course - there are many types available. Tools are made of stainless steel, copper, stones such as rose quartz or jade, plastic, ceramic, or bone. I have several which I use for different purposes, so starting with an inexpensive tool so that you can learn and find out more about your style and preferences is a great idea.

Facial Cups can address tension and adhesion in face and neck muscles and decrease or relieve muscle pain. The techniques and tools can be integrated into massages and bring great results for clients. Special glass cups with silicone bulbs are used. These allow a gentle, controlled amount of suction that can lift muscles while also being gentle. these tools allow the massage therapist to work directly in delicate and sensitive areas with precision and without having to press or pinch the area. It is very often effective for clients. Please have knowledge and experience with Silicone Cupping in a dynamic, moving way so that you are familiar with the techniques and with using tools in this way prior to the course. This is not an introductory course for cupping and begins by talking about the experience of offering cupping to clients, a brief review of cautions and contraindications, then jumps right into techniques and practice. Please bring your silicone cups as well as a set of facial cups - and please bring your experiences and insights to share during the beginning of the course.

Please purchase a set of facial cups prior to the course; there are many types available. Below is one example of a set of glass cups with a suction bulb. There are other styles available that would work too.

https://lureessentials.com/products/glass-vacuum-cupping-therapy-gift-set?variant=26092839568&utm_medium=cpc&utm_source=google&utm_campaign=Google%20Shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMItNrE8Zre5wIVex-tBh0PSwBXEAkYAyABEgLW5PD_BwE

Prerequisite – Silicone Cupping for Massage Therapists and several months of experience with Silicone Cupping

Once you've added Silicone Cupping to your massage practice and used it for a couple of months with your clients, it's time to grow your skills and explore more about how it can be used therapeutically. Your silicone cups can help you to assess various levels of tissue for tension and adhesion. You can also use them for freeing muscles from entrapment, anchor/stretch techniques, compartment separation, and more. Apply deep tissue principles through your cups resulting in amazing results for your clients with less work for your hands. This course meets you wherever you are and is personalized to extend your skills and take your work to the next level.

Do you find yourself feeling sore or with tense muscles after giving massage?  Learning and practicing better body mechanics can improve both your career longevity and your effectiveness.  You’ll feel stronger and more at ease and your clients will notice a more direct, effective connection from your contact.

One of the fundamentals of body mechanics is being aware of your own body and how it’s feeling during your sessions.  We’ll practice brief meditations to practice some ways to tune in to the body during your work.  We’ll look at some common body mechanics issues massage therapists face and discuss strategies to get into a better position.  You’ll have an opportunity to share any pain or tension you’re experiencing so that we can notice what may be contributing to it.  The final portion of the course will be giving and receiving massage to practice body mechanics principles and also have the opportunity to feel as the client how small adjustments change the client’s massage experience.

I’m so excited to work with you – please bring your curiosity, excitement, and sense of adventure!

Hot stones allow the practitioner to target heat directly to tight, painful areas and bring a deep sense of relaxation while increasing blood flow. Relax your client, ease your client’s muscles into the work, and help your work to be more effective.

This course is focused on therapeutic massage techniques, and does not teach a full-body hot stone relaxation style or spa style session. Applications of stones will be focused on therapeutic planning based on palpation results.

For this course, you’ll need to purchase a suitcase style stone warmer with a programmable thermometer and a set of basalt stones.

Many of us work on our clients mainly in the prone or supine positions. This is where our flow is and where we drape best. This is also where we have the most practice with body mechanics that help us sustain our work. Many people hesitate to use side-lying positioning due to not feeling confident with the draping or techniques. However, some of our clients can’t lay prone or supine, whether due to health conditions such as scoliosis or due to an injury. Also, some parts of the body are uniquely suited to being accessed best by side-lying.

In this course, we will look at side-lying client position and draping options for different parts of the body. We will practice draping with clothing on to allow us to work with the skills in a low-pressure way. Then we will trade massage while practice all of the draping skills.

My goals are that you’ll feel: more comfortable with putting your client tin the side-lying position, more confident with side-lying draping, and have some techniques you can use on these side-body areas.

This course is not a massage flow class, nor is it a pregnancy massage course. We will be looking at specific areas and techniques that you can use. If you’re interested in pregnancy massage or a massage flow for an entire side-lying session, another course may be best.

How do we connect with our clients?  How do we know where to work?  How do we know when we’re done with an area?  How do we know if one technique is working better than another?  How do we know if we’re on a trigger point?  Palpation is an essential skill for massage therapists.  Yet many of us have had very little guidance as to what it actually is or what to do to improve our own sense of what we are feeling during a massage.  Get support with developing these skills and understand palpation better with this course.

One of the fundamentals of palpation is being aware of our own feelings of connecting with others.  We’ll look at the nervous system and how clients perceive touch.  We’ll look at some techniques that will help us to improve our palpation abilities.  We will touch on body mechanics as we evaluate the connection we are making with the client.  The final portion of the course will include plenty of time for  giving and receiving massage to practice palpation with guidance and support.  You’ll have the opportunity to feel as the client how small adjustments from the massage therapist change the client’s massage experience.  Overall, you’ll feel more confident and comfortable with palpation and your clients will notice a more direct, genuine connection from your contact.