Saturday, August 23

Responsible Representation: Ethically Marketing Your Massage Skills

This course is designed to provide an exploration of how massage therapists represent their skills, via advertising, marketing, or social media, and how those representations can influence a client’s expectations. As massage therapy becomes more accepted as a form of complimentary healthcare, we must understand the decision-making process a client uses to choose our modality over others and how these representations can play a part in a client’s healthcare, rehabilitation, mental health, and trauma. Our discussion will center on responsible representation of how our skills can truly benefit a client and when to acknowledge that our skills and services are not applicable to a situation.

View Mark Capriotti's Bio

Massage for Patients with Chronic Pain

Pain is a global health issue, with one in ten people experiencing chronic pain each year. Chronic pain differs significantly from acute pain and presents unique challenges for both clients and massage therapists. This class offers strategies for working with this population, who often lack consistent care, helping to reduce symptoms and improve quality of life. Massage therapists who complete this course will develop critical thinking skills to set appropriate treatment goals for chronic pain clients and be better equipped to address their specific needs.

View Marian Wolfe Dixon's Bio

Integrative Massage Strategies for Whiplash Recovery (Hands-on without table)

Why do some whiplash injuries persist long after typical soft tissue healing timelines? The key is understanding whiplash as more than just a musculoskeletal injury. In this course, we’ll explore whiplash through an ecological lens, examining how it impacts the complex relationships between fascia, nerves, joints, and the body’s regulatory systems. Through demonstration and hands-on practice, you'll gain practical skills for working with the neck’s fascial interfaces, joint mechanics, and neural pathways, along with techniques you can immediately incorporate into your massage therapy practice.

Materials Required: This class does not require a table but a towel or yoga mat is required for floor work.

View Michael Hamm's Bio

Make Friends with Your Forearms (Hands-on without table)

Continue doing great work without taxing the delicate joints of the hand and cultivate career longevity by learning to give a full body massage using the forearms as the primary tool. These techniques can be used for both deep tissue work and light circulatory massage in prone, supine, and side-lying positions. This session will cover the body mechanics of working with the forearms, techniques for giving a head-to-toe massage with the forearms, and developing resilience of practice through sustainable massage.

Materials Required: This class does not require a table but a towel or yoga mat is required for floor work.

View Buddy Hammonds' Bio

Oncology Massage for Long-Term Survivors: Focusing on Axillary Lymph Node Involvement

This in-depth workshop is designed for massage therapists who want to enhance their expertise in oncology massage, with a focus on clients with a history of breast cancer. The course will concentrate on managing the risk of lymphedema, particularly in the axillary lymph node quadrants, a critical area for cancer survivors. Learn key techniques for modifying pressure, adjusting stroke direction, and making necessary massage adaptations. Plus, gain the skills to work safely and effectively with survivors at risk for lymphedema or those with mild to moderate, well-managed lymphedema.

View Miechelle Hwang's Bio

Elevate Your Well-Being: A Self-Care Journey for Massage Therapists (Hands-on without table)

This course is designed to empower massage therapists by exploring the critical role of self-care in both personal and professional realms. Participants will delve into the fundamental aspects of self-care, including physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual well-being, fostering a holistic approach to therapist wellness and expanding opportunities for success in the massage practice.

Give a Great Massage Again: How to Refresh and Reinvent Your Back Work (Hands-on with table)

Are you burnt out from your professional routine? No matter where you are in your career or what kind of work you do, this course will help you refresh and reinvent your work on one of the most important parts of the body – the back – so that you can elevate your work from average to awesome. You’ll learn a sequence that you can incorporate into your massage therapy sessions and personalize to each client based on their unique needs. What's more, this is a sequence that will feel good for your own body and make you love giving a massage all over again.

Materials Required: Please plan to bring or share a massage table if you select this class. Table storage will be provided.

View David Lobenstine's Bio

Get Comfortable Working with the Shoulder Girdle (Hands-on with table)

The shoulder girdle is a complex group of muscles that can cause pain and discomfort for many of our clients. Learn new, hands-on techniques to work smarter, not harder. During this class, participants will learn to safely and effectively work with the shoulder girdle while staying within the scope of practice. We will review the anatomy of the entire shoulder girdle and discuss the indications and contraindications of massage therapy for shoulder girdle dysfunction, along with when and who to refer clients when necessary. Attendees will view hands-on demonstrations and practice with each other to gain confidence in safely integrating specific and effective shoulder girdle work into a massage session.

Materials Required: Please plan to bring or share a massage table if you select this class. Table storage will be provided.

View Scott Raymond's Bio

Grounded Strength: Massage Techniques to Support and Energize the Feet (Hands-on without table)

The feet are your direct connection to the earth, and when your grounding is disrupted—whether socially, emotionally, or spiritually—your feet often bear the extra stress. The good news is that you can reverse this cycle by strengthening and supporting the feet, while also addressing the larger life issues at play. In this class, you’ll learn massage therapy techniques for working with the joints, muscles, and movements of the feet, helping your clients stand, walk, jump, and run with ease and power.

Materials Required: This class does not require a table but a towel or yoga mat is required for floor work.

View George Russell's Bio

Manual Therapies for Surgeries, Scars, and Burns (Hands-on without table)

Deepen your massage therapy skills by examining how manual therapies can positively affect scars from surgeries, trauma or burns and become an important adjunct for home care and tissue healing for your clients. Explore how the use of gentle manipulations, guided active movements, and hydrotherapies can help clients develop skills to adapt and cope with scarred and traumatized tissues. This class is designed to help you expand your knowledge of the effects of touch on the human body and explore the physical/emotional aspects of this very personal client issue.

Materials Required: This class does not require a table but a towel or yoga mat is required for floor work.

View Pete Whitridge's Bio

Close out Convention on Saturday afternoon with an uplifting session from keynote speaker Erin Stafford—a best-selling author, award-winning speaker, Cambridge social psychologist, and burnout expert. Erin will share tips and strategies to help massage therapists stay motivated, avoid burnout, and propel themselves toward success.

Renowned for her best-selling book, The Type A Trap: Five Mindset Shifts to Beat Burnout and Transform Your Life, Erin is a Forbes Business Council member and the former head of marketing for the largest healthcare staffing company in the U.S. With over 20 years of experience leveraging her Type A personality and collaborating with high-achieving individuals worldwide, she brings a wealth of expertise to the conversation.

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