Continuing Education

With presence, connection, and attunement, we can provide a greater sense of safety for our clients. In this interactive class, we will explore what it means to be a therapeutic presence for our clients by utilizing fascinating recent discoveries in Neuroscience. We will look specifically at how the therapist’s state of being and nonverbal communication can access an important gateway to healing. This four-hour class includes small group explorations as well as large group discussions and lectures. You will earn 4 Ethics/Communication/Boundaries continuing education hours, required by OBMT for license renewal.

Kelly Vittoria, LMT, RCST, has been a practicing massage therapist for 20 years, and an instructor for 13 years. During this time, Kelly has developed a deep understanding for how essential the therapeutic relationship is for healing.
Sam Vittoria, CHP, is a mindfulness-based somatic counselor who is trained in the art of therapeutic presence, attunement, and communication. He is skilled in numerous modalities, all of which place the therapeutic relationship at the center of healing. Together, their warm and welcoming presence creates a feeling of trust and ease with both their clients and students.

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Ortho-Bionomy® uses osteopathic-based gentle body positions and movements to stimulate self-correcting reflexes within the muscles and nerves. This highly specific and structure-oriented method can move the client out of pain and discomfort within ten to thirty seconds. This class focuses on painless, comfortable positions to release tension patterns of the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine, plus the psoas, ilium rotation, and sacrum. It is amazing how such gentle techniques can give such deep releases. It is easy on the practitioner and can easily be integrated into any massage or bodywork session.

Ortho-Bionomy® is a registered trademark of the Society of Ortho-Bionomy International, Inc. and is used with permission.
Jim Berns, Registered Ortho-Bionomy® Advanced Instructor, has taught internationally for over forty years. He is coauthor of Ortho-Bionomy: A Practical Manual. Jim was trained by osteopath Arthur Lincoln Pauls, D.O., the founder of Ortho-Bionomy. A certified massage therapist since 1979, he was named 2013 Educator of the Year by the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA). Jim brings to his teaching detailed information, a compassionate heart, and a unique sense of humor.
Melissa Malm, LMT, Registered Ortho-Bionomy® Instructor, has been a student and practitioner of massage and bodywork since 1997. She studied in the Bay Area both at the National Holistic Institute in Emeryville and the Acupressure Institute in Berkeley. In 2007, Melissa discovered Ortho-Bionomy and realized she had found her bodywork “home.” She is an Advanced Practitioner and in 2020 became a Registered Instructor of Ortho-Bionomy.

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Learn how to integrate Thai Massage stretches, compression, traction, joint mobilization and acupressure into your table/oil massage. There will be a strong emphasis on body mechanics and honoring the traditional spiritual roots of this ancient Thai healing art. This class will enhance your table massage but does not take the place of Traditional Thai Massage, which is performed on the floor.

D’vorah Swarzman, LMT,has studied the art and science of Traditional Thai Massage since 1993, returning regularly to Thailand for further study. She is a graduate of Heartwood Institute’s 750 hour Advanced Massage Therapist program. D’vorah has a private practice (Thai Therapeutics) in Ashland, Oregon and is an instructor with and founding member of the Thai Healing Alliance International. She integrates rhythm, improvisation and mindfulness into her teaching and practice.

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A new twist on an ancient modality, cupping is no longer only for chinese medical practitioners. In the hands of a massage therapist, cupping can melt away superficial fascial tension, release trigger points without stress on practitioner thumbs and joints, and move lymph effortlessly. This class offers an introduction to active cupping techniques that will allow you to achieve great results with minimal time and effort. Cups will be provided, and available for purchase in class. If you have a set already, please bring them.

Jessica Masters,LMT, is a graduate of Ashland Institute of Massage (2010). Jessica also holds a certification in Medical Massage, where she was first introduced to cups in 2014. She is the owner of Masters Medical Massage in Ashland, OR. Jessica has a passion for teaching and sharing her excitement about this incredibly effective modality.

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We all want to be heard and understood! Our clients certainly do, and keeping communication clear and effective can be a challenge of its own. Join Joanne to learn some simple techniques that will help you discover the healing power of empathic listening—for both your professional and personal lives. We will also address your real-life experiences, and you’ll take home fresh ideas and techniques for expressing yourself cleanly and clearly. This course meets the 4 hour Ethics/Communication requirement for Oregon LMT license renewal.

Joanne Lescher, CT, s a certified trainer in nonviolent communication. As an experienced mediator and group facilitator, she equips people to dialogue with each other more effectively. Renowned for her warmth, empathy, and humor, Joanne teaches practical skills that clients can immediately exercise in their practices and lives. Her reputation has been affectionately summarized as an “ability to tame lions”.

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Learn Advanced Myofascial Techniques that dramatically improve your ability to work with common types of head, sinus and eye pain, common headaches, migraines, cluster headaches, and more.
The Advanced Myofascial Techniques series presents practicing somatic therapists and qualified students with advanced and little-known myofascial techniques which can be easily incorporated into existing personal styles. Drawing on a wide range of disciplines, the focus is on unusual, interesting, and fresh approaches that will both expand technique repertoire and inspire creativity and innovation. Potential topics include:
– Specific techniques for common structural and functional complaints
– Relieving pain, restoring lost function, and getting lasting results
– Utilizing both active and passive movement to enhance effectiveness
– Precision in working with specific tissue types and body layers
– Combining indirect or subtle work with deep or direct work
– Tracking subtle psychophysiological and nervous system responses
– Ways to work sensitively, safely, and comfortably at very deep levels

Laureen Sutton, LMT, CAMT II is co-owner/director and an instructor at AIM as well as an instructor for Til Luchau’s Advanced-Trainings.com. She feels fortunate to be able to combine her passion for teaching with a style of bodywork which emphasizes proprioceptive awareness, movement, and a collaborative approach to working with clients. Laureen’s private practice utilizes Advanced Myofascial Techniques and deep presence to help clients with unusual situations. Laureen combines clarity of presentation with a relaxed and engaging teaching style in the classroom.

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Learn highly effective Advanced Myofascial Techniques for reducing pain and balancing neck function. Dramatically improve your ability to work with fixations, whiplash, migraines, jaw issues, and more.
The Advanced Myofascial Techniques series presents practicing somatic therapists and qualified students with advanced and little-known myofascial techniques which can be easily incorporated into existing personal styles. Drawing on a wide range of disciplines, the focus is on unusual, interesting, and fresh approaches that will both expand technique repertoire and inspire creativity and innovation. Potential topics include:

– Specific techniques for common structural and functional complaints
– Relieving pain, restoring lost function, and getting lasting results
– Utilizing both active and passive movement to enhance effectiveness
– Precision in working with specific tissue types and body layers
– Combining indirect or subtle work with deep or direct work
– Tracking subtle psychophysiological and nervous system responses
– Ways to work sensitively, safely, and comfortably at very deep levels

Laureen Sutton, LMT, CAMT II is co-owner/director and an instructor at AIM as well as an instructor for Til Luchau’s Advanced-Trainings.com. She feels fortunate to be able to combine her passion for teaching with a style of bodywork which emphasizes proprioceptive awareness, movement, and a collaborative approach to working with clients. Laureen’s private practice utilizes Advanced Myofascial Techniques and deep presence to help clients with unusual situations. Laureen combines clarity of presentation with a relaxed and engaging teaching style in the classroom.

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In this class, you will learn hands-on skills for working with regions of the body that hold stress that often comes as the result of forceful events and injury. These gentle, non-forcing techniques allow the body to unwind according to its own natural intelligence and self-correcting mechanisms. Major topics of the workshop are:
– unwinding legs and feet, arms and hands, head and neck;
– releasing held energy from within the body;
– understanding the potential for working with trauma.

Jim Gilkeson, CST, has taught energy healing for 35 years. A former Harbin Hot Springs bodywork therapist, Jim has written two books on energy healing: A Pilgrim in Your Body: Energy Healing and Spiritual Process and Energy Healing: A Pathway to Inner Growth. His gentle soul and quiet wisdom permeate his teachings, and bring a sweet magnetism to his presence in the classroom.

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Fascia Energetics is a system of bodywork that unifies eastern and western approaches to healing the body. It applies the principles of Yin and Yang to explore the relationships between the body’s interrelating systems: Nerves/Meridians, Muscles/Fascia, Tissues/Fluids, Local/ Systemic etc… This process helps you to make more accurate and effective assessments and treatments in your practice.
The Central Channel is the main corridor of structure and energy flow in the body. It is made up of the Vertebral Column, Spinal Cord, Respiratory Muscles, and what in Yogic Theory is called Sashumna Nadi. In this class you will learn specific assessments and treatment techniques, both structural and energetic, to treat the Central Channel.

Matthew Schulman, LMT, has been a full time LMT since 2007 and has been training in Taoist martial arts since 2002. In addition to his training at AIM, Matthew learned the “old way” through apprenticeships and countless hours of study, practice, and meditation. Fascia Energetics has come about as the result of these 17 years of learning and growth. It is Matthew’s hope to add this drop of knowledge to the bodywork field.

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Isometric and Isotonic techniques add the additional tool of active movement to your therapeutic sessions. This can bring the element of strengthening into your session, giving the therapist an additional approach to releasing contracted areas. Isometrics and Isotonics can be invaluable for releasing “hard-to-reach” restrictions, without creating pain. Through the use of reciprocal inhibition, the muscle can be engaged, self-correcting reflexes can be stimulated, and habitual holding patterns can be released. These techniques can encourage clients to actively participate in their session and can easily become homework for self-care. Learn a fast and effective tool for your practice that is gentle for your clients and easy on your body.

Ortho-Bionomy® is a registered trademark of the Society of Ortho-Bionomy International, Inc. and is used with permission.
Jim Berns, Registered Ortho-Bionomy® Advanced Instructor, has taught internationally for over forty years. He is coauthor of Ortho-Bionomy: A Practical Manual. Jim was trained by osteopath Arthur Lincoln Pauls, D.O., the founder of Ortho-Bionomy. A certified massage therapist since 1979, he was named 2013 Educator of the Year by the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA). Jim brings to his teaching detailed information, a compassionate heart, and a unique sense of humor.
Melissa Malm, LMT, Registered Ortho-Bionomy® Instructor, has been a student and practitioner of massage and bodywork since 1997. She studied in the Bay Area both at the National Holistic Institute in Emeryville and the Acupressure Institute in Berkeley. In 2007, Melissa discovered Ortho-Bionomy and realized she had found her bodywork “home.” She is an Advanced Practitioner and in 2020 became a Registered Instructor of Ortho-Bionomy.

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Take your massage practice beyond the treatment room with event massage! Whether it’s doing chair massage in a corporate office, table massage for sporting events, or working on musicians backstage at music festivals, this class will cover all the details of working in each of these situations, and more. We’ll also cover routines for both table and chair massage, and techniques geared towards specific events. Participating in events will increase your network, help educate the public, and is a fun way to grow and spice up your practice.

Trout America, LMT, is a 2011 AIM graduate and our school’s very popular kinesiology instructor. Trout also leads AIM’s extensive event outreach program, giving students opportunities for “in the field” experience.Trout excels at finding ways to connect each student to the material, emphasizing the fun in learning and making class time memorable! His bodywork business, Myotides Bodywork, specializes in therapeutic myofascial and deep tissue work.

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Dare to go where few therapists go – the muscles of the anterior neck. Chronic neck pain often involves the anterior muscles of the cervical spine, but therapists usually focus treatment on the posterior muscles, missing out on crucial aspects of therapeutic treatment. We will explore this territory and learn how to skillfully apply therapeutic touch in order to release tension and trigger points in these anterior cervical muscles, changing the perception of the anterior neck being a hands-off area.
Muscles we will cover in this class: Supra- and Infra- Hyoids, Rectus Capitis Anterior and Lateralis, Longus Capitis and Longus Colli, Digastric, Scalenes, and Sternocleidomastoid.

Josheph Micketti, LMT, NMT, s a 1985 graduate of Boulder School of Massage Therapy. He spent four years on the teaching staff of Neuromuscular Therapy, St. John Method. Joseph has been a foundational piece of the AIM curriculum since 1994. His massage practice is based on injury rehabilitation and pain reversal using deep tissue techniques. Joseph and his wife, Janie Chandler, co-own Advanced Myotherapy in Ashland.

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