Aromatherapy: Level 3 Diploma Aromatherapy

Holistic facial massage: NQF Level 2 Certificate

Holistic body massage: VTCT Level 2 Certificate in Holistic Therapies

Indian head massage: VTCT Level 3 Diploma

Swedish body massage: VTCT Level 3 Certificate

Zone therapy: Level 2 Certificate

Dietary advice: VTCT Certificate of Unit Credit

VTCT Level 3 Diploma in Health, Safety, Security and Employment Standards

Holistic massage therapies help reconnect the individual with their natural self, and with this reconnection comes a deep sense of responsibility for achieving and sustaining a good level of personal health, community health and a growing awareness of the importance of maintaining a healthy natural environment and healthier interactions with this natural environment to maximise the levels of health we can achieve individually.
I have over the course of my journey as a holistic therapist, worked within a variety of settings. I opened a practice room within an independent health food business once qualifying in 2007. Here, I built up a strong customer base and learned valuable lessons in attracting business and keeping that business. However, I found this commercial setting light years away from where I would like to be with these therapies: I found that their value was seen mainly as a method of pampering, though this can be beneficial in improving ones’ sense of wellbeing I felt their therapeutic value was overlooked and I know their worth to be more than this: as part of a healthy lifestyle these holistic treatments can help build a stronger, healthier self; physically and emotionally and a stronger, healthier community. With this in mind I handed over the treatment room to another therapist and worked voluntarily within a host of community organisations in an effort to engage those I felt could truly benefit from these treatments. I did this until I started the Foundation Degree in Complementary Therapies at Newcastle College.
During the 2 years of this course I tailored my learning so it was relevant to health in the context of not only the individual, but also the community and our natural environment. I did this whilst learning advanced massage techniques and deepening my knowledge and understanding of the philosophies and science behind these therapies, thereby maximising the effectiveness of the treatments I carry out.

And here I am ~ by Jenniflower

I was born.
I lived.
At times i was found,
at others i was lost.
I lived.
I often f e l t the f l o w of nature,
in the yellow light of the sun dancing on my skin,
in the air flowing over me,
in the universe flowing through me.
Directionless.
Not knowing to follow the ebb and flow.
Sometimes f i g h t i n g,
Sometimes f l o a t i n g.
I w a s discovered.
Hidden beneath the limitations i believed held me back.
Limitless.
Unbounded.
In flow.
With every changing moment,
the realisation was lost and found.
A perpetual lesson
A perpetual cycle
A perpetual u n d o i n g
Wild animals dancing in the water
Aliens staring at the stars
Shewolves howling at the moon
Sisters blossoming
Fertile M o t h e r E a r t h
Growing
Birthing
Guiding.
I was born.
I live.
Sometimes i am lost
Sometimes i am completely found.
I am.
A mother.
A vessel.
I am a bridge between what is and what could be.
My children are my dreams.
My life is my creation.
My path unfurls before me.
Sometimes in plain sight
Sometimes hidden in the dark
Sometimes in blinding light.
I was
But i changed
I am change
I flow.