When Steven began to notice his growing interest in body work, he decided to meet with an Admissions Coach at SWIHA; he ended up enrolling in the Professional Massage program, and upon graduation, he had earned an AOS Degree in Holistic Health Care, with a concentration in Massage Therapy. The knowledge he gained during these two-years, was a perfect addition to his passion for martial arts, which he had practiced since he was a child: “Martial arts and the healing arts are on the same frequency, but the magic is in the intention and how you choose to express the movement of energy.” Both effectively taught Steven about the human body’s energy system, and how the manipulation of energy flow is an effective form of treatment and healing. This inspired him to take Polarity Therapy and Cranial Unwinding classes within his program. He went on to complete his Associate Polarity Practitioner (APP) specialty and also received his Certificate of Excellence in Cranial Unwinding. He recalls the first year of school being about his own personal transformation, and the second year, his focus was geared more towards how to apply his knowledge to future clients. He shared, “SWIHA taught me how to show up and cultivate a therapeutic relationship with myself first, and then others.”
He went on to describe what he gained by choosing SWIHA for his educational journey: “I have become aligned with my life purpose by helping myself first, so that, in return, I can help others. My experience with an empowering education in massage, energy therapy, and life coaching taught me how to offer the support people need to treat their own stress, which is a number one killer. How do you rid the pressure? You have to express the excess pressure! There is a profound level of intelligence in the body, and by blending all of the modalities I learned, I can offer a type of support to my clients that help them heal themselves, and this is priceless knowledge.” In talking, we discussed how a physical illness or ailment that shows up in the body is directly paralleled to a mental or emotional issue. Steven said it best with his own experience with his spine. “Scoliosis is an unnatural curvature of the spine, or rather, it’s out of alignment. I was out of alignment with my highest self and care. Once I attuned my awareness in my own holistic care and added the physical support of massage [for the spine], I began to heal. Learning that was key to my healing. Once I changed the parts of my life that were unsupported and unaligned, my spine, which supports the body, transformed and became straighter. You can apply this reasoning with any dis-ease of the mind, body, or spirit. This is true holistic medicine.”
Steven works at Figa Health Care in Ahwatukee, has private clients, and volunteers at SWCNM, doing cranial unwinding (Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine). Most of his clients are in need of injury rehabilitation, like athletes, ranging from UFC fighters to martial artists and football players, while others are healing from car accidents or other forms of physical trauma. The most rewarding part of his work is teaching, and then witnessing, his clients care for themselves in a holistic way. This allows him to remain passionate about his work, show up every day in his authentic way, and think about what more he can do in the future to support himself and the well-being of others.
In closing, one more valuable insight:
“A lot of holistic practitioners are looking for one modality to specialize in, yet that goes against the very nature of holistic [treating the body as a whole: mind ~ body ~ spirit]. I believe that the best practitioners are generalists with focus, intellect, and experience in multiple modalities.”