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Contact: Russ Girardi
800-364-5722 ext. 24, or russ@natural-wellness.com
www.HomeStudyCredits.org

The Institute Introduces Groundbreaking New Course: Fibromyalgia & Massage

Montgomery, N.Y. May 12, 2006 — Bodywork professionals from all backgrounds can now become part of a multi-disciplinary approach to treating fibromyalgia (FMS). The Institute for Integrative Healthcare Studies has introduced a new continuing education course instructing students in safe and effective techniques for people with this debilitating and complex syndrome.

According to the National Institutes of Health, FMS affects between 3 and 6 percent of the American population. FMS causes widespread, chronic pain, and has no known cause or cure. Additional symptoms of FMS can include fatigue, stiffness, sleep disturbances, depression, cognitive impairment, cold extremities and gastrointestinal dysfunction.

Massage has proven to be an an effective and preferred means for helping people manage fibromyalgia. A majority of people with FMS report symptomatic improvements resulting from a combination of complementary and alternative treatments.

The new 18-credit continuing education course, Fibromyalgia & Massage, presented by Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa, (CD-R, NH), a leading authority in comprehensive FMS management, together with the Institute for Integrative Healthcare Studies, prepares massage therapists to safely and conscientiously work on clients with FMS. Khalsa is a member of the faculty at Bastyr University, and is a nationally renowned speaker on Ayurveda and natural herbal remedies. In 2000, he was appointed as a delegate to the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine.

In this distance learning course, massage therapists will discover preferred massage techniques for pain relief and other treatments to help clients more effectively. A thorough understanding of this syndrome helps develop the bodyworker’s compassion, confidence and vision in order to integrate massage into a comprehensive treatment plan.

The course also includes a richly detailed DVD by Sean Riehl, LMT, that gives clear bodywork demonstrations with tender point evaluation and massage sessions for sleep, pain and headaches in addition to covering symptoms, assessments, supplements and self-care suggestions.

“This course has excellent information and gives a solid knowledge base and resource to rely on,” said John Bahrenburg, LMT, a recent participant of the course. “This course enhances my ability to deliver effective, competent and thorough health care to people living with fibromyalgia.”

“The text was thoroughly researched and offered so much more than I had expected,” said massage therapist and educator Linda Fehrs. “Its well-rounded and multi-dimensional approach gives a person taking the course an education far beyond just the massage technique aspect.”

With over 50,000 enrollments since 1996, massage therapists have enhanced their knowledge by taking continuing education courses offered by the Institute for Integrative Healthcare Studies. During the past 10 years, the Institute has grown from its original intention to educate healthcare professionals as to the benefits of integrative therapies, to also offering personal self-help tools and ideas of interest to everyone who wants to embrace healthful living.

To find out more about this and all of the Institute’s continuing education course offerings, log onto www.HomeStudyCredits.org, or call toll free at 1-800-364-5722.