Vitamins and Skin

Have you ever heard that if you eat a lot of chocolate you may suffer from acne? Or, have you heard that if you drink a lot of sodas you will also suffer from acne breakouts? It is a misconception that these two forms of food actually cause this condition. However, it has been found that vitamin deficiencies do lead to diseases and disorders that effect how the skin will look. For example, alopecia (hair loss), ridges on the nails may appear or even the skin may look dark or dull as a result of gross vitamin and element deficiency.

The important vitamins are: A, C, B, and K. Vitamin A is important to the skin and the health of the eyes. Lack of this vitamin would result in pimples, dry and dull skin. Foods rich in vitamin A are liver, milk, egg-yolk and spinach. Derivatives of vitamin A have been made to be a topical healing agent for acne, e.g. Retin A. Vitamin C is highly anti-oxidant and is found in several citrus fruits. Vitamin B is also important to how the skin functions. A deficiency of the B vitamins may result in cracked lips. Vitamin K is important in blood clotting to assist the skin bruising process.

Taking a multi-vitamin may assist with some of these deficiencies for better healthy-looking skin. However, nothing beats eating from the balanced food groups. Take heart my friend, healthy skin can be achieved by eating . Eat healthy and make sure that you live everyday as whole as you can.

“Everyday is a Super Natural Day!”

Debbie Hellmann

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Dyslexia and the Desire to Succeed

As a teacher of adult learners, I have at times found myself sharing the frustration of students with dyslexia. Although there are many manifestations and types of dyslexia a common thread for an adult is the perceived futility in managing technical terminology and concepts such as the language of Anatomy, Physiology, and Pathology.

Dyslexia is a specific learning challenge that primarily affects reading and spelling. Some statistics indicate that about 10% of the population is affected by dyslexia to some degree.

I have been privileged to witness life changing “miracles” for some students during my career. I highly recommend the use of colored overlays from the National Reading Styles Institute. These overlays often help students overcome visual challenges that may include slow reading, poor visual perception, eyestrain, headaches, problems tracking, letter/word reversal, or poor comprehension.

I urge any parent, educator, or reading challenged adult to consider trying this system. Students at Atlanta School of Massage and Atlanta Institute of Aesthetics can contact me to try out sample color overlays.

Debbie Hellmann

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Vision: Being

About 15 years ago we articulated the school’s vision:

“Together we grow to serve through healing touch”

Growing to serve is about being not doing. It’s not only about skills or techniques or what we’ve learned about structure and function. It’s about serving from our center, our core and observing what is present with compassion.

What do you love about your experience here?
A student, who is completing our program today, wrote in response to that question: “I like the person that I’ve become and it’s been an enlightening journey”.

The school’s unique contribution is our commitment to a holistic, client-centered approach not only to teaching massage and skincare but also in our day-to-day function as an organization. Remaining true to the vision while growing a business isn’t easy. It’s about work.

“Human relationships are why we are here. Through them we grow and awaken. Our purpose here in this school called earth, is to remove all the fears that block our true nature, love, from emerging and expressing itself. We accomplish this through our interactions with others. Though this may be somewhat more obvious in our family and social relationships, this is no less true for the relationships in our work-lives. Nor are these work relationships any less important to our learning process. Though relationships take many forms, each comes with the same lesson, to teach and learn love, for that is what we are here.”

Robert Roskind, In the Spirit of Business

Leticia Allen

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From misfit to Ms. Fit

Well, maybe not really Ms. Fit, but at least more fit than previously. I am going to tout the benefits of a personal trainer and a fitness program. Athletic I’m not, nor do I ever intend to be so inclined, but frequent falls up and down the stairs led to the grim realization that my brain was not communicating with my skeletal muscles effectively. This is not good! Due to a number of different events over the course of a life and a gene pool spilling over with connective tissue compromise, I find myself among a group of individuals challenged by degenerative disk disease.

Now this could be a much more uncomfortable situation, however, I have access to the finest massage therapists in the country, graduates from Atlanta School of Massage. Additionally, I have a wonderful, if not slightly wacky chiropractor. All of this is well and good, but the disconnect due to nerve compression and interference resulted in these less than lady-like spills. The contusions, bone bruises, and bloody shins, forced me to conclude that I needed to spend time facilitating new neural pathways.

Just as a baby repeatedly practices a new skill, I am continuing to work toward creating better brain/body connections. I am no Ms. Universe, but as a more aware user of my body, I have had fewer spills. I intend to continue getting stronger to improve the quality of my life.

Debbie Hellmann

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Swedish Massage Series: Intro

One thing that I find interesting is the popular reputation Swedish massage has for being a modality well suited for relaxation, but not much more. It’s interesting to me because I’ve always thought of it in therapeutic terms. Each Swedish stroke has a physiological effect which can have a very therapeutic benefit. How one applies and combines the various effects of these techniques during the course of a session determines the treatment’s overall effect on the body.

How does one determine whether a particular protocol is appropriate?

The answer is another question: Do the physiological effects of the techniques in the protocol complement the process occurring in the body?

Do we want to increase venous and lymphatic return? Break up fibrous adhesions? Normalize muscle tone, proprioception, and nociception? Have general goals of reducing pain and dysfunction or increasing range of motion?

The six classes of Swedish massage strokes (effleurage, pettrisage, friction, vibration, tapotement, and joint movements) have effects which are well suited to these goals. I’ll discuss each one in turn in a series of posts over the next couple months.

Lovelace Linares

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Time Management

Time is such a precious commodity. Without time we would not have anything to judge different periods of our life that really make a difference. Most massage therapists, aestheticians and cosmetologists are really challenged in this area because they are normally creative people. Creative people tend to not have as much structure as some other people in different professions.

It has even been a challenge for me to always stay abreast of what is going on the industry, doing financial paper work (which is HUGE), meeting new clients, maintaining clients, nurturing necessary relationships with close friends and relatives, and don’t forget time to go to the gym.

I have found that the easiest way for me to maintain my sanity and manage my time effectively is to live by a 6-point time management system.

1.) Keep God first.
2.) Take care of my body.
3.) Prioritize schedule. Meditate. Put goals in order.
4.) Execute goal list.
5.) At end of day, check all things off that have been completed.

*Remaining items must go on to the next day. After all Rome was not built in a day. Therefore, I congratulate myself for accomplishing my first priority goals and immediately move the next goals onto the next day during my time of meditation.

Typically somewhere in my day I manage to touch base with all areas of my life that are important to me. For example, in order to make sure I spend time with my family, I call my mom at least 2-3 times a day to check up on them. Although we may not have long extended times to talk, I am able to tell her I love her, which is very important to me. All of the other goals are secondary to making sure I take care of the needs of my family.

Everyone is different. Just make sure that you find out where your value system lies. Think about it. Is it your family, career, fitness, or religion that make you feel the best? Whichever one you put first will ultimately satisfy you at the end of the day if you make it a priority to at least accomplish one goal.

Yes, time is surely a commodity and a precious jewel. Make sure that you use it to your advantage and get the most out of it.

“Everyday is a Super Natural Day!”

Debbie Hellmann

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Where the fruit is

Writing this blog will be challenging for me but I do hold the belief that we grow whenever we venture beyond our comfort zone. Frankly, I don’t enjoy writing and I’m inclined to be shy. But it was my idea to create this blog site so I’m climbing out to the skinny branches. And I’m going to have fun.

With almost 27 years of growing a business, I think that I may have a lot to share with you. So first of all I invite you to ask me questions or suggest topics that are of interest to you regarding our industries or business in general. I’m not an expert. I learn everyday. But I have loads of experience, guiding principles, stories to tell, and a network of resources.

Please look for a series of interviews that I’ll be conducting with some seasoned professionals. I think you’ll find them interesting.

Leticia Allen

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Business relationships vs friend relationships

There is a strong difference between business relationships and friend relationships. One of the most critical and top concerns for the spa industry is that people tend to develop close relationships with their clients. The question that then follows this type of behavior is, “Where do you draw the line?

Providing services such as facials and massage is a very intimate and a close environment where two people may share an experience together. The treatment usually creates an environment whereby the client feels comfortable in sharing their personal business. The key is to allow the client to share ideas but guide them into a relaxed state of mind as soon as possible. This may be done by placing eye pads on the client’s eyes or maybe even guiding them through a deep breathing exercise with the use of essential oils. This will immediately help your client calm down.

I have seen people cross the line when they become so involved in the client’s life that they even begin to discuss their own personal matters. When the therapist begins to share personal issues, I believe that the client is no longer a business relationship but has crossed over into a friend relationship.

What I have found from my personal experience is when this line is crossed, the friend does what friends do…they want free services. Many people may feel comfortable crossing this boundary, however, it can lead to problems in which the massage therapist or aesthetician is really taken advantage of. We want to make friends and retain clients, but we also need to make money. My suggestion is to make sure you have appropriate boundaries to ensure the success of your business.

“Everyday is a SuperNatural Day”

Debbie Hellmann

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Thinking Cap Day

Last Friday marked the end of the old term with a final exam in the morning. To liven up the mood, Tanya and I declared it “Thinking Cap Day”. I brought in some newspaper, and Tanya showed us how to form them to our heads to make hats! I’m a firm believer that anxiety is your worst enemy during a test. I’ve known students with an excellent understanding of material fail simply because they experienced overwhelming anxiety. I think the funny hats helped to reduce some of the stress in the room to a manageable level.

Here’s a picture of the test takers! (If you’re wondering why it’s kind of funky in places, it’s because I took three separate pictures and morphed them together in Photoshop.

The new term began on Monday, and I miss my “Maypril” group already. I dropped in to visit some of them during one of the breaks today, and they were preparing to delve enthusiastically into the hip.

Lovelace Linares

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Living in the information age

Welcome back virtual visitors! I hope you enjoyed our inaugural blog. The week whizzed by with a flurry of activities that have all seemed to melt into one big blur. Is it just me or is time moving faster these days?

I guess this is what living in the information age is like. With all the advancements in technology – particularly the Internet – that are supposed to help simplify our lives, we inadvertently have ended up doing more though I fear sometimes, at the cost of absorbing less.

There is so much information that we are constantly bombarded with that to concentrate and absorb one thing – like this blog! – takes a Herculean effort. So, if you’re still reading, I commend you!

On the flipside, this information/technology age has brought us the Internet and has made the world seem smaller and more accessible by bringing people of all communities, all countries, closer than ever. We research everything on the Internet these days: recipes, addresses, things to do, medical conditions; I could go on and on! Do we even go to libraries anymore?

I know at this point you’re probably wondering to yourself if I’m just ranting, or if I actually have a point! You’ll be pleased to know that I DO have a point, and that is:

As a Clinical/Neuromuscular Massage Therapist, besides referring to my textbooks, I rely heavily on the Internet for doing my research before I work on a client. It becomes particularly necessary when I am working on someone who has an issue that has a “medical” slant to it from chronic back pain, to sprained ankles to systemic Lupus.

Sidebar: I mention Lupus because right after graduation, I was referred to a new client who had been displaced by the Katrina devastation who had been living with systemic Lupus for 13 years. Her spine at this point had a permanent “S” shaped curvature from years of walking with a cane that certainly didn’t look like she was fitted for. She walked very slowly and from the looks of it, seemed in pain with each step. Back home in Louisiana, she had been receiving massage three times a week. At the point that she was referred to me, she had not had one in two months, but I digress.

I naturally scoured the Internet for information regarding massage on Lupus patients, and what I found was a glaring lack of documentation on the subject, let alone any other medical conditions.

So, to come full circle, I strongly believe that we as a massage therapy community can harness the power of this technology that we cannot get away from and elevate our chosen profession by providing documentation on issues that we come across. We can put to use our SOAP notes writing skills and post our “findings” on the Internet.

I know it sounds like the ol’ “if you can’t beat them, join them” adage, but if we have to be inundated with technology, we might as well put it to good use and keep each other informed.

Melinda Eubank

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