As flowers are beginning to sprout, my practice is growing and blooming with new life. I'm excited to announce some new offerings from massage techniques to a money-saving option for you.

For moms-to-be, I'm now certified in prenatal massage. With a bundle of pillows, you'll be positioned comfortably so you can relax fully in a peaceful hour just for you.

An ancient healing art, it involves deep stretching, rhythmic compression, soft-tissue manipulation, gentle rocking, energy balancing, and acupressure, performed with the client fully clothed on a floor mat. I took an introductory class with Sunny Klaber through the Intregral Touch Institute and will soon learn more. I currently do not have a mat in the Marine Street office, but some techniques transfer well to table massage. If you would like a full Thai massage, please let me know and I can work with you at Bodywork Bistro.

Rib dysfunction can be the source of neck and thoracic pain, painful breathing, reduced range of motion and may resemble heart and lung problems. If you prefer getting a massage over getting cracked from a chiropractor, I learned different techniques last month to help create an ideal environment in your body for the ribs to relax back into place.

Your friends need a massage, too. Receive $15 off a session when you refer a new client to me. Refer four new clients and receive a free 60-minute massage! Your friends will receive 25% off their first session with me: $53 for a 60-minute, or $72 for a 90-minute.

This weekend I celebrate my certification in sports and orthopedic massage and mourn the closing of my phenomenal school, Boulder College of Massage Therapy. In one week I will be in the last graduating class of the college as we know it. As my teacher and mentor Nate Butryn points out, sometimes you have tear it down to build a stronger foundation, and we're confident that it'll return soon in a new iteration. The school is full of wonderful, strong-willed and brilliant teachers, with optimistic spirits, big dreams and the support from community to achieve them. While my heart goes out to those who are losing their jobs and the students who are struggling in the transition, my spirit is hopeful and looking forward to what's next. 

For more information on BCMT's closing:
9 News story
Daily Camera article

Letter from Mary Rose: Mourning the loss of BCMT

The latest update from Dirk McCuistion, president of BCMT:

"We are trying to ensure when we re-open that we have 100% surety that the school is financially stable. The damage done by the DPOS directive to shut the school down is has been significant. We need to raise more capital (we have raised almost $1million to date) to guarantee we will win this fight and be viable. As difficult as it is please be patient, we all want to see the school come back. I will attempt to update you all daily. Please post and pin this to other official and unofficial BCMT sites. We need your support.... and your fundraising connections if you have any. I expect to have news in 24 to 48 hours."


Click here to stay updated on FB

If you're the trendy type, you're likely making resolutions right now, seeing the new year as a new beginning. I just finished reading the book Switch: How to change things when change is hard, by Chip Heath & Dan Heath, a gift to the family from my brother. Regardless of the time of year, this book inspires change. 

From January to March last year, everything in my life changed - my family moved, a romance ended, I took a pay cut at work, forcing me to find a new job, and I was often sick. The best change of all, by my choice, was enrolling in Boulder College of Massage Therapy. My graduation speech (previous blog) may give you an idea of what I gained from that change. Last spring was a new beginning. 

Now that I've graduated, I'm facing a new beginning once again, but this time with more independence, a larger pile of debt, and a deeper knowledge of myself and good health. So I'm making resolutions along with everyone else. The Heath brothers have some excellent advice on how to make resolutions stick: 

• Point to the destination - I'm going to pay off all credit card debt by January 2015. If I say I'm going to "pay off debt" this year, I could pay off $50 of my student loans and technically accomplish that resolution. So a distinct goal is necessary. 
  
• Shrink the change - I will dance for 15 minutes today. I would love to go a 1-hour SoulSweat class at Alchemy of Movement, but it costs $14, it's on a schedule that may not fit in with mine, and 15 minutes is a lot easier to fit in to my full day. 15 minutes of dance in my living room is doable, and more beneficial than doing nothing to fulfill my need to be active & creative.
  
• Build habits - While my tea is steeping in the morning, I will clean something in the house. It's easy for me to ignore clutter and crumbs, but I prefer to live in a well-organized, clean house. Yet again, a few minutes of cleaning is a lot easier to fit in to my full day than a whole hour. I set an "action trigger" ahead of time to encourage this habit, to help prevent me from turning on the computer to check Facebook right after I pour the water for tea.

There are many other tips and inspiring stories in Switch, and you can read the first chapter on their website if you want to check it out. When following through with resolutions, it helps to share them with others. So tell me, what are you going to change this year?