The Institute for Grief Massage Inc.

This online course is approved by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodywork (NCBTMB) for 6.5 continuing education (CE) hours as a home study course.

The Joy of Grief Massage Class 4 of 5: Emotional Release & Scope of Practice is the fourth class in a five part training series.

The prerequisites for this course are The Joy of Grief Massage Class 1 of 5: Grief, the Body & the Nervous System, The Joy of Grief Massage Class 2 of 5: Grief Massage Intake & Protocols, and The Joy of Grief Massage Class 3 of 5: The Grief Massage Sequence.

Course History

After creating the Grief Massage modality, and teaching massage therapists in Canada, France, Australia, and all across the US (live in-person & via live webinar), Aimee was inspired to craft an online training experience that will reach even more grief-oriented massage therapists.

Based on her valuable experiences training massage therapists in Grief Massage (since 2012/2013), Aimee has created a learning experience that addresses the common needs, questions, and interest points of massage therapists who want to specialize in working with grieving clients.

This course, "The Joy of Grief Massage Class 4 of 5: Emotional Release & Scope of Practice" focuses on how Grief Massage practitioners can develop confidence and wisdom around their legal scope of practice, as well as an ethical and heart-centered style of setting limits and boundaries around the way they provide support to grievers.

This course also focuses on emotional release and how it may manifest in a Grief Massage setting - covering why emotional release may be more likely as well as practical protocols and tips for how Grief Massage therapists can respond while remaining within their scope of practice.

In her live and live webinar courses, Aimee typically spent 3 hours covering emotional release and scope of practice. In creating this online learning experience for you, she has greatly expanded the course to 6.5

What You Will Learn

This course covers why the massage therapy scope of practice matters by exploring what a legal definition of massage therapy may look like (each U.S. state massage board typically creates their own definition) and why scope of practice knowledge is so important in a Grief Massage setting.

Students will gain a rich understanding of how to find and access a scope of practice definition that applies to their work, how to effectively communicate their scope of practice to potential clients, referrers, and current clients, and how to set boundaries and limits when clients may requests for support that falls outside the massage therapy scope of practice.

Students will also learn about making appropriate referrals to increase a grieving client's ecosystem of support.

This course also engages students in learning about emotional release from a grief-sensitive and grief-informed perspective. Students will learn about emotional release may be more common in a Grief Massage (versus traditional massage) setting, why emotional release can be trusted, how to communicate with clients about emotional release, how to handle active emotional release in the treatment room, how to make referrals for emotional/mental/spiritual grief support, and how to provide ethical aftercare and follow-up.

Aimee shares valuable insights and references, some personal experiences, and recommendations for learning to embrace all of the emotions and experiences that grieving clients may bring to the Grief Massage treatment room, while remaining grounded and rooted in the massage therapy scope of practice and providing warm, compassionate, ethical care.

This course is designed to help grief oriented massage therapists confidently define and explain their scope of practice, understand why remaining in scope of practice is essential for creating an ethical, safe, and client-centered Grief Massage practice, and create protocols and approaches for handling emotional release when it occurs (though client check-ins, providing an anchoring presence, and offering aftercare via referrals and self-care planning).

How This Course Works

This course includes 6.5 hours of content, spread across 15 relevant topic areas.

Students will listen to/view a podcast-like  narrated slide on the topic, followed by an optional practice quiz question (usually scenario based) to check their understanding of the topic,

There is an optional transcript of the narrated slide (presented as an article) included in each section, so students can read the topic information after listening to the narrated slide.

At several points throughout the course, Aimee has posted check-in videos where she explores the topics covered to that point. At each check-in video, there is a discussion forum where students are encouraged to respond to the topic material by creating posts and responding to posts from other students.

After completing all 15 topics, students will download a printable course workbook and listen to Aimee's audio narration of the workbook. Students are encouraged to make notes, answer reflection questions, and use the workbook as an opportunity to deeply personalize the course content.

This course also includes several fictional case studies to illustrate potential ways that emotional release may occur in a Grief Massage setting. Students are welcome to post their thoughts and responses to the fictional case studies in a Discussion board section, to share with other learners.

About The Certificate

At the end of this course, students will have the opportunity to earn a 6.5 hour home study CE Certificate of Achievement by:

-completing 100% of course content

-completing a course evaluation

-earning at least 70% on the final quiz. 

The final quiz consists of 38 multiple choice questions, largely based on the scenario quiz questions that were reviewed after each topic question. Some new questions, based on the course material will also be included.

The Certificate of Achievement provides 6.5 CE (approved by the NCBTMB).

The Certificate of Achievement is not a certification or license in Grief Massage. 

The Certificate of Achievement shows that you have completed the course (6.5 hours of home study/distance learning).

Students who earn the Certificate of Achievement will be able to download their 6.5 CE certificate.

Continuing Education Information

This course is approved by the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage & Bodywork (NCBTMB) for 6.5 home study CE.

Refund Policy

Refunds are not offered for this course. All tuition transactions are final.

How to Register

It is recommended that you complete the prerequisite courses prior to registering  for Class 2. 

Registration can be completed here on the Thinkific website by creating a user account and then registering in the course.

Tuition

Tuition for this 6.5 hour online course is $199.