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NH Jan 2013 Qx_Layout 1 03/12/2012 16:33 Page 1

Sick of the rat race?Fancy retraining as acomplementary therapistin 2013? Julie Penfoldshows you how...As more and more of us turn to

complementary therapies to help

with various ailments and health

problems, this is also leading to

a growing interest in changing

careers and retraining as a

complementary therapist.

“Complementary medicine is definitely on

the up; it’s very much a growing profession,”

says Jayney Goddard, president of the

Complementary Medical Association. “We’re

also finding that our training college members

are reporting there are more people coming

through who wish to change from the job they

are currently doing and retrain as a therapist.

So what are you waiting for? Maybe now is the

time to make that career change you've always

dreamt about. Here's how to go about it:

Choosing a therapyConsider your personal interests and which

therapies you have experienced that really stand

out to you. Perhaps you have a go-to therapy

to ease aches and pains or have particularly

fond memories of a therapy you tried out via

a holiday or weekend class.

“It is important to have a strong personal

interest in the therapy you want to study and

that it is one that you’ve experienced yourself,”

says Jane Langston, teacher at the Amatsu

Training School, and winner of the ICNM’s Best

Complementary Medicine Company 2012

award. “Having personal experience is also

very useful in the long-term to share your story

of where your enthusiasm for the therapy

developed with potential and existing clients.

Give yourself the best possible start by

New year, new career

52 NATURAL HEALTH

New Year New Career Qx_Slim At Home 30/11/2012 17:15 Page 2

Soul | NEW JOB

The breadwinnersThe Federation of Holistic Therapists recently

conducted a survey among their members to

find out which popular therapies were the ten

biggest earners. These were:

1 Massage

2 Reflexology

3 Aromatherapy

4 Remedial massage

5 Sports massage

6 Reiki

7 Beauty services

8 Sports therapy

9 Waxing

10 Bowen therapy

NATURAL HEALTH 53

New Year New Career Qx_Slim At Home 30/11/2012 17:15 Page 3

54 NATURAL HEALTH

choosing a popular treatment to begin with and

then look at specialising and/or extending your

treatment range as you go,” says Kush Kumar,

chairman of the Complementary Therapists

Association. “A core massage qualification is

a great starting point.”

For Prue Nichols, 36, a keen interest in

alternative therapies initially provided a good

balance to her hectic role in international public

relations. “I often felt stressed and overwhelmed

in the buzzy fast-paced atmosphere of PR and

enjoyed balancing this with spending weekends

and holidays on courses learning about personal

development. I had not considered changing

careers, mainly because I did not know where to

start. This attitude began to change, however,

after I had studied reflexology for a year, while

still working in PR. The more reflexology I did,

the more I realised that I preferred this to my PR

work. I felt the connection to the client was so

much deeper and corporate life started to feel

cold in comparison. However, I was worried

about how I could make a living from reflexology

and felt quite stuck, yo-yoing between the safety

of my job and my passion for the therapy.

“After six months of this feeling, I decided to

leave PR and lived in India, Thailand and New

Zealand for the next two years teaching English.

This time out helped me to realise I no longer

wanted to go back to PR. I envisaged creating

a business called The Orange Grove, named

after a grove in New Zealand, which would be

a haven of wellbeing for people that worked in

offices, as I knew the stresses of office life

only too well. I also studied holistic massage

for 16 months as I thought I needed another

therapy: I was absolutely right as 80 per cent of

my business is massage-based. I started

working with reflexology immediately and

developed some regular clients. I adore my

work and feel it was worth every struggle in

the beginning. I feel very fortunate that I have

a thriving business doing something I am

hugely passionate about.”

How to find the best coursesJoining a professional association at student level

is paramount to accessing support, advice and

key industry information. By selecting a course

accredited by a professional association, you

can be reassured the content and syllabus has

been reviewed and approved. There are a large

number of professional associations within the

complementary therapy sector. Support and

membership benefits may differ from association

to association – find out what your preferred

professional association has to offer before joining.

You can also gain a good understanding of

whether the course you are interested in is one

of the best for you by checking the following,

says Melanie Prince, general manager at the

Federation of Holistic Therapists. “Check

with the training provider whether the specific

qualification you are interested in meets national

occupational standards (NOS), the minimum

standards for those looking to practice. Most of

the popular therapies such as massage,

reflexology and aromatherapy will have NOS.

However, there will be some therapies where

national occupational standards are not in place

yet. You must also find out if your course will

be covered by a professional association for

membership and insurance purposes. Always

check with your professional association before

you embark on any course. They will be able

to advise whether you will be covered.”

“There are a lot of course providers out

there – interview them,” says Jayney. “If you are

deciding where you want to go and train, you

must get as much information as possible before

you part with your hard-earned cash and time.

Make sure that you go along and meet the

people that are running the training course and

talk to both existing and previous students. Any

good college will be able to point you in that

direction. They will have student advocates you

can chat to; this will help you to get a feel of

whether the course is actually right for you. It’s

also important to get on with the people who

will be teaching you.”

CHECKLIST:Choosing your course

Is it a recognised qualification?

“One of the main considerations for prospective

students should be whether a qualification is

mapped to the Qualifications and Credit

Framework (QCF) and is recognised at

practitioner level for insurance purposes,” says

Melanie. “We receive calls like this on a daily

basis and sadly, some are from those who

have completed courses that do not meet the

standards required. We generally recommend

qualifications from recognised awarding bodies

such as the VTCT, ITEC and City & Guilds. The

easiest way to tell if a qualification is on the QCF

is if it has a skills level and size, for example,

Level 3 Diploma in Beauty Therapy.”

What level is it?

“Ensure that the subject you are planning on

studying is at the correct level,” says Kush.

“Most complementary therapies require a Level

3 qualification. Most of these will also contain an

anatomy and physiology section.”

Is local college the only route?

“Many students assume their local college is

the only route to qualification. Don’t forget, there

are also hundreds of private training providers

across the UK who also offer accredited

courses,” says Melanie.

Should I be wary of distance learning?

Distance learning courses are not recommended

for any of the practical therapies. These require

face-to-face tuition and working hands on

with case studies. Melanie also warns many

professional associations will not recognise

distance learning courses so you could run into

problems with insurance. The only exception is

✓

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New Year New Career Qx_Slim At Home 30/11/2012 17:15 Page 4

NATURAL HEALTH 55

Case Study“I left behind a career as a chef

to retrain as an acupuncturist”

Hannah O’Connell, 28, worked as a

chef in a Michelin-starred restaurant

in Dublin where she loved the fast-

paced, high-pressured environment. One day

Hannah suddenly collapsed at work without

warning and was diagnosed with a virus of

the inner ear. Hannah became bed-bound as

her hearing, vision and balance were all

affected. Hannah had no alternative but to

move back into the family home to be cared

for by her mum. It was a suggestion by a

family friend which led to her career change.

“A friend of my mum’s suggested I try

acupuncture and recommended a practitioner.

With little faith but eager to try anything to help

with my symptoms, I went along for a session.

It was miraculous, I felt a huge improvement

immediately and was fit to go back to work

two weeks later. Only I had decided I did not

want to be a chef any longer: I could

not get acupuncture out of my head.

The thought of going back to college

and giving up the career I had

worked hard at was scary, so I took

time to make my decision, spending

two months in China to immerse

myself in this new way of thinking. My thirst

only got stronger so I went along to college

open days and visited my acupuncturist and

asked him about his training. He was a

fantastic source of advice; I started training at

the Irish College of Traditional Chinese

Medicine alongside working as a waitress.

I wanted a job aligned with my previous

profession that was less stressful.

As a TCM acupuncturist you need to be

healthy and balanced. I started my clinic the

week I graduated in June 2011 and have

steadily built up a good client base. Making

people better and helping them to lead a

healthy, happy life is the best job in the world:

I have no regrets about my career change!”

Soul| NEW JOB

“Get as much info as possible beforeyou part with your hard-earned cash”

when the subject is theory-based such as

nutrition or if studying the theory of a therapy

before you start a practical course. “If somebody

says they can give you a massage, reflexology

or aromatherapy certificate without needing to

attend, run a mile,” says Jayney. “You must have

an attendance module on any type of practical

therapy that includes body work. Be very wary

of any courses that suggest otherwise.”

Will I forge the right links?

“It is vitally important to check that the college or

training provider you are planning on studying

with to deliver your qualifications is registered

with the correct organisations,” says Kush.

Will it get me to where I’d like to

practice after I have qualified?

“If you would like to practice within a beauty

salon, for example, you may want to contact

local salons to see what they would be looking

for in a complementary therapist,” says Melanie.

“They may prefer a therapist that is multi-

disciplined to meet the needs of a range of

clients. There are bonuses to offering more

than one therapy as you have more to offer

a potential employer and it is great from a

personal perspective to have a change in the

pattern and variety of treatments you are doing.”

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New Year New Career Qx_Slim At Home 30/11/2012 17:16 Page 5