Hi, I’m Barbara Horsley (formerly Barbara Loomis), abdominal massage therapist in the Ludington, Michigan area. I’m a practitioner as well as an educator. I also teach a Womb Care course and the Free The Belly abdominal scar massage online course.
I’ve been a licensed massage therapist for over 26 years and I specialize in abdominal massage therapies. I have massaged thousands of bellies! Working with abdominal scars and restrictions is a big part of my practice. Adhesions from Cesarean births and other surgical scars, adhesions from small intestinal bacteria overgrowth and inflammation as well as scar tissue from traumas such as MVA, motor vehicle accidents. I also specialize in uterine, womb, massage for painful periods, fertility enhancement, tipped retroverted uterus correction and other reproductive health concerns.
My Story as an Abdominal Massage Therapist
So let me back it up a bit, my journey into abdominal therapies began in 1998 when my clients experienced emotional releases during their massage sessions. I had no idea how to handle this, so I completed training at a Trauma Relief Center to be a facilitator in metapsychology which involved attentive listening, recognizing triggers and then teaching EFT and other therapies to resolve the physical charge of the trauma. It was an effective approach and I learned a lot, but as a bodyworker at heart, I wanted to learn how to work with and help people process the emotional charges through touch and other bodywork modalities.
So, I then studied Chi Nei Tsang, Chinese abdominal therapy, with Kyle Cline for several years and then went on to study with Master Mantak Chia and was certified as a CNT instructor by Mantak Chia in 2007.
At that time I wanted to learn more about working with the womb specifically, so I studied a form of womb massage with Dr. Rosita Arvigo in the US and in Belize and became certified in the Arvigo Techniques of Maya Abdominal Therapy® and eventually went on to be a teacher in the Arvigo® therapy.
Abdominal Therapy Courses and Insights
Once you start to study abdominal therapy and the internal organs, you quickly realize just how complicated and fascinating the anatomy of the belly really is. I’m a very curious person and always want to learn more, especially when it comes to anatomy of the abdomen and pelvis. So, I went on to train over the next six years in Visceral Manipulation™ which is low force osteopathic techniques for working with the internal organs and supporting structures. During this time I also trained for a year in Functional Methods (also osteopathic manual therapy), and several years as a Restorative Exercise Specialist, also known as Nutritious Movement™, with a focus on whole-body alignment for pelvic floor, reproductive and digestive health.
I’ve completed a Coursera course called Anatomy of the Abdomen and Pelvis; from basics to clinical through Leiden University and Medical Center.
I’m also a Holistic Nutrition Lab-Digestive Intensive Graduate.
To sum it up I’m a teacher of Maya and Chinese abdominal massage therapy and a dedicated practitioner of Visceral Manipulation™ and through the years have emerged with some of my own techniques.
My goals as a Practitioner
I put the online abdominal therapy courses together because I have a heartfelt enthusiasm for teaching people how to care for their bellies. Through the many years of practicing abdominal therapy and abdominal massage I have learned that not one approach works for everyone so I have spent many hours refining my techniques to give students a well-rounded self-care abdominal massage therapy online program.
My goal with the Free The Belly abdominal scars and restrictions online course is to teach you how to reduce your abdominal restrictions so that you’ll feel freer in your body, experience a reduction in pain, and improve organ function. But most of all, I want to help you connect with the beauty and wisdom of your body.
My goal for the Womb Care online course is to help you overcome fertility challenges, painful periods, help you correct your tipped uterus and restore a healthy pelvic alignment for pelvic floor health through teaching you abdominal womb massage, restorative exercises, herbal medicine, and mind-body techniques for uterine health. I cover techniques for prolapsed, retroverted or tipped uteri as well as uterine massage no matter what position your uterus is in. The Womb Care course is a wonderful course for anyone who just wants to take charge of their health and fertility through self-care techniques and abdominal massage.
