Bryan Whittinghill

Bryan Whittinghill graduated from the Las Vegas Campus of the Utah College of Massage Therapy Family of Schools in October of 2001. Soon after graduating, Bryan obtained his National Certification, his license and began pursuing his dreams of working as a massage therapist. The following is a letter Bryan sent the NSMT Career Services office regarding his success as a massage therapist:

"Hi everyone, my name is Bryan Whittinghill and I graduated from NSMT in October of 2001. My first introduction to the world of massage was in the mid 1980’s...the beginning of the "New Age" movement. My friends began wearing crystals, searching for past lives in gravity deprivation float tanks and getting massages. This new movement seemed perfect for me, because growing up all I had ever secretly wanted to be was a "Hippie" and this seemed really conducive to that lifestyle. I loved the whole massage package. Not just how it felt physically but the atmosphere created with candles and the earthy scent of patchouli incense. I was so drawn to massage that I began inquiring about becoming a therapist. End result...too much school, time and money. Having just finished college I chose to stay with the career track that I was on, the corporate special events industry.

"The special events industry landed me in Las Vegas. It was very exciting working for major hotel/casinos alongside movie stars, top entertainers and LOTS of not-so top entertainers. Ten years went by and the industry was really starting to burn me out. The excitement became lethargy and the on call 24/7 hotel manager philosophy became grueling, at times unbearable. It was time for a change, but what? Two major upsets in my life happened in October of 2000. My job at the Regent Las Vegas was eliminated at the first of the month and my best friend Phil died suddenly from kidney cancer at the end of the month. These two episodes threw my life into a tailspin yet put me on the path to becoming a massage therapist.

"Phil’s cancer caused him horrible pain and during one of his hospital stays another friend showed us some reflexology points on his feet to help with the pain. To our surprise the reflexology did seem to ease the pain and whoever was visiting would massage Phil’s feet. At the end of October 2000 Phil was flying home to Boston to undergo experimental treatment. Pryor to leaving he developed pneumonia and would have to fly with oxygen. It was obvious that he could not make the trip alone, so I decided to go with him to Boston. The first leg of the flight to Houston went well. It was from Houston to Boston that he began to grow weary. The medications caused him to fidget and the pain was unrelenting. I arranged with the stewardess for a row of seats so that I could massage Phil’s feet. Once I began the reflexology he calmed down and I worked his feet until we landed. To this day I honestly believe that he would not have arrived alive in Boston to see his family without the healing power of massage.

"Back in Las Vegas… and now what? I was unemployed, my best friend had died and I had no energy left to deal with any of it. What happened next will seem very familiar to many of you. I’m driving in my truck and I hear the NSMT radio add...BAM! I go home and fire off an email to NSMT and Jeff Halpin calls me the next day. We set up an appointment, I sign lots of papers, and we arrange a payment plan and a class schedule. At that point everything in my life seemed to come together. I was going to be a massage therapist and nothing had ever felt more natural. I had graduated from college in 1983 and was nervous about being a student again but that was my only reservation.

"School was an incredible experience. I had a great class (Hoody hoo DV-08) and many wonderful teachers. The class work was a lot more demanding than I had anticipated but I soon got into the groove and graduated with a 3.9 GPA and perfect attendance. I passed the National Certification Exam in December and began looking for work on January 02, 2002. Career Services would send the Hot Sheet and Job Listings via email, which became my bible. I would also fill out an application at any business that had spa, massage, or chiropractor in their title. It quickly paid off. I had two hands on interviews at day spas on January 10th and both companies offered me positions. I was so excited… I had TWO jobs. One was part-time and the other was on-call. The on-call job quickly became a "never call" so I began looking for additional work. In July I began doing corporate chair massage and became a T.A for Massage Therapy Basics at NSMT. Through Jackie in Career Services I found out about a new spa that was opening in the Orleans Hotel/Casino, Spa Orleans. They were going to be recruiting at NSMT and I was going to be ready. I wanted the opportunity to be on the ground floor of a new spa and I knew they would hire me. Jackie called me a couple of days after the interview to tell me that the Spa Orleans wanted to offer me a full-time position. We opened the spa on September 14th and it is a great place to work. All of the therapists are busy and we’re having a great time learning new treatments. The spa itself is beautiful and I look forward to going to work there everyday.

"I have been very fortunate with this career change and my new motto for living life is, follow your heart and dreams will come true. I love being a massage therapist and I cannot put into words the joy it brings to me each day. Less than two years after deciding to become a massage therapist I have found success in this new field and it is a wonderful sense of accomplishment. To get here I first had to suffer through the loss of a career that I loved, a friend that I loved and a life that I loved. I mourned these losses while attending NSMT and through the different classes found outlets to help me deal with the changes that were taking place in my life. Life is good!"

(Dedicated to Philip DiPietro, June 29, 1956 - October 23, 2000)