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Workshop
Myofascial Release (MFR) is fast gaining recognition as the missing link in traditional healthcare. View our workshops...
The MFR workshops
MFRUK offers therapists a variety of post graduate workshops to suit their needs.The certification level comprises of iMFT level 1, 2 and 3 after which therapists can choose to attend the Advanced Upper Body and Advanced Lower Body workshops. The Myofascial Unwinding workshop is optional and can be taken after iMFT level 1.
MFRUK also offers 4, 1 day speciality workshops which can be attended by any student who has attended at least iMFT level 1 or any other Myofascial Release workshop (conditions apply).
Eligibility for the iMFT workshops
Eligibility for the Special Series workshops
Integrated myofascial therapy is a whole body, multi-disciplinary approach to healthcare. It incorporates an integration of tried and tested advanced, direct and non direct, soft tissue and fascial techniques.
Integration of these techniques with your existing skills will allow you to be more effective and efficient in your treatment in the restoration of structure in your client’s musculoskeletal system and balance to their body/mind complex.
Integrated myofascial therapy, iMFT is presented in a series of experiential two day workshops for health care professionals. These postgraduate workshops allow therapists to develop a deeper level of awareness and sensitivity in their treatments.
Each workshop builds on the previous and includes:
- an opportunity to deepen your therapeutic effectiveness in alleviating pain and restoring range of motion
- a wide range of powerful and safe easy to use fascial release techniques
- new and exciting clinical skills that complement and enhance your bodywork practice
- the skillful integration of advanced soft tissue/fascial approaches that can be easily and immediately incorporated into your existing treatment protocols
- a theoretical understanding of the function and dysfunction of the fascial system
- the correlation of the emotional component within bodywork practices and the body/mind connection
- the use of movement facilitation within myofascial modalities
- comprehensive workshop manual and table side assistance
- extensive hands-on training throughout
- an opportunity to receive valuable treatment.
Eligibility for the MFR workshops
Open to Healthcare Professionals including, but not limited to the following disciplines:
- Physiotherapy
- Physical Therapy
- Chiropractic and Osteopathy
- Neuromuscular Therapy
- Sports Therapy
- Remedial and Therapeutic/Holistic/Swedish Massage Therapy
- Bowen, Shiatsu and Thai massage
Craniosacral therapy - Personal trainers, yoga and Pilates therapists with adequate hands-on experience and knowledge
- All students must be competent and confident with body palpation, musculoskeletal identification and palpation for function and dysfunction.
Please note that our workshops are pitched to a level that meets the needs and understanding of those involved, or with experience, in treating in a remedial manner. MFR is not generally used as a relaxation treatment. However, MFR can be incorporated to all existing practices. Movement therapists including Pilates and yoga practitioners may attend but must have hands-on experience in palpation of musculoskeletal anatomy and be able to confidently palpate for function and dysfunction. All students must have adequate professional indemnity insurance which would cover them to provide a hands-on treatment.
We regretfully advise that we are generally not able to accept those who only have training in Indian Head Massage, Reiki, and other healing modalities, infant massage, beauty therapy or reflexology as our workshops require a minimum of anatomy and physiology and full body musculoskeletal palpatory skills.
Other hands-on bodywork therapies may be accepted, please e-mail for details.
Minimum Requirement
A qualification to examination level in anatomy and physiology is required. Students currently attending a healthcare course may also apply. We reserve the right to reject applications due to student unsuitability.
Special Series Workshop pre-requisites
These workshops will provide the student with effective techniques from a variety of MFR approaches.
MFRUK welcomes students who have attended Myofascial Release workshops via other training organisations to attend. These students must have attended at least a 1 day CPD workshop in MFR and have good understanding of how Myofascial Release works as well as experience in the direct and indirect fascial approaches. Students may be asked to provide copies of their certificates. Please call or email for further details.
What to Bring
The workshops are relaxed and friendly.
- please wear lose fitting clothes and also bring either shorts, cropped sports top/bra or 2 piece bathing suit. Fascial work will be done skin on skin, on the back, chest and upper legs.
- please wear limited moisturiser/oil (preferably none) as fascial treatments are done dry and hands tend to slide otherwise
- please bring your massage table/couch/plinth unless otherwise instructed.(a charge of £10 per workshop for London venues to rent a plinth unless you can bring your own)
- if you know you are attending with another student, please check that it will be appropriate to bring 1 plinth between 2. Please bring a small pillow, something to put on the plinth and something to cover you with during treatment. IE 2 towels, sheets etc
- lunch for both days and water
- tissues and wet hand wipes
- pen and paper
Ruth Duncan.
Sports and remedial massage therapist, advanced myofascial therapists and clinical hypnotherapist
Ruth has been involved in complementary therapies for a number of years and took the opportunity to study whilst living abroad. She graduated with honours as a clinical massage therapist in 2000 from the Humanities Centre School of Massage, now the Cortiva institute, in Florida, USA . Her training included various techniques including relaxation, Swedish, therapeutic, and sports/remedial massage with the neuromuscular component comprising of muscle energy techniques (MET), positional release (PR), and trigger point therapy and both direct and non direct myofascial release (MFR). Ruth was privileged to learn form highly skilled teachers and lecturers at the school including advanced Rolfer's, John F.Barnes myofascial practitioners, chiropractors and physiotherapists.
On returning to Scotland Ruth furthered her training by studying sports injury rehabilitation with Premier Training UK, pre and peri-natal massage with Carole Osbourne-Sheets and Reiki. She organised the first TouchPro chair massage course in Scotland and holds a diploma as an On-Site Practitioner. She also explored further direct and non direct fascial approaches form various different modalities including Thomas Myers’ Anatomy Trains and Meridians, Kinesis Myofascial Integration (level1), Erik Dalton Myoskeletal Alignment Techniques, Jean-Paul Barral Visceral Manipulation, and Liz Kotch, who specialises in core awareness and the psoas muscle. 
Ruth pursued her interest with the body/mind connection by studying clinical hypnotherapy allowing her access to various techniques from basic counselling skills, life strategies and goal setting which complement all of the therapies she practices. Ruth also trained as a HypnBirthing® practitioner and is a member of the British Society of Clinical Hypnosis.
She returned to the USA in February 2003 to continue postgraduate training with John F. Barnes who is the world’s leading authority on Myofascial Release (MFR). She completed the final advanced retreat MFR seminar in October 2004 and is also an assistant for the Barnes seminars in the USA.
Ruth is also presently studying with The Society of Sports Therapists to refresh and update her knowledge in sports and remedial care.
Ruth has a personal interest in treating those with chronic pain, debilitation and exhaustion, particularly fibromyalgia, chronic fatigue and chronic myofascial pain syndrome, as she herself struggled with chronic fatigue syndrome (ME) for almost 8 years. She understands the emotion coming from the physical and the physical creating the emotion from firsthand experience as her own health forced her to give up her home and earlier career in order to cope and to heal. Through her journey into MFR she has come to realise many physical and emotional issues that harboured her condition and that the label she was given by traditional healthcare was nothing more than a way of slotting her into statistics and criteria to meet an outdated paradigm, that of treating the label and not the cause.
Ruth teaches MFR at various venues in the UK and has been asked to teach internationally.
MFR UK has a regular stand at the CAMEXPO show in Earls Court, London where they provide taster sessions to prospective students, where possible, as well as short MFR workshops. MFR UK presented at the Holistic Health in Birmingham in 2011.
Ruth has written many articles for the Scottish Massage Therapy Organisation, Today’s Therapist and Massage World trade magazines, International Therapist, the Federation of holistic therapists magazine, and EMBODY, the journal for the Complementary Therapy Association. MFR UK also advertises in these magazines and Frontline, the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy magazine.
Ruth runs her own clinic just north of Glasgow, Scotland www.thenaturaltherapycentre.co.uk, specialising in the MFR approach in single sessions and intensive treatments where she is privileged to have three other advanced MFR practitioners, Jane Meek, Karen Baker and Hilary Howatt who all have attended many John Barnes seminars in the USA as well as assisting on the MFR UK workshops with Ruth.
Ruth also represented the John F. Barnes PT MFR treatment centre and seminars (USA) at the Fascial congress in Amsterdam in October 2009.
John F. Barnes PT
It is with grateful thanks to John F Barnes, MFR treatment centres and seminars USA for their continued support of these workshops and on a personal note, both Ruth and Mary wish to thank John for his commitment, support, teachings and treatments in his Myofascial Release approach. (www.myofascialrelease.com)