VICKIE D. TORREY is a licensed massage and bodywork therapist with 20 years experience in therapeutic massage and over 26 years experience as a Counselor/Certified Social Worker. Vickie has previously served as Director of Education for the North Carolina Chapter of the American Massage Therapy Association (AMTA), taught massage and movement for Omega Institute of Holistic Studies in Rhinebeck, New York, and wrote for the Charlotte Post a monthly newspaper column entitled “Hands On Health,” that focused on massage, bodywork and mind-body psychology.

In 1987 she founded Lighten Up Holistic Health Services of Charlotte, North Carolina, an international health and training agency for both adults and children. As an instructor for Lighten Up, she has many years of experience teaching women recovering from domestic violence self-massage and also how to massage their infants and children. This work taught her much about the psychology of touch and the value of nurturing and compassionate touch in our lives.

Her experience with HIV/AIDs patients also broadened her belief that the spirit-mind-body connection is a powerful force and should be treated with the utmost respect. While working at Carolinas Integrative Health (CIH), she compassionately touched, actively listened to, and spiritually encouraged persons experiencing ALS, Multiple Sclerosis, Polio, Parkinson’s Disease, HIV/AIDs, and Cancer.  She is especially drawn to working with persons experiencing frail health, hospice patients, and other’s who are at the end stage of life. Vickie earned a certificate in Therapeutic Massage from Therapeutic Massage Training Institute of Charlotte, North Carolina in 1988. She received her certification in Medical Massage for the Cancer Patient from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, New York.

She considers herself a mystic traveler who is attracted to energy vortexes in unusual places. Her travels have taken her to Europe, the Caribbean Islands, Mexico, Trinidad-Tobago, and Brazil. She also enjoys white water rafting, flying, and indoor skydiving.  

An Approved Provider for the National Certification Board for Therapeutic Massage and Bodyworkers, she teaches classes in hot stone, intuitive, and medical massage for cancer patients in both Brazil and the US. She currently is living in Ilhabela, Brazil where she is writing a book on cancer massage. Her classes are taught in an upbeat, fun and caring atmosphere. She looks forward to seeing you in Costa Rica!

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