Sian O Flynn

The Jing Institute of Advanced Clinical Massage & Complementary Medicine, United Kingdom

Title: “Beyond a Massage School” Massage & Mental Health: Time, Support & Compassion – Teaching New Generations Of Clinical Massage Therapists In Healthcare

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Biography

Sian has worked as a professional aromatherapist, scar tissue, clinical and holistic massage therapist for 15 years, as a specialist in acute and chronic pain, mental health and well-being. Working alongside physiotherapists and osteopaths, she completed her degree level 6 BTEC in Advanced Clinical Massage Therapy and Sports Massage, graduating from the Jing Institute of Advanced Clinical Massage and Complementary Therapy in June 2024. She presented her degree research on “Jing MethodTM Massage and Mental Health – Depression, Anxiety and Stress” as a keynote speaker at last year’s SC Mental Health Congress in Amsterdam.

During the Covid pandemic Sian took referrals for NHS Community Living Well mental health service and ran online sessions for Kensington and Chelsea Social Care. Through this and the Kensington and Chelsea Council Healthier Futures Initiative she worked for the NHS at the Integrated Care Centre for Health and Well-Being at  St. Charles Hospital, Ladbroke Grove in London working with Grenfell Tower Fire survivors and clients with severe physical and mental health issues. She works privately supporting a wide range of clients with issues varying from physical conditions, such as cancer, polio, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis, to mental health and emotional issues such as CPTSD and substance withdrawal. 

Since graduating she has also become a mentor and trainee-teacher at the Jing Institute, She has chosen this  area, so vital to the future of teaching and delivering healthcare, to speak about at this year’s conference.

Abstract

“Beyond a massage school, Jing is a thriving community dedicated to making exceptional massage and complementary medicine education accessible to all, from complete beginners to experienced practitioners.”

(https://jingmassage.com/about-us/)

My work is grounded in The Jing MethodTM - a professional, evidence-informed approach to persistent pain and movement challenges developed by Jing Institute founders Rachel Fairweather and Meghan Mari. The Jing MethodTM integrates advanced soft-tissue techniques from both Eastern and Western traditions, including myofascial release, trigger point therapy, acupressure, and advanced stretching. Crucially, it operates within a biopsychosocial framework, recognising that pain is influenced by tissue health, nervous system sensitivity, stress, lifestyle, and lived experience. It’s structured, collaborative care designed to support long-term change, improved movement, and greater ease in the body.

I blend anatomical precision with language that actually makes sense. I’ll happily talk about load tolerance, central sensitisation, and motor control, and in the same breath refer to a “grumpy shoulder” or “unhappy muscles”. Pain or conditions aren’t a personal failing, and it isn’t something to purely pathologise – it’s information; and patients are individuals. This healthcare approach involves taking time to learn about the client, and work in a therapeutic alliance to help and support them to better mental and physical health.

Since 2024 I’ve been mentoring the next cohort of Jing Institute students, about to complete their degrees in March 2026. I’ve been doing this alongside teacher-training as part of the Jing Teaching One-To-One (TOTO) scheme and will be supporting the latest generation of students from 2025 until they graduate in 2028. My partner is currently a senior student on an osteopathy degree, and I couldn’t help but notice the difference between his learning experience within the standard UK university system and mine. Speaking with many colleagues in the UK’s National Health Service about the ways that they are encouraged to work and train; the pressures and constraints that they are under, I was also struck by my very different learning experience and career approach taught at the Jing Institute and the feedback that I get from my clients about their differing experiences of both. 

As humans we all ‘…stand on the shoulders of giants’ (letter from Sir Isaac Newton to Robert Hooke, 5th February 1675), trying to learn and pass on our knowledge for future generations. Within both public and private healthcare, we need to collaborate and work together for the benefit of all. I will be speaking about the Jing approach to teaching, training and working with compassion, time and care, supporting the next generation of therapists to think critically, work ethically, and stay human in their clinical practice.

You can learn more about The Jing Method™ at https://www.jingmassage.com