I love it when a plan comes together. *

 Dear Diary;

So. I think I just might have a plan (for once in my life). I’ve had to do some seriously stressful thinking lately about what I want to do and where I want my life to go and I’ve come back to settle on something I wanted to do a while ago. I’m still not 100% sure about it and I haven’t worked out the little details- but it’s a start.

I’m looking at Massage Therapy again. I’ve been doing a lot of research- specifically: which colleges are approved by the Ministry of Training and lead to Registration with the College of Massage Therapists of Ontario that will allow me the right to use the protected title "MT or RMT". The last thing I want to do is jump into it somewhere and then find out at the end that I can’t take the exam because it’s not an accredited place- ya know?

Everest College is really confusing the hell out of me. My initial choice was to go with a well known community college that is respected and that has positive name recognition with employers across Ontario. I want the place I choose to have a reputation for high standards and a history of success. When I google Everest- I get a lot of crap. That’s NOT a good sign. However, when I actually talk to people who’ve had experiences with the school- I get positive feedback. The main draw of Everest is that I’m almost sure it qualifies me for the Ontario Second Career program- which would mean that the government would pay up to $28,000 for tuition costs, rent, travel expenses and so on. I qualify because I was laid off in the past 4 years and am currently unemployed.

Anyway, Massage Therapy looks interesting- and totally scary at the same time. I’ve looked at course outlines and there are certain courses that look like I’d really enjoy them (hydrotherapy, swedish massage techniques, ethics and the Health care professional.. etc) and some that I know I would struggle with (Anatomy/Physiology, Advanced anatomy, advanced physiology). I took Anatomy and Physiology in college and passed them with a C. You HAD to get a C or higher in order to pass and I remember struggling back then to understand it all. It says Pharmacology is a course to take- which shouldn’t be a problem for me. Maybe I could even get exempt from that since I have my Applied Medications certification already. First aid.. I clearly already have that. Pathology.. I’m not even 100% sure what that is!

The good thing about Everest (from what I’ve heard and read) is that it’s a very interactive and hands-on learning environment with very small class sizes (like, 10 people). That’s a MAJOR plus for me. I learn so much better when I can see something being done and do it myself. When you stick a text book in front of me and tell me to study and then write a test (much like my Anatomy and Physiology classes in college) I fail. My brain doesn’t like text books.

I still have to think more about it before I make a decision- but at least I’m on a path somewhere.

 *edit

OMG! Pathology. Duh Meghan. I feel like an idiot for not knowing that- especially when we touched on that in some of my classes. *shakes head*