I finished studying kinesiology at O’Neill Kinesiology College in Perth at the end of last year and it was the best experience of my life.
If you have read my blog about how I found kinesiology then you will know I fell in love with it from the moment I read about it. When I looked into studying kinesiology I was disappointed I had just missed the Open Day at O’Neill College but the 2 Day Intro workshop was coming up so I booked in for that. This was back in 2016. I had a four month old and was breastfeeding and I was still healing from postnatal depression so even though I enjoyed the intro workshop, the time just wasn’t right for me to study yet.
It wasn’t until after I had my second daughter and my eldest had started school that I finally started my kinesiology studies. That was 2021 and I was so excited to finally be starting. Part of me wished I had enrolled when I first looked into it because then I would have been finished already. But I had always trusted in divine timing so I just had to go with it.
Juggling study with part time work and mum life wasn’t easy but I am grateful for how flexible the college is. They have weekday options and weekend options and the classes are recorded so if life gets in the way you can access two classes that way. While it’s great to have this option, studying kinesiology is very hands on so you really do need to be in the class room so you really see what you need to do and so the tutors can help you with anything you are struggling with.
In Level 1 of the Diploma the focus is on learning how to muscle test, how to do pre-checks and how to do basic corrections. These are the fundamentals of every kinesiology balance. And throughout Level 1 you are constantly doubting if you will ever remember all of the pre-checks or wondering if you will ever get the hang of muscle monitoring. But it all does fall into place and when it does your confidence grows and you realise you actually can do this kinesiology thing.
Throughout it all, the trainers and tutors are there to teach you and support you and are constantly reminding you that adult learners are the hardest on themselves. Kids know they are learning and don’t expect they should know everything but adults put this expectation on themselves. And over achievers like myself put so much pressure on themselves. I had always done well at school but I knew nothing about chakras and auras and meridians when I started so I felt like I was very out of my depth. So it’s actually really great that the Level 1 trainer used to be a kindy teacher because she is so kind and patient and fun and I will always be grateful for how she eased me into learning kinesiology and made it fun.
Another way the college helps you gain you confidence is through peer support. The college has rolling intake so you can enrol in term 1, 2 or 3. This means that each term there’s always new students coming in but there’s also students that had just completed the previous term. At first I found this intimidating because I didn’t know as much as they did but I later loved having the students ahead of me always there reassuring me that I would get the hang of it, that they had been there too and reminding me that it all just becomes part of your motor pattern the more you practice.
In Level 2 there is a shift as you start to learn about specific body systems. The content can be overwhelming, especially if you have zero experience with the human body like me. But I had a huge interest in the brain and loved the Neurological class which motivated me, even if it was probably my hardest class. There’s also units on the actual business side of things like creating your policies and creating your business plan. I really enjoyed working on my business plan and it felt good to tap back into my marketing skills from my uni days.
Level 2 did feel like it was full on especially when life throws things in your way but I was determined to see this through and even fast tracked my Diploma by doing some units ahead of schedule. And that’s another way the college is very supportive and flexible. They work with you and the pace you need to go at so you can even speed things up or slow things down if you need. You can even switch between weekday and weekend classes (in levels 1 and 3) if you need to.
I had a taste of the weekend format when I did Advanced Energetics (this expands on the basic corrections) and while I enjoyed it, I really preferred the weekday format where you learn one day and then come to practice that same week and practice what you learned ready for the next week to learn something new. The weekend format is three days of learning every few weeks with weekly practice. The weekday format suited my learning style and my lifestyle much better but I love that there is a weekend option for those that work full time. And I loved meeting the weekenders at practice or during some of the non-kinesiology units or even during student clinic. There were a few that I really bonded with so it was always great when we would have another class or practice together.
Then there’s the assessments. Case studies, clinic assessments, written assessments and student clinic. These all felt intimidating and overwhelming but that was mainly due to the pressure I was putting on myself. The high achiever and perfectionist in me was always trying to over deliver and forgetting that I was there to learn. When I reframed the simulation assessments, in particular, into an opportunity for one-on-one mentoring and a chance to ask questions or receive support it changed my whole view and really helped get rid of the nerves.
I began Level 3 (the Advanced Diploma) while I was doing my Level 2 student clinic. It probably would have been better to have just done the student clinic that term like scheduled but I was on track to completing the Advanced Diploma in 3 years. But Level 3 really was the most fun because this was when everything really comes together and you spend a lot more time actually doing kinesiology. I had always known I was going to do the Advanced Diploma because I wanted to work with hormones. That was what had called to me from the beginning. So if anyone is reading this wondering if they should go through to the Advanced Diploma my answer is yes! The content isn’t as overwhelming as Level 2, you have more time to do kinesiology and the procedures we are given are just amazing. There really is a kinesiology balance for just about everything!
The unit that pushed me the most in Level 3 was Research Skills. I was happy to have my Level 1 trainer back but I chose a topic that wasn’t the easiest to research. But this topic actually helped me. Firstly, by realising how I was experiencing parental burnout and finally releasing the perfectionist, the good girl, the high achiever. It was liberating. And it led me to wanting to help other mums experiencing parental burnout. So I really appreciate finding a deeper purpose to the work that I do as a kinesiologist.
The Level 3 student clinic helps you gain more confidence in your skills as a kinesiologist. I found it so interesting and had fun. Unlike the Level 1 and 2 student clinic where you see different clients each week, the Level 3 student clinic is set up so you see eight clients for six sessions so you can really work on their issue. It was so amazing and fulfilling to see the clients improve with each session. And it was so great to focus on their issue and do a range of procedures on the one issue. The facilitators help you by providing the procedures you’ll need to do and being there to answer any questions before, during and after each session. It was really great to have this support and get instant feedback. And like I mentioned before, I made sure I went into the student clinic with the mindframe that I was receiving mentoring not trying to prove myself and I know this helped me get out of my own way and really enjoy student clinic. If you ever want to sign up for student clinic, give kinesiology a try and help the students develop their skills get in touch with the college here.
One thing I haven’t mentioned is the Spiritual Communications classes. There is one class for each level and I am so grateful for the spiritual growth I received as a result of this. They helped me understand myself better, to understand my relationships better and how to develop the practitioner-client relationship. The Level 3 class with the Chakra Between the Planes balances was by far the deepest. The focus is on being a competent, confident and successful kinesiologist which is just another fantastic way the college is helping set us up for success. The Between the Planes balances are so powerful I had a lot of old stuff come up but I’ll have to share that in another blog post!
On reflecting about my studying journey I am so grateful to have studied at O’Neill Kinesiology College. Not only do we learn to do amazing kinesiology balances but by practicing on each other we also received amazing kinesiology balances. So our whole physical, mental and spiritual bodies receive a tune up while we are studying which is really such a gift. Where else do you get to study something and get to receive the benefits of it at the same time? It also means that when we tell our clients about how a balance can help them we are speaking from our own experience.
I want to say thank you to Kirri, Jodie, Shannon, Jill, Jordan, Su and Kim for all of their knowledge, support and guidance. To Ana, Katrina and Naomi for all of their admin support. And I especially want to say a big thank you to Nicolie for all of her knowledge and wisdom and her passion. I am so grateful she discovered kinesiology and was so passionate about it that she started this college. This college changed my life in so many ways and I am forever grateful. I look forward to playing my part in helping spread the power of kinesiology.