Gerald Vest

ACSW, LISW, LMT

Free

Holistic Health Practices Expert

Gerald Vest

Gerald Vest Quick Facts

Main Areas
Individuals, Groups and Community Health, Wellness, & Stress Management
Best Sellers
1999 Compendium of Diabetes Best Practices, Quality of Care ~ National Projects, Selected Best Practice Research for Past Decade, Health Care Financing Administration, American Association of Health Plans, and American Diabetes Association
Career Focus
Providing Reintegration Practices with Soldiers & Advancing the Global Use of Touch with Elders
Affiliation
New Mexico State University; US Army Community Services; Las Cruces Health Promotion Team; 15-Minute StressOut Program Author/Team Leader
Brief Overview of Current Practice:
In addition to teaching social work practice (part time), I am a full-time clinical social worker with the Wm. Beaumont Army Medical Center, Warrior -Restoration & Resilience Center (R & R), Ft. Bliss, TX. I also administer and support an international community of certified partners of the 15-Minute StressOut Program for the US Army, individuals, couples, groups, families, and communities; serve as Team Leader for Las Cruces, Health Promotion Team with Elders; and, facilitate stress management classes for US Army Community Services, Ft. Bliss, TX.
International Projects:
"Communication & Networking with the International Human Services BBS," Autonoma University, School of Social Work, Juarez, Mexico (See, 1989 Article); International Street Kids Research Project, with Autonoma University, School of Social Work, NMSU Department of Social Work & Utah State University, Department of Social Work, Juarez, Mexico (See, 1989 Article)

Teaching, Research, and Publishing Areas and Interests:

Has taught generalist and advanced practice courses in holistic family practice, social policy and advocacy, social work practice with our elders, approaches in Gestalt psychology & complementary medicine, human behavior & social environment, self-defense, health and wellness, administration with a teamwork focus, community resources, and computer use in human services.


Conduct workshops, provide clinical practice with youth-at-risk, individuals, couples, families and groups; serve as consultant-trainer for several organizations, including bi-monthly workshops with the US Army and formerly with NASA-White Sands, AmeriCorp, mental health, and senior programs.

Research concentrations include:

Using touch or physical interaction and other integrative health practices to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression and to promote safe, skillful, and nourishing touch; computer technology linking people, resources, and ideas; holistic health/integrative medicine; and, field education practices.

Free Articles & Book Excerpts

Free Audio & Video Samples

Gerald Vest Audio & Video Programs

Articles by this expert

SelfGrowth articles and saved writing connected to this expert.

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"If you're a veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom (O1F) or Operation Enduring Freedom(OEF), we welcome you home and sincerely thank you for the time you served. Words can't convey the deep appreciation that we and other Americans across the country have for your valor, commitment, and hard work. While in harm's way, you endured many hardships, from constant threats and unpredictable crises to extreme temperature, chaotic operations, absences from loved ones, and uncertainty about your return home.

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PTSD occurs when a person has experienced, witnessed, or has been confronted with a traumatic event, which involved actual or threatened death or serious physical injury to themselves or others. At which point they responded with intense fear, horror or helplessness. These diagnostic criteria for PTSD falls into three groups and are summarized as follows: 1)Re-experiencing the trauma (nightmares, flashbacks, and intrusive thoughts). 2)Numbing and avoidance of reminders of the trauma (avoidance of situations, thoughts and feelings, etc.).

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Scientific inquiry, research investigation, "finding out," and the like, all have their beginnings in the explorativeness of the child, a neotenous trait of supreme value, which is a never-failing mark of the active mind and the youthful spirit." (Ashley Montagu, _Growing Young_) I have been ...

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"Above all else, it seems to me that it is our role as human beings always to join learning to loving-kindness. Learning to learn, learning to love, and to be kind are so closely interconnected and so profoundly interwoven, especially with the sense of touch, it would greatly help toward our ...

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Sharing a Personal Experience Meditation and developing an Open Mind helps us relax, enjoy our experience of living, relating, and relieves our stress, anxiety and depression. In this brief article, I am introducing some thoughts and observations about my meditation practice as a living ...

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While maintaining mindfulness and conscious awareness of our breath, can our experience with nature be witnessed as our Being and with our True Nature? Perhaps, one of the most important questions we can ask ourselves and others--What is Happening--Physically, Mentally, Emotionally, Spiritually and Socially?

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NASW New Mexico State Conference Workshop-Serving Injured Warriors by Gerald Vest National Injured Warrior Alliance (NIWA) - Serving Injured Warriors, Vets & Families with Integrative Health Practices. Feb. 22, 2012, 1:30-5:00pm – “Welcome Home with Daryl Worley – our returning warriors giving the StressOut with elder Vets in Nursing Home.”See, Article - Ft. Bliss Monitor, http://jerryvestinjuredwarrior.com (Video by SSG Paul Jeffers--A true welcome home for new returning Warriors giving StressOuts and visiting with their elder Brother & Sister Warriors.) Presentation Outline

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National Injured Warrior Alliance (NIWA)-- Recovery-Restoration-Resilience Individual Health Care Plan & Daily Routine Self-Care Outline Gerald W. Vest, LISW/LMT UNM Tricare Provider Introduction As Chinese medicine is described by Bill Moyers in "Healing and the Mind: "...it is believed that how you live ultimately influences your health. It's not just diet or exercise; it's also a spiritual or emotional balance that comes from the way you treat people and the way you treat yourself. And since that's the basis of their culture, it spills over into their medicine."

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Jun 2007 @ 21:56 Serious Probems Continue in MH - "Simply understanding 'reasons' for our fears in an attempt to control them only strikes at the symptoms, not the cause. The real source of fear lies in our minds--adding more thoughts and concepts only supports the pattern of fear. We need a ...Jun 2007 @ 21:56 Serious Probems Continue in MH -r

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National Integrative Health Services Alliance, With Injured Warriors, Vets, and Their Families -- A Transitional Community Health, Wellness, Aftercare & Continuing Care Services Program Gerald Vest, ACSW/LISW/LMT Integrative Health Coordinator/Trainer 575.524.2379 or 575.640.0193 geraldvest@comcast.net Sean Pearson, BCJ, Services Rep. Program Coordinator/Advocate Trainer 575.496.3822 seanepearson@juno.com Patti McClure, MFA, Reiki Master & Owner, Tesoro Health Center, Administrative Coordinator http://tesorohealthcenter.com/ Mission Statement

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Breathing may be one of our most important guides readily accessible and available to us every moment of our life. Tarthang Tulku Rimpoche, author, teacher and Founder of the Nyingma Institute, describes breathing as our most effective means for healing, interacting and supporting our whole being. “Once we know how to contact the energy of breath, breathing becomes an infinite source of vitalizing energies.” Furthermore, he states: “…breathing charts the life rhythms, the way we breathe signals the disposition of our energies.”

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Mission Statement: The Fort Bliss Restoration and Restoration Resilience Center restores optimal functioning and battle-readiness to neurophysiologically, psychologically, and spiritually challenged post-deployment Soldiers and their families using integrated state-of of-the-art treatment to stimulate maximum resilience.

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Favorite Quotes & Thoughts from Gerald Vest

15-Minute StressOut Program & Organization -
I designed this 'healthy touch' program, in collaboration with the Associated Students Organization - New Mexico State University (NMSU), Health Promotion Team, NMSU School of Social Work and the Family Preservation Institute, as one alte ative for improving health and wellbeing in our university, society and beyond. After giving over 15,000 "stressouts" over a 10 year period, we learned that the 'stressout program' is safe to use with all populations. We use our skillful touch program with individuals, groups, couples, and families.

This program introduces and teaches mindfulness as an intrinsic awareness program for givers and our receivers of touch and physical interaction.

Contacting Gerald Vest

The Instructional DVD includes clearly defined boundaries, "Ethical Guidelines for the Safe Use of Touch" and step-by-step procedures available in English, Spanish, and Braille.

DVD - 25-Minute, KRWG studio production, with background music, "Heartbeat Rhythms," created by Karuna Warren and the New World Drummers.

DVD orders can be purchased by credit card for $25.00 + shipping--reseller's URL address: http://www.createspace.com/204644 . Do search the WEB for other distributors; however, locally, the Organ Mountain Coop, Las Cruces, NM and our Team Partners have a DVD available.

For complementary instructional DVDs, bulk orders and special offers, e-mail - geraldvest@comcast.net

How to get started

Our StressOut Program Experience is Often Described as Beyond Words!!!


Using acupressure and other skillful techniques, coordinated with the breath to balance our body, mind, emotions and spirit, is a heartfelt or empathic experience for both the giver and receiver of this partner massage .

While systematically applying pressure points and introducing the 'laying-on-of-hands,' we ask that givers and receivers maintain an awareness of their breath throughout the activity. While we refer to our "stressout program" as a chair like massage, it may be more accurate to describe the experience as a partner meditation -
relaxing, yet energetic, beyond words.

This website offers you an opportunity to learn about our program, join our global team, and, if you wish, become a Certified Partner
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Do visit our Ethical Guidelines for the Safe Use of Touch and our Protocol so that you can learn about our safety features and 'Step-by-Step Instructions' on giving and receiving our 15-Minute StressOut Program.

Other highlights