Jay Bartholomew

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My love for martial arts started at a young age, watching kung fu theatre on Saturday afternoons. I started karate at around age 14. When I was 17, I enlisted in the Air Force and worked as a K9 handler. I was exposed to many different styles of martial arts at the different bases where I was stationed. Upon returning home I found a teacher and started training in Northern Shaolin and TaiJiQuan, as well as, 7 Star Preying Mantis Kung Fu while working as a corrections officer. During that time I was sparring with as many different people in other styles as possible, and is when I discovered Brazilian JuJitsu and was hooked. After a few years I decided to improve my standup skills and took a trip to Thailand. I was already in my early 30s and had accrued a lot of injuries. So, while I was there, my coach had a little old lady come into the camp to give me a Thai massage. It was extremely painful, but when she was finished I felt amazing. That experience sparked my interest in massage and I enrolled in massage school a few months later and never turned back. Eventually I started teaching shiatsu and deep tissue massage (at the school I graduated from), while continually seeking to improve my skill set by studying various styles of massage. This is when I happened upon Daoism and had the opportunity to study under some amazing masters where I learned not only more bodywork, but also the in depth study of QiGong, Dai family XinYiQuan, TaiJiQuan and BaGuaZhang. Eventually finding myself in Alaska where I started teaching Anatomy and Physiology, as well as, muscle palpation skills at a local college. While there I started training in a system of reality based martial arts that focused on scenario replication. During the teacher certification course I suffered a severe concussion (my 9th one) and then things started quickly spiraling downward with extreme light and noise intolerance, loss of balance, and bursts of rage. I met a naturopathic doctor who used something called Lens Neurofeedback, which she said could help reverse the damage from the concussions. During the "brain mapping" sessions she noticed that the damage was so severe it wasn't even registering on the scale! I started weekly sessions and after the 2nd session, I basically slept for 2 days straight when there was finally some relief from the head pressure. Things gradually improved with the light and noise sensitivity so I re-examined all the training I had done over the years and started working on regaining my balance and movement. The results of all that experimentation is what I came to call HeartMind Coherence Exercises. Now in my 50s my main focus is on longevity and living a good life alongside my wife, Jenn. Without her patience, caring and focus on my nutrition, I wouldn't be where I am today.