Client Interaction

A client posed an interesting question to me today; she asked if I thought that a person should be quiet during their massage in order to get the full benefit of it....in order to really experience their body. I surprised myself when my response to her was no. Because, technically, yes. No? If you are talking, you are not breathing. If you are not breathing you cannot possibly be focusing your breath into your body. If you are not focusing on your body, you cannot be fully experiencing it.

This is no instruction manual folks. I need opinions here.

But, I said no. Logic=it depends on why you are receiving massage. It depends on if you are chatting to ignore what is going on or in response to it. This particular client is chatty. No problem to me, I do not care either way. I do not encourage talking but I will be attentive and responsive to those who choose to talk during their session. Anyway, she chats. She needs to chat. For her massage brings up thoughts, feelings, and ideas. Emotions are stored in tissue and therapists often stir them during a session and then experience the result of the clients new state. Accessing tissue generally calls for a release of some sort. Often we ask people to breath. Some people curse or laugh or hum instead. Some people talk. I realized that as she asked me that question. I realized I accepted it as a valid form of release no more detrimental to the session than laughing or crying in her case. Whatever I rub out of her hamstrings goes zipping up to her brain and demands contemplation. She happens to think out loud.

Informed Choice - Finding a Massage School

So, I went to massage school 6 years ago. This is not an awfully long time ago, but it is enough time to observe a huge change in the education industry. The three major massage schools in my state have all changed ownership, been sold, or been eaten by a monster company. I have people who ask me where they should go for massage school. Well, I have no idea! When I went to massage school, I looked at massage schools all over the country. Since I was moving, and was not exactly set on where, this was no problem for me. Luckily for normal people, most states have more than one choice of school. Even with many of the schools being owned by the same company, every school is different. The schools philosophy and the individual people who teach there will have the greatest impact on the education you walk away with.
When I started school, I knew I wanted to do something that looked more like treatment/medical massage. Thus, I considered the curriculum of each school, the internships available, AND the cost. I am far from provided for, and some schools require you provide a lot of your own equipment early on. This can get pricey since you have no idea if bamboo fiber sheets are really that much better than flannel, or if you will really use that extra low table feature....ever. Some schools are farther left in the world of natural healing than others. What matters is finding the school that is marching to your own little beat.
This worked out for me.
I picked the school that seemed to focus the most on the treatment of injuries and maintenance of the body. I went through a full year of anatomy, physiology, and knesiology (instead of the 6mo some schools provide). Also, I got to intern at a hospital. These extra learning experiences made all the difference when it came to my confidence in treating clients and my eventual move into training and managing other therapists.
Another thought to consider beyond what I wanted to do in my practice, was where I wanted to do my practice in ten years. Since massage is not regulated at the national level, every state has its own set of requirements. My way around this was to attend school in a state that had some of the highest standards, that way when I moved again (nomadic much?) I would not be finding myself back in school. Thankfully, there is the National Board Certification which also covers folks who find themselves less rooted.
The truth is, you can find a school almost anywhere. The key is to find YOUR school. Mine, unfortunately, is gone. Sold, then sold again, I can no longer herd seekers that way with confidence. Ah well, in the words of Tori, "all will find its way in time". She probably means us, too.

Truth and Exfoliation

So, I had the kind of day at work where I saw only men. Seeing how as I see 4-5 people a workday, that is something that rarely happens to me. Men, in huge massive general terms, tend to receive massage less than women do. There are many reasons for this and it is not at all the point of this post. The point is this; my friend asked me if I was more tired after working on men all day and to answer completely honestly I had to say, no, I was not. The upside to working on men is that you get to use my forearms all day, since they tend to have broader surfaces, and the high body hair to exposed skin ratio makes for the best darn natural exfoliation ever! My girlfriend probably has no idea that the soft arms she so adores comes, in part, from me rubbing hairy men on a regular basis. (.....until she reads this blog, that is.)

Infinity

"Note, there is no difficulty in focusing our eyes to infinity; we do it all the time."

This sentence was stumbled over in my physics lab manual and while it speaks of relevant issues to the physics of light, I found it to be especially insightful. Quite literally, we do focus our eyes to infinity nearly everyday. We day dream. We slip deep into thought. We stare out over the ocean. We stare at the blue sky. We stare at our ceilings. It is natural. It comes naturally to us.
I am in the last year of schooling for my current degree. Since I have no idea what school will accept me into their physical therapy program, beyond graduating from this college the rest of my plan looks a lot like infinity. I can visualize the end that I am aiming for but everything in between looks like a yet formed molecular web. There are a few constants I hope to hang onto, a few luxuries I would rather not part with, but the goal is simply to reach the end, whichever end that shows up as. And honestly, considering what I am trying to do and how much work still lies ahead, it may as well be as far as infinity. So, I suppose, the take away lesson here is; relax, keep your eyes open, we do this all the time.

Scholar-Ship

So, I got a scholarship this past week. 67% as a an excuse to take a Friday night off of work, I attended the awards dinner. Which was great. My friend, Knave, who accompanied me was commenting on how novel it was to be in a room full of people who seemed genuinely optimistic about the future. In truth, if I had just paid that much money to help send other peoples kids to school, I would want some freaking optimism served with my wine, too!
Aside from the evening being an honor parade it was actually uplifting to see that many people turn out to say congratulations to some hard working students. Most of these folks overcame difficult backgrounds in order to become abnormally productive. Seriously, I was an honoree and I could not believe what all these people do. I tell people I just gave up sleeping and a social life to meet my goals; some of these kids must have given up breathing. Oy. It just goes to show that anything is possible if you have the will and a little support.
I worked through high school. I worked through massage school. I am working through college. The good thing about massage school was you had two options for when you wanted to take your classes. If you got kids, study when they study. If you got a job, study when you get off. It was really nice to have that flexibility. And, there was a ton less homework. A ton. Speaking of, I am going to go write a paper about what will happen to you if you hold your breath while 20,000 feet above sea level.
It is going to be a very short paper.

An Introduction of Sorts - Beginning Thoughts from A Student of Physical Therapy, Massage, and Furthering Education

You never notice how much you do until something grabs hold of you and makes you stop doing what you do. The realization comes once you are put back down and find yourself lost in the race to catch up. Oy...

My mom came into town this past weekend to visit me. Much like any parental visit it was filled with moments of glee for experiencing what I have missed, deep reflection on the possible implications behind the fact that you look EXACTLY like them, and the overwhelming relief of driving them very far away from your house. Today, I put her on a plane headed home and have spent the last four hours staring at my desk wondering how the hell I got myself into school, work, and a relationship, all at the same time. As of now, I have 51.5 hours to complete a summary of the human digestive system, get really good at the physics of sound, and polish up a workshop on how massage therapists can most effectively communicate with their clients. .......35.3 hours, minus sleep and travel time.


For those of you who do not know me, I am a three quarter time massage therapist, full time physiology student, overtime girlfriend, and aspiring physical therapist. I accept gifts of stolen spoons, dark chocolate, and mathematical advice from physicists. The physicists part, I thought I would never hear myself say. I went from four years of theatre to three years of massage therapy and no one ever asked me the intensity of a sound wave bouncing off of a moth from 3 meters away. In truth, it is kind of fun. I find I do not mind that in order to get into any school of Physical Therapy, anywhere, you have to study physics for a year. I moved to Seattle to study massage therapy because it is one of the better places in the country to do so. I enjoyed the education I received here. I sat up on warm Arizona nights searching the Natural Healers website for schools (as folks in Phoenix need the Internet to find anything natural) and landed myself in Seattle, where I was taught that the body is just a very impressive tower of levers. I fell in love with all the mechanics of the body and I let that affection carry me all the way back to a big university that now requires me to examine that love from molecule to radian. It is true that love can deepen with knowledge.


Speaking of knowledge, I have an exam in 58.84 hours. My mom called to let me know she landed safely. My sister called to ask me how things went with mom. My girlfriend called to let me know she has safely arrived at her business hotel. My cat would like dinner. And I hear 8 hours of sleep is a good thing.