This year marks 20 years practicing massage therapy for me. I can hardly believe it most of the time, and suffer from acute impostor syndrome on the regular. I do not feel like an expert in any way and I know my lane. That being said, I have become very comfortable in myself and my skills and abilities, and although I certainly am very particular about many things, I have no pressure or desire to be all things to all people. I have grown confident in the knowledge that some people will think I give the best massage they’ve ever had; and some people will think I gave the worst.
I have no problem with someone finding their right fit and do not take any offence at clients moving around. I would rather people seek out who works for them, than not like my technique and think massage just isn’t for them. But I do try, and I do attempt to give a good treatment; no one is a VIP to me, it should all be the same. I honor the idea that someone is allowing me to touch them and paying their money for my skills and time. Not everyone may like me, but I sure never want it to be a bad experience overall.
I enjoy my work and it has offered me a lifestyle that allows me so much freedom, and has given me a chance to have time to run and weight-train, and have a day off in the middle of the week. I do work on the weekend and I have some irregular hours that used to be a sacrifice with having a family, but also are a trade off to not have a more traditional work week and hours behind a desk.
I have made friends with clients and colleagues and have received such an amazing window into the human condition, in getting to hear a wide range of stories and perspectives; and have conversations with people of so many ages, cultures, careers, and backgrounds. I have been allowed into an intimate space with thousands of people who sometimes tell me amazing things, or rest in silence with me. I have received trust and been allowed to care for people, some of whom I see for years, very regularly, and some for one hour only. Some people I have spent many hours with and we have never even really had a conversation, nor know much about one another, but they let me into their bubble and give me their trust.
I can no longer name every muscle in the body, nor their origin and insertion, and my current practice does not require orthopedic testing and gait analysis. I think more in terms of movements and opposing muscle groups. I see the body as a whole. My history and knowledge in exercise physiology, and my certifications in personal fitness training and exercise science have given me an interesting perspective, but the hands-on time I have spent and the uncountable number of bodies I’ve massaged, have shown me a great deal. In a regular month I have my hands on 70-100 people! Every month. I can’t imagine that I am exaggerating to say that I have given 12 thousand massages in my career and that may be low.
There are things I dislike about massage. There are moments that are tedious and hard and sometimes. I do wonder if I can do this forever. I do wonder what the next 20 years looks like. Continued education and taking courses that wake up my mind and allow me to see the body in a new way, and get back some excitement are paramount.
I have been very lucky and attribute weightlifting, not over doing my daily schedule, and an overall healthy lifestyle, to my longevity in a career that does seem to have high injury and turn-over. When I started this in 2000, I would never have imagined that I’d be here still; and when I started my current job at age 25, I couldn’t have even imagined that I’d be there still (with no intentions of leaving) at nearly 42.
I could write a rule book for clients and therapists alike. I have many rules and ideals about what to do and what not to do; from how the room should look and all the small things, to general practices and behaviors. Clients: Don’t wait in the waiting room for 10 or 20 minutes, only to go use the bathroom when we take you in to your appointment (that cuts into your time). Therapists: Don’t keep talking to clients unless they are running the conversation! Therapists should be quiet if the client is quiet…..I could go on and on!
Over the years I have seen some repeated things that have made me very aware of certain body connections that are hard to ignore. The body is a whole and no part is truly separate from the rest. The facial trains and links from your toes to your nose are real. Neck pain is jaw pain is shoulder pain and on the story goes.
Hip pain often is accompanied by tight calves. Which is truly the symptom or the cause? Scar tissue from some old surgery or injury is not without repercussion, there is often a pull or range of motion affected.
The body is such an intricate and complicated machine and it is ever fascinating and frustrating for me. There are so many things I have learned, felt and seen over these two decades that are not in text books and nothing that I can put down, but simply just know, at this point.
I am lucky to be at a job that allows me to be the good part of someone’s day; the thing they look forward to all week. I get to be a birthday gift or an anniversary date. I help a person de-stress and heal and help them to move easier and sleep better. I love that I get to see some people visibly look lighter and happier after a massage and I am really glad that I applied for massage school all those years ago, on a whim basically. I had never received a massage and wasn’t a touchy person then, and it has made me different and better and enhanced my life in nearly every way.
Periscopecake 