Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/1037165
topic from my clients. No issue is off limits (within ethical boundaries) and I don't do much of the talking; I just listen. Sometimes, I respond slightly to let them know I am listening and I only answer when a direct question is asked. The problem with so many world issues today is that they come with a high level of passionate opinions. Are people so stressed about the world today that as soon as I begin treatment, their emotional turmoil surfaces to the point of needing to express it? As therapists, how on earth do we diffuse stress levels within our scope of practice and not become responsive or feel the need to defend something we may not agree with? How we respond as a massage therapist has the same outcome as how we respond in general to these intense and opinionated topics. Some of my clients who like to vent might assume that I agree with what is being said. But do I agree? In order to form a judgment or opinion, I feel it is my right to first get the facts. It is also important to point out the likelihood of damage that can take place when someone forms an opinion based solely on what other people say, without thinking for themselves. It shows me that what they see is what they choose to see, not the reality of what else might be going on. I had a client who was fired from her job because she was caught taking money from the business in a money bag to her car at the end of the day. The reality of the situation was the manager went home sick and asked if she could do a bank run. But the owner of the business fired her on the spot in the parking lot and didn't ask one question. Some people might wonder why she didn't explain herself. My question was why she would want to explain herself. I would not want to work for someone who formed an opinion that easily. Having the Middle Way approach doesn't mean we can't have our own opinions, but it does have the potential of being misunderstood. If I verbalize that I don't take a side one way or the other, does that make me the ultimate guru or can it be misinterpreted that I disagree with them? If I tell them I don't form opinions, will this make them feel uneasy? The Middle Way allows me to fully "take in" and educate myself on the topic of concern. I ask a lot of questions before I develop an opinion, if I develop one at all. It is only when we inspect both sides that we can truly form an educated opinion. Imagine for a moment if all the extreme thinkers stopped arguing and disagreeing and simply listened without the intent to respond or change others. Would they be more or less likely to have stress? Would this Middle Way unify such divided people? 16 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k n o v e m b e r / s e p t e m b e r 2 0 1 8 As therapists, how on earth do we diffuse stress levels within our scope of practice and not become responsive or feel the need to defend something we may not agree with?