Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/621015
38 m a s s a g e & b o d y w o r k j a n u a r y / f e b r u a r y 2 0 1 6 sweaty feet, and flatulence. Hopefully, anyone who can't handle that reality has already left the profession. STEPS FOR BETTER CONNECTION Feelings are important, but they are feelings, which are not the same as reality. We have the capacity to make choices that override our first feeling- based reactions, and, in time, those initial reactions can dissipate and disappear. Analyze Your Discomfort The first step after recognizing we have some level of discomfort is to try to figure out where it comes from, and, in that process, to determine whether the issue is a problem or not. Often the first place to look is within, since so much of what bothers us about others is a reflection of some quality of our own that we aren't happy about. And when we make peace with ourselves for our imperfections, it becomes much easier to be at ease with others who share them. A Problem An Example One Possible Solution (among many) You are nervous about an unknown condition. Your client tells you she has something you've never heard of: Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, for instance. Look it up, identify risks and benefits for massage, and make an informed strategy based on the literature, your skills, and your client's needs and input. Your client's condition connects to something that you struggle with. An overweight client for an MT who struggles with weight and body-image issues; an underweight client for an MT who struggles with bulimia. Forgive yourself for not being perfect; celebrate that this client is taking an active step toward excellent health. You are worried about catching something. An undiagnosed rash, an open lesion, etc. This may be the easiest one: if a client has an undiagnosed or open skin lesion, it needs to be covered and avoided. If you employ applicable Standard Precautions, you should be safe. Something about this client makes you wonder about an undiagnosed problem. Really bad breath or skin that feels or looks unhealthy. This calls for a separate conversation outside of the session room. Guidelines for this kind of communication go beyond this article, but the key principle is always centered on our scope of practice, the client's well-being, and offering appropriate referrals. The client smells bad or isn't clean. Passing gas or smelling like cigarette smoke. If a client's smell or cleanliness repeatedly makes it difficult to give him a great massage, it's time to have a conversation about it. But if it is a transient annoyance, then it is one of those things we get to deal with. Unconditional positive regard applies, no matter what. When Our Buttons are Pushed Every single one of us will be faced at some point with a client who has a condition or a physical characteristic that pushes some kind of emotional button in us. Here's mine: a client bought a gift certificate for her husband. His skin was sticky, and tiny pimples covered areas of his arms and legs. His heels were deeply cracked and discolored. His sweat smelled like ammonia. All of these were signs that his ability to manage waste products was compromised. Rather than give him the safest and most caring massage in my power, I gave him the worst massage I could manage in the hope that he would never come back. Indeed, he didn't. But this is a bad way to manage the problem. It would have been a courageous and much more ethical choice to conclude his appointment with a conversation in which I urged him to see his doctor for a general checkup because I observed some things that made me generally concerned for his health. Practice Makes Comfortable Are you nervous about working with a client who has a lot of body hair? It's probably because you want to give him a great massage, and you're not sure you can—that's a good kind of nervousness. The first few times it will be a little difficult. Then, you'll figure it out, and it will be just another great day at your office. You can expedite the process by seeking out extra practice: see if one of your hirsute colleagues will let you experiment with lotions, oils, and techniques to find your best strategies. The same principle applies to situations like working with clients who are overweight, or those who are super-muscular, or those who are smaller and thinner than the average person. Look for opportunities to work with the situations that flummox you, and you will cease to be flummoxed. Enlist Your Client as Your Partner Does flaky, itchy skin make you shiver? In a situation where a person presents with psoriasis or eczema, we can quickly remind ourselves that the condition isn't contagious and it doesn't spread. The worst thing we could do—besides making our client feel