Issue link: https://www.massageandbodyworkdigital.com/i/72121
SPEAK YOUR MIND I have two professional pet peeves. One: Women complaining about not shaving their legs before a massage. I explain to them that we don't even notice those little hairs. What we are focusing on is the feeling of the tissue beneath our touch and concentrating on that. Two: When clients show up late. I book my massage appointments every hour and a half. My massages usually take 70–75 minutes. When someone shows up late, then I feel I have to still stay in that time frame, which usually makes me feel like I rushed the massage. You should not rush craniosacral treatments. JUDITH WAY IDYLLWILD, CALIFORNIA Clients who do not shower before sessions. And no-shows! CHERYL SMITH NASHUA, NEW HAMPSHIRE What are your professional pet peeves? ABMP's Facebook page at www.facebook.com/ABMPpage. It's all semantics, but when I'm introduced, and people look at me sideways with raised eyebrows and a questioning look and call me a "masseuse," it makes me nuts. At the same time, it's an opening for a brief educational response about the value of massage therapy today. If I'm the first massage therapist they've ever met, all the better to leave them with a more informed view of our profession. ELLEN NEWTON STETSON SHREVEPORT, LOUISIANA My biggest professional pet peeve is MTs bad-mouthing other MTs. As a therapist, my concentration is on my clients and taking care of them. I really wish that this would be addressed in ethics classes. I would love to hear from other MTs if they have run into this. MICHELLE BUTON JOHNSON CITY, TENNESSEE 14 massage & bodywork january/february 2012